Detroit hosted the 21st World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems this year, and although much of the program was forward-looking, it was also a time for the industry to look back and consider what has been accomplished in the 20 years since that first event.
“One of the things people don’t often appreciate is that the last 20 years in ITS have not been easy,” says Scott Belcher, president and CEO of ITS America*. “It has been a lot of hard work. We wouldn’t be where we are if not for the investment of some visionaries, and companies that were willing to take on some challenges and really stick it out.”
Belcher notes that when the world first stumbled upon the vision of using technology to solve transportation problems, a lot of the private sector thought ITS would be a big pot of gold at the end of the proverbial rainbow. “But technology doesn’t necessarily work that way,” Belcher continues. “And I think a lot of the government agencies thought ITS was going to solve all their problems, and it didn’t happen nearly as quickly as expected. With that as a backdrop, however, we have seen a number of significant accomplishments in ITS.”
*Editor’s note – As this issue of Pulse was being created, it was announced that Scott Belcher would be leaving ITS America at the end of October 2014 to become CEO at the Telecommunications Industry Association. Best wishes to Mr. Belcher and our sincere thanks for the insight he provided to this article.
One of the greatest changes in the ITS industry over the past two decades is the fact that technology has grown to become a mainstream aspect of transportation on every level – from vehicles to infrastructure to transportation agencies. In the US, progressive states that have embraced ITS, like Michigan, now include technology in transportation projects from the start – a very different scenario from the past.
“We have mainstreamed ITS into each department,” says Kirk Steudle, director of Michigan DOT and ITS America Chair.
“What drove much of the public's acceptance of ITS is smartphones. It is about having information at your fingertips.”–Kirk Steudle, Director of Michigan DOT and ITS America Chair
Transportation technology has also become accepted – and even demanded – by the general public. While 20 years ago the average person would not associate transportation with technology, today ITS has become embedded in the way all people relate to transportation in the US and the rest of the developed world.
“What drove much of the public’s acceptance of ITS is smartphones,” Steudle explains. “It is about having information at your fingertips. The demand for information is what really helped ITS become much more accepted in all of society.”
“Look at the success of traveler information,” Belcher adds. “States are getting record numbers of hits on their 511 systems. People expect to have information all the time, and they are becoming much more reliant on transportation technology.”
Steudle says that Michigan DOT now receives comments from the public when a traffic signal is not actuated. “People are beginning to demand more of that immediate response from the infrastructure as well.”
The reason for the acceptance of ITS is the major advancements in the past 20 years that have changed transportation.
“All the major urban areas in the US have deployed traffic management systems that provide tools allowing DOT operators to improve incident response times and improve the utilization of the existing highway capacity,” notes Steven W. Dellenback, Ph.D., executive director for research and development in the Intelligent Systems Department at the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI).
Major ITS advancements in the area of traffic management also include adaptive signal control, adaptive ramp meters and managed lanes. In addition, traveler information has become a standard in the US – most US states now have 511 systems offering real-time information.
“It has been interesting to watch the transformation…as we went from signs to phones to websites…We used to get the data from loops, and then it became cameras and radar.”–Scott Belcher, President and CEO of ITS America
“Developments in cellular phone technology have expanded both data collection and dissemination,” says David Fink, director of transportation management systems for the Houston district of the Texas Department of Transportation. “Today’s mobile phones allow travelers to access real-time information by providing travel flow through GPS, Bluetooth and WiFi systems. This new mobility is being transferred directly to vehicles by either placing the technology within the automobile or docking to the cell phone.”
Fink also points to enhancements in communications using fiber optics and wireless systems. “These made ITS not only feasible, but also accessible to the general public,” he continues. “Before these systems became mainstream technologies, data collection and dissemination were cost-prohibitive and unreliable.”
“It has been interesting to watch the transformation in the 511 systems as we went from signs to phones to websites,” Belcher adds. “We used to get the data from loops, and then it became cameras and radar.”
The movement towards dynamic pricing has also been a significant accomplishment of ITS, says Belcher. The evolution of HOT (high occupancy toll) lanes and dynamic pricing for parking show that ITS enables society to incorporate basic economic principles into transportation operations.
While most of the ITS deployments over the years have focused on infrastructure, the vehicle has become a major focus in ITS, especially in recent years.
“The biggest accomplishment is now we are talking about the vehicle as part of ITS,” Steudle says.
Belcher agrees. “On the vehicle side, we have seen huge strides in safety technology to make vehicles safer and to avoid crashes,” he says. “Lane departure warning, adaptive cruise control – those vehicle features are mainstream now and they certainly were not 10 years ago.”
Indeed, Belcher notes that most automobile manufactures have evolved within the last five years alone. “OEMs are now bringing outside content into their vehicles,” he says.
“Connecting to the Internet and the Cloud, and aligning with companies like Microsoft, Verizon, AT&T and Google. Even 10 years ago none of those accomplishments would have been possible.”
There is no doubt that ITS has made major technological leaps and changed the way we interact with transportation, but what about the bottom-line benefits?
“First and foremost, improving automobile safety has been the greatest ITS benefit in the past 20 years,” says Randy Iwasaki, executive director of the Contra Costa Transportation Authority in California. Iwasaki says the evolution of safety features that are now available, such as anti-lock brakes, airbags, electronic stability control, installation of sensors and cameras, have all had a significant impact on reducing automobile-related fatality rates in the United States. “ITS saves lives, period,” he adds. “In 1993 there were 40,150 motor vehicle fatalities in the United States, in 2013 there were 32,850 fatalities. I believe that new ITS technology in cars is saving more lives than ever before.”
“We are all motivated to get to zero fatalities.”–Scott Belcher, President and CEO of ITS America
While most agree that ITS improves safety, some in the ITS industry are not satisfied with the results.
“We have not seen the decrease in fatalities that we are all working towards,” Belcher admits. “We are all motivated to get to zero fatalities.”
Belcher points out that the number of traffic fatalities has started to rise again in the last few years, but says this could be due to an increase in vehicle miles traveled, and agrees that, while the number of fatalities is unacceptably high, as a ratio ITS has made driving much safer.
“We are probably getting to the limit of what we can do to save people’s lives when they get in crashes,” Belcher adds. “The next generation of ITS – connected vehicle technology and some of the other technology advancements with cameras and radar – will start to have an impact on fatalities because we are now focused on preventing crashes from happening in the first place.”
Safety has been the major driver behind ITS in the US, however there are many other tangible benefits of this technology.
“A secondary, but equally important benefit has been the deployment of ITS strategies to improve mobility,” says Iwasaki. “The deployment of new systems has allowed engineers and planners to gather data from multiple sources and turn it into actionable information for the public.”
ITS is also having a major impact on driving down emissions, via technologies such as traffic management, electronic tolling and electronic weigh stations. In a presentation at the 2014 ITS World Congress in Detroit, Michigan this past September, Belcher pointed out that ITS can make proven reductions in congestion, fuel consumption and emissions. As an example, he cited Los Angeles County in California employing traffic signal synchronization to save drivers 31.3 million hours of travel time and 38 million gallons of fuel.
“Regarding non-recurring congestion from accidents, we see a huge benefit there,” adds Steudle of MDOT. “Our traffic operations center in Detroit can see all of southeast Michigan, and we can respond much faster when there is an incident on the freeway.”
“ITS enables quicker, more appropriate deployment to incidents,” agrees Fink of TxDOT. “Before ITS implementation, traffic managers had to deploy drivers or helicopters to view and report on-site crashes and estimate traffic flow. The cost in manpower and equipment was significant, not to mention time lost in inaccurate responses to life-threatening conditions. Now, traffic management centers use CCTV to view crashes and gather information to dispatch appropriate responders.”
When looking at the benefits of ITS versus the dollars spent, most experts agree that ITS has been worth the investment.
“There has been a return on investment for ITS,” confirms Dellenback of SwRI. “I believe traffic management systems have allowed us to slow down freeway expansions as we better utilize our existing capacity.”
“Many ITS options give 50 percent of the infrastructure construction equivalent but at 20 percent of the cost and 15 percent of the time,” adds Eric Sampson, a professor at England’s Newcastle University and ambassador of ITS-UK.
Many others agree. TxDOT’s David Fink says the return on ITS investment is much greater today, and, as technology continues to evolve, will progressively increase. For a conservative estimated ROI, he offers 11:1, meaning for every one dollar spent in operating and deploying ITS, the return to the general public is about $11.
“I think the number of lives saved…from ITS research and deployment is absolutely worth the investment.”–Randy Iwasaki, Executive Director of the Contra Costa Transportation Authority in California
“In Europe the ROI from ITS has varied from three percent to over 100 percent,” adds Sampson, who also agrees there has been a substantial drop in the cost of components for systems and complete ITS products and services. “As a working guide I would suggest 15 percent is usually easily achievable.”
“Regardless of the amount of money spent, I think the number of lives saved by advances in automobile safety that have come from ITS research and deployment is absolutely worth the investment,” Iwasaki concludes.
Although the first ITS World Congress held in 1994 in Paris represented the start of a global movement to promote intelligent transportation systems, and ITS is deployed more than ever around the world, each region has its own needs and goals.
“It is interesting to see the variability in ITS focus around the world based on culture,” Steudle notes. “The culture of how people move around, and the culture of how people adapt to technology is different.”
The car-centric US has been a leader in ITS, but some experts say its position has slipped in recent years, in relation to the momentum of ITS in Asia and Europe.
“I believe that ITS in the US is still working to catch up to the rest of the world,” Iwasaki says. “There is a great passion for technology, particularly ITS, in the United States, but our regulatory agencies aren’t able to keep pace with advances in technology and that has inhibited innovation and deployment of solutions by US companies. As a nation, we’re also working on how to address the problem of integrating new software applications and programs with legacy systems that are prohibitively expensive to replace.”
“However, the US is catching up quickly, and in my opinion ITS is beginning to look remarkably similar all over the world,” he adds. “Safety is a concern everywhere, and ITS offers solutions.”
Belcher feels the US recently took a huge step forward. General Motors CEO Mary Barra announced to ITS World Congress attendees that GM will offer semi-autonomous driving featuring vehicle-to-vehicle communications technology on some 2017 Cadillacs, making GM the first automobile manufacturer to do so. They have also partnered with Michigan DOT to deploy 120 miles of roadway in the Detroit area to support connected vehicles.
“The USDOT’s announcement that it will regulate connected vehicle technology is very important,” says Belcher. “I think the United States has reasserted its leadership in the ITS space.”
Meanwhile, Asia is aggressively pursuing ITS. For example, Japan has a significant deployment of vehicle-to-infrastructure technology. Singapore, Korea and Taiwan are making similar progress.
ITS applications are now incorporated in some form in all new vehicles and major road projects in Australia as well, according to the Australian Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development.
Europe has also been a significant adopter of ITS technology, often with the goals of mobility and reduced traffic in mind, incorporating ITS to support trains, rapid transit and even bicycles and pedestrians.
“Some EU countries see ITS as a path to greater safety – even ‘zero fatalities’,” explains Sampson of ITS-UK. “Others see a mixed gain of more comfortable and more economical journeys for both people and goods with an enhanced safety case. Most EU countries value enhanced real-time information and are comfortable with the principles and the politics of road user-charging schemes.”
But Sampson also notes that the richness of the European scene is also a weakness. “Different national approaches frequently mean a much reduced ITS service when crossing a border,” he adds.
Belcher agrees. “Europe is similar to the US in the sense that we have to deal with states having different priorities, and Europe has to deal with each country’s different priorities. The European Union has invested in research and deployment to overcome some of those hurdles.”
Although the developing countries are adopting ITS at a slower rate, experts expect ITS to make an impact on these nations in the future. Currently, China and Latin America are leading the way.
“China is leapfrogging other countries in their deployment of ITS, because it is all greenfield development,” says Belcher. “But in other parts of Asia – such as India and Indonesia – we are not seeing the same extent as China, because their transportation challenges are so extreme.”
However, Sampson points out that developing countries, like China and Russia, face the challenge of bureaucracy subject to political, rather than transport-related, objectives.
In Latin America, Belcher notes that Mexico is having success with electronic tolling, having bypassed the hurdles the developed world had to deal with. He also says Brazil, Chile and Argentina have deployed advanced uses of ITS, but not in a coherent strategic way, like in the developed world.
“Much of the developing world’s basic transportation needs are not at the point where having technology like traffic signal prioritization would make much of a difference,” Belcher warns. “First they need to get roads down. ITS deployments can make more impact in the urban megacities.”
Belcher says obstacles to ITS in the developing world include funding, vision, and a good understanding of technology-availability and return on investment.
“To utilize ITS, the roadway infrastructure has to have some maturity, and electronics are required to be deployed – this will likely be a financial burden for developing countries,” Dellenback confirms.
But there is a positive outlook for the future. “When undeveloped nations acquire vehicles in the future, most of the ITS development work will already be done, and these nations will reap the benefits of research and testing being done today,” says Iwasaki.
“There is a huge opportunity in the developing world to not go down the same path we did, but rather leapfrog and catch up faster,” Steudle agrees.
“It could be argued that it is a wise decision to be second – to let the pioneers make the mistakes and set up systems with high operating costs so that you can watch, learn and then do better when you come to buy,” Sampson concludes. “Bodies such as the World Bank have been trying to push developing countries to be ‘second adopters’ and take what is known to work, and where the costs are stabilizing, rather than try to deploy the latest and the best.”
“There is a huge opportunity in the developing world to not go down the same path we did, but rather leapfrog and catch up faster.”–Kirk Steudle, Director of Michigan DOT and ITS America Chair
With connected vehicle technology on the verge of revolutionizing our transportation systems – both vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communications – the potential for ITS may be greater than it has ever been before.
“Huge progress has been made in ITS,” Belcher states. “It may not have been as quickly as some people hoped, but I think we are poised for a major advancement now. I am really optimistic about it.”
Belcher and other experts predict that a few ITS-enabled megatrends will shape transportation in the future. Some of these megatrends include car-sharing, data and analytics, and the “Internet of Things” but clearly the two most important are connected vehicles and autonomous vehicles.
“Soon we will see commonplace vehicle-to-vehicle communications, and this innovation will save lives and reduce traffic crashes,” Fink asserts. “The improvements of ITS over the past 20 years have built a foundation for the next generation of technology – the autonomous vehicle. The next step is to cut out the middle man – the driver – so that vehicles communicate directly with each other.”
“We are on the cusp of seeing connected vehicles become a reality,” Belcher agrees. “However, if we don’t deploy quickly, in the next couple of years, we will lose it.”
Many decisions still need to be made, but much of the technology is here now, built on the hard work and commitment of the ITS industry and transportation agencies for more than two decades. From this perspective – looking back at the history of ITS and towards its exciting future – one could say the connected autonomous vehicle has been the destiny of ITS all along.
“The improvements of ITS over the past 20 years have built a foundation for the next generation of technology…The next step is…that vehicles communicate directly with each other.”–David Fink, Director of Transportation Management for TXDOT
“With regard to the future of connected and autonomous vehicles, there are still many questions,” Belcher concludes. “Does the infrastructure have to stay the same? Do we still need traffic signals? Do we need traffic lanes? These are questions that will impact transportation planning for the next 20 years. We don’t have all the answers yet, but these are very interesting questions.”
