Policy and Organization Group

Policy and Organization Group

POLICY AND ORGANIZATION GROUP

Committee Triennial Strategic Plan (TSP)

Committee on Statewide Transportation Data and

information Systems (ABJ20)

Committee Name and Number: ABJ20, StatewideTransportation Data and

Information Systems

Committee Chairperson: Jack R. Stickel, Alaska Department of Transportation

and Public Facilities

TSP Three-Year Period: April 2012 to April 2014

Date Prepared: April 2012

Committee Future Outlook Statement

Committee Scope

Foster research and technology transfer activities pertaining to transportation data and information systems for statewide planning covering all modes of transportation. A primary concern is the capability of data management and information systems to integrate various transportation data sources to support a strategic intermodal statewide transportation planning.

Factors and influences that will shape the Committees activities

Influencing Factors – Short Term:

Surface Transportation Program Reauthorization

While the final structure of the surface transportation program reauthorization is yet to be determined, the transportation community can be fairly certain that the final outcome will be performance-based. This single entity will require state transportation agencies to better align their data programs to their agencies strategic planning process.

Data Collection Technologies

Smart equipment and infrastructure will offer opportunities and challenges. Real-time data collection technologies includecameras, trafficflow information, Bluetooth technology, probe vehicles, road weather, freight movement digital tags, video logs, connected vehicle technology, and electronic crash reporting. New technologies such aspedestrian and bicycle data counters and cameras are emerging. Data quality and validation, privacy and legal concerns, co-mingling of public and private data, dual use of legacy systems for both real-time and planning, system performance metrics, and data management strategies for serving multiple agency needs will need to be considered. The FHWA Real-Time System Management Information Program, SAFETEA-LU Final Rule (8 Nov, 2010),which establishes the state requirements for implementinga real-time surface transportation information system, will need to be addressed.

Multiple Program Data Needs

There is increasing commonalityfor data needs and information delivery in a spatial environment within a transportation agency. Multiple programs, such as Strategic Highway Safety Plan (ICM), the Highway Safety Improvement Program, and Integrated Corridor Management, use the same data. With the transportation agencies fiscal constraints, data programs will need to demonstrate their value. The data maximum “collect once, use many times” will become paramount. Agencies must define what the core transportation data needsare for their strategic plan, how to synthesize multiple sources of information, how to avoid duplication of effort, how to effectively share this data, and establish a data governance business plan to execute these strategies.

Highway Performance Monitoring System (HPMS)

The HPMS 2010+ rollout has been a multi-year project to provide a data set for enhanced transportation network performance analysis with a spatial component. The HPMS submittal process will stabilize so that the HPMS data set can be applied to many of the State’s data need. Transportation agencies and TRB will need to examine and document the innovative ways that agencies are using the HPMS output.

Data Exposure

Transforming data to useful information and presenting this information to decision-makers and stakeholders, aka “exposing” the data, is the ultimate goal for transportation data managers. Establishing a good inventory of the exposure data and evaluating the data quality is a necessary first step in identifying gaps in the transportation data programs. A framework for assessing the adequacy, direction, and management of data programs has been established in the Transportation Data Self-Assessment Guide (NCHRP 08-36/100). States will need to further develop this concept into a comprehensive self-assessment guide that can accommodate a broad range of data program elements, including dealing with cloud strategies, data fusion, and the multiple data formats from contributors.

Stakeholder Information Needs

Understanding the consumer’sdataneeds, how these needs respond to changes in the transportation network, how to anticipate their changing needs, how they access transportation data, and how we present the information and metadata are critical components of data programs. Developing information delivery and communication strategies will be required to better position transportation data investments.

Influencing Factors – Long Term:

Work Force Development and Knowledge Management

State transportation agencieswill lose a significant portion of the experienced, knowledgeable technical leadership through retirements over the next five years. Agencies will need to develop comprehensive work force development and knowledge management programs to meet the knowledge, skills, and abilities that will be required in the future. This is especially true in the data and information programs, where there are rapid changes and increasingdemands from the data programs. Agencies will need programs to share new ideas on information technology delivery, emerging technologies, best practices, strategies to address performance issues, and pertinent new research.

Climate Change, VMT, and Clean Air

There does not seem to be a clear direction in the near-term for a National Policy on addressing climate change, revenue enhancement based on vehicle-miles-traveled (VMT), or surcharges for vehicle emissions. With the increasing financial and environment challenges facing state transportation agencies down the road, there may be substantive changes in the need for data collection and value-added information forecasts.

Committee Plan

Emerging issues inside and outside the Committee scope

The most critical issues related to transportation data and information systems, as viewed by the ABJ20 membership, are:

  • Consolidated RoadCenterline Network – develop state comprehensive road centerline networks, including being able to view data directionally in addition to by centerline.
  • Data Exposure -develop inventories on data sources, implement dataassessment processes that includes risk assessment and data gap analysis, and develop methodologies to communicate with stakeholders on data for decision-making.
  • Data Collection Technologies – address and share the new and emerging data collection technologies, including integration and communicating the hybrid data to the consumers.
  • Communication – focus on how we communicate transportation information to stakeholders and how we can use the social media, new and emerging technologies, list-serves, and other means to our advantage.
  • Data Governance – expand the data governance area to cover cloud strategies, data fusion, metadata, communication, risk assessment, gap analysis, cross asset analysis, data management, and data program self-assessment.

Projects and Activities

  • Scenario Planning– develop a process and framework for visualizing how data consumers, both within and external to the state transportationagency, will be using transportation data in their decisions. There is a wide TRB interest in scenario planning. A good first step would be a collaborative TRB workshop on scenario planning to cover the scenario planning framework and methodologies, then follow-up with a NCHRP project.
  • Information Resources – identify information resources and assess what sources are useful, including reliability and accuracy of different data sources. This involves understanding hybrid data sets, overcoming resistance to sharing, collaborating on data sets, effectively collecting and using data sets from both public and private entities, and addressing confidentiality issues. The first step would be a TRB session/workshop and follow with a synthesis on data sharing models, best practices, value/benefits, and strategies for overcoming barriers. Additional focus would be on developing a data management and warehousing guidebook and online guide for making data available.
  • Communication – develop guidelines and examples on how to effectively communicate transportation data and how to translate data to information in a meaningful way thatis tailored to questions that decision makers are trying to answer. Areas such as visualization of large data sets, geo-coding techniques, data mining techniques, effective packaging and communicating of information will be explored. Developing a framework and conceptual model for communicating transportation data will involve case studies on best practices on information transferability and potentially NCHRP research needs. Additionally, joint TRB session/workshop on delivering data for decisions will be explored.
  • Investment Targets – analyze the impact of better data and tools on decisions. This will involve compiling best practices on use of data/tools that support decisions. Focus will include the data quality assessment process involving data timeliness, accuracy, completeness, consistency, uniformity, and accessibility. Potential methodologies involve webinars, a best practice guide through a NCHRP research need, and targeting the best data to collect within the agencies time and fiscal constraints.

Communication

Alejandra Medina-Flintsch is ABJ20 Communications Coordinator. ABJ20 has a new committee web site: communication focus areas are:

  • Make theCommittee web site (a) an active source of information for committee members, (b) a portal to share transportation new, and (c) a resource to provide committee history.
  • Strengthen and add to our cross-committee liaisons with clear reporting responsibilities.
  • Start a liaison with state DOT data managers. There is also a wealth of knowledge among the state DOT data managers. We need to determine who they are and develop a forum for them to more readily communicate with each other.
  • Strengthen our partnerships with federal agencies. ABJ20 has strong relationships with the FHWA Offices of Safety and Operations, getting their programs publicized. ABJ20 wishes to continue and expand these relationships.

Membership Strategies

  • Update Committee membership to maintain balanced representation of both established and emerging technologies.
  • Ensure that Committee membership reflects a balanced composition with regard to geography, gender,race, ethnicity, and organizational affiliation.
  • Create active focus groups or sub-committees for specific data areas.
  • Maintain active participation in cross-cutting sub-committees and task forces through membership participation.

Research

David Schrank, Texas Transportation Institute,leads the ABJ20 research sub-committee. The sub-committees goals are to (a) revitalize the existing ABJ20 research problem statements in the Research Needs Statements (RSN) database( http:rns.trb.org/), (b) collaborate with other committees are future research needs, (c) actively pursue funding for the highly rated research needs, and (d) improve the dissemination process for completed research results and advances to all.

Proposed changes in scope

No changes in the scope or title are needed now.

Committee History

Committee website

Membership gender and racial diversity

Geographic distribution of membership

Professional affiliation distribution of membership

Subcommittees and their chairs

  • Bicycle and Pedestrian Data Subcommittee - ; Elizabeth Stolz, Chair ,Chaparral Systems Corporation

TheBicycle and Pedestrian Sub-Committee goal is to develop standardized national data structures that allow for accessibility, and integration of non-motorized datasets which guide and support traffic management, travel demand modeling, safety studies, and general y non-motorized planning and research efforts. The sub-committee is jointly sponsored by ABJ35 Travel Demand Monitoring Committee (lead), ANF20 Bicycle Transportation Committee, ANF10 Pedestrian Committee, and the ABJ40 Travel Survey Methods Committee.

Other committee relationships

ABJ20 maintains close formal and informal relationships with many different committees. They include, but are not limited to:

ABC30: Performance Measurement

ABC40: Transportation Asset Management

ABJ10: National Transportation Data Requirements and Programs

ABJ30: Urban Transportation Data and Information Systems

ABJ35: Highway Traffic Monitoring

ABJ40: Travel Survey Methods

ABJ50: Information Systems and Technology

ABJ60: Geographic Information Science and Applications

ABJ95: Visualization in Transportation

ADA10: Statewide Multimodal Transportation Planning

AHB15: Intelligent Transportation Systems

AHD10: Surface Transportation Weather

AHD65: Winter Maintenance

AHB20: Freeway Operations

ANF10: Pedestrians

ANF20: Bicycle Transportation

ANB20: Safety Data, Analysis, and Evaluation

AB010T: Task Force on Knowledge Management

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