FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday,
June 26, 2001
Contact:
Wally Weart
Tel.:
202-366-4013
FHWA 24-01
U.S.
Department of Transportation Designates Nine ITS Projects for National
Evaluation
U.S.
Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta today announced that the department
has begun to evaluate nine innovative Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS)
projects for ways that technology can be applied to improve transportation.
The
projects are in Delaware; Idaho; the Greater Metro Capital Region, which
includes the District of Columbia and parts of Virginia and Maryland; Greater
Yellowstone in Wyoming/Montana/Idaho; South Tahoe, Calif.; Portland, Ore.;
Grand Forks, N.D.; Port of New York/New Jersey; and Houston.
“We
must innovate and apply new technologies to get the most out of America’s
finite transportation infrastructure,” said Secretary Mineta.
“What we learn from evaluating these nine projects will help other
areas around the country to use these strategies to improve operations of
their transportation systems.”
ITS
combines information and communications technologies to help operate surface
transportation networks and improve transportation efficiency and safety.
These evaluations are designed to improve transportation safety and
system efficiency by sharing the results of innovative projects with
communities across the country. This
allows communities to learn from others’ experience and to adopt the best
practices for use in local transportation projects
The
nine sites were selected from among 93 locations that receive funding under
the ITS Integration Program. That
program’s objective, as specified in the Transportation Equity Act for the
21st Century (TEA-21), is “to accelerate the integration and
interoperability of ITS in metropolitan and rural areas.”
“Integration” and “interoperability” refer to the capacity of
technology systems to work together. The
Department of Transportation considers the nine designated projects as the
most promising for filling information gaps on the benefits and costs of
emerging and existing ITS technologies or for documenting newer, successful
ways of doing business.
The
nine evaluations will cost a total of $1.67 million and are being performed by
independent consultants. The
evaluations will focus on documenting lessons learned and steps needed to
share that information across the country.
The
following projects were selected:
Delaware – installation of a statewide Integrated Transportation Management System.
Idaho – integration of road weather information systems to improve statewide weather monitoring.
Greater Metropolitan Capital Region – integration of transportation and public safety data and voice communication systems in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia.
South Tahoe – merger of public and private transit resources into a bi-state, integrated centrally dispatched operation.
Portland
– integration and upgrade of a regional, multi-modal, traveler information
system and the integration of a freeway/arterial corridor surveillance and
control system.
Grand Forks – deployment of a roadway and subsurface sensor system that can help forecast pavement conditions.
Port of New York/New Jersey – deployment of the CargoMate Logistics Management System to track intermodal shipments at terminals and tenant facilities in the ports of New York and New Jersey.
Houston – deployment of truck safety and monitoring systems within the greater Houston area.
For additional information on these nine projects and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s ITS program, visit www.its.dot.gov on the Internet