Managing Traffic Incidents - University of Queensland

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Roads and Traffic Authority of NSW Managing Traffic Incidents Current integration of traffic management activities is fragmented. Communication is predominately by telephone, e-mail and fax. Closed circuit television coverage is transmitted between the Main Roads Traffic Management Centre, the Brisbane City Traffic Control Centre and Police Communications. A trail joint initiative by Main Roads- Queensland Police Service called Operation Freeflow was undertaken in the three months ending June 2001. The trial included motorcycle police performing mobile patrols on selected motorways within Brisbane during the morning and evening peak periods to significantly reduce the response time Traffic Control Centres Sydney’s Transport Management Centre (TMC) was commissioned in August 1999 in readiness for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. The Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) purpose-built the new TMC at a cost of $A30 million. During the Olympic Games it was the command and control centre for Olympic public transport and traffic. RTA, Police and State Transit Authority (public transport) officers operate the control centre and professional and support staff are co-located to maximise support capabilities. The Victorian State government traffic authority, VicRoads, operates a Traffic Control and Communication Centre which manages the 3,400 traffic signals across the state and over 140 CCTVs in Melbourne (other than on the City Link Tollway) and handles 250,000 telephone calls each year, of which over 60,000 are requests for assistance. VicRoads’ automatic incident detection system, utilising loop detectors on the major freeways, is also being used in Adelaide. MRWA has recently established a new traffic control centre, which includes a system installed by MI Transport Systems similar to the CCCS being used by City Link in Melbourne. A digital camera based automatic incident detection system is also currently being evaluated. Incident Management Systems Queensland Main Roads has a manual incident management system, relying mainly on telephone calls from the public, which are verified through cameras, but also has a semiautomatic incident detection capability using in-road loop detectors. Incident management modules are being included in the redevelopment of Main Roads traffic management system (STREAMS), including automatic incident detection based on a combination of loop and video detection systems and sophisticated analysis and prediction algorithms. Systems will be available for incident logging, reporting and analysis and preset response plans. Future plans include extending incident management systems from freeways to heavy trafficked local streets and producing automated incident response plans for decision support. RTA NSW has been putting considerable effort is being focussed on progressively developing preset automated incident response plans (25 staff are currently involved in response planning and system configuration). Responses include providing a detour, changing traffic signal timing through SCATS, changing speed limits through variable speed signs and advisory messages to motorists over a network of variable message signs. The incident management system consists of a Central Management Computer System (CMCS) which is either activated through the automated incident detection system or by the operator. The CMCS supplied by Serco Systems is based on the NADICS system in Scotland. The Melbourne City Link comprising 22 km of upgraded and new freeways, transforms the existing freeway system, dramatically reducing traffic congestion. It is the world's largest application of electronic tolling technology at freeway speeds in an urban road setting, making the tollway one of the first to commit fully to the concept of cashless tolling. The focus on incident management is to ensure a high level of service to toll road users. It is a single operator controlled tollway using a Central Control Computer System (CCCS). The CCCS solution integrates traffic management and tunnel plant control systems into a single operator interface and includes a state-of-the-art incident management system, with automatic incident detection by real time 2 DECEMBER 2001
digital image processing, automated response plans and decision support systems for response management by the operator. The key benefits of the CCCS include: – Single interface to all traffic and tunnel control functions – Able to manage the entire freeway with a single operator – resulting in reduced costs and training requirements – Cost effective PC based solution, with high availability (99.97%) – Enables incorporation of new developments in traffic forecasting/incident detection algorithms and automatic traffic control functions The CCCS provides an Incident Response Plan facility as a decision support system assisting the operator’s response to an incident, and reducing the chance of operator error. The Plans are pre-programmed and tested, but can be changed in real-time by the operator. The Plans allow a single operator to respond to multiple simultaneous events, in order of priority, with the lowest possible effort. The primary incident management systems in place in South Australia is on the reversible Southern Expressway in Adelaide (traffic flow is in one direction in the morning peak and reverses for the afternoon) and the Crafers Tunnel. The incident management system is based on the VicRoads system used in Melbourne, using loop detectors and automatic incident detection which generates an alarm. Detection The primary means of detection of incident used in Australia rely on phone calls from the Components of the Melbourne City Link Tollway System integrated into one interface: AID – Automatic Incident Detection System VMS – Variable Message Signs ADS – Advisory Signs (Ramp Signs) LUS – Lane Use Signs OHVD – Over-height Vehicle Detector CCTV – Closed circuit televisions (100 installed) PMCS – Tunnel Plant Monitoring and Control System TIMS – Tunnel incident management signs VSLS – variable speed limit signs RES – ramp exit signs WIMS – Weigh in Motion System METS – Motorist Emergency Telephone System RRB – Radio Rebroadcast System Brisbane City’s Traffic Response Units road users, Police and transport agency staff, supplemented by monitoring by cameras. Sydney’s metropolitan road network is monitored by over 400 CCTVs and detector loops are being progressively installed at 500 metres intervals across the freeway network. These inputs together with information from the Sydney Coordinated Adaptive Traffic System (SCATS), which controls the traffic signals, and information phoned or radioed in by road users to the call centre, enables incidents to be rapidly detected and verified. Sophisticated neural network incident detection models, developed by leading Australian ITS researcher Dr Hussein Dia at the University of Queensland, have been shown to outperform existing automated incident detection models in terms of providing higher detection rates, lower false alarms and faster times of detection. Similar models, using real-time data from loop detectors are running on a number of freeways in Brisbane, Melbourne and Adelaide. Dr Dia is currently developing the next generation of artificial neural network incident detection models based on recent advances in the theory of neural computation. Automated incident detection systems have not been widely used because the false alarm rates are typically higher than other detection methods and data requirements involve considerable investment. Response Brisbane City Council, who are responsible for the major urban roads other than freeways, have established Traffic Response Units in 2000 primarily to clear blockages during the peak periods. National Response P/L TRANSPORT FUTURES 3
Page 1: TRANSPORT FUTURES EMERGING ISSUES A
Page 5 and 6: Public Transport Integration in Sou
Page 7 and 8: fare payers using the public transp
Page 9 and 10: eas, in particular in the Alps and
Page 11 and 12: - Measures to manage transport dema
Page 13 and 14: cate. These are referred to as 'int
Page 15 and 16: Report Card on ROADS Conditions Whi
Page 17 and 18: HDM-4 Analysis Modules The program
Page 19 and 20: My Fortunate Career — or was it j
Page 21 and 22: A Day in Transport Photographs by L
Page 23 and 24: The Ability of Road Roughness Measu
Page 25 and 26: Dia, H (2000c) Towards Sustainable
Page 27 and 28: Free Flow Tolling ― it works! exp
Page 29 and 30: Despite the enormous scale of this
Page 31 and 32: count. If the vehicle is not linked

Managing Traffic Incidents - University of Queensland

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