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From the Director
Making the Case for Regional Transportation Operations Collaboration and Coordination The Practice of Regional Transportation Operations Collaboration and Coordination Regional Transportation Operations Collaboration and Coordination and the Regional ITS Architecture Development Process A Self-Assessment—Where Are You in Regional Collaboration and Coordination? |
The Relevance of the Regional ITS ArchitectureIntelligent transportation systems (ITS) enable better operations and improves system performance. ITS utilizes information, communication, sensor, and control technologies to achieve improved levels of performance and safety on America’s highways. ITS provides seamless information services and communications networks for transportation services and emergency services. ITS may be electronics, communications, or information processing systems used individually or in combination to improve the efficiency or safety of a surface transportation system.Regional collaboration and coordination requires sustained, long-term commitment to improving regional transportation system performance through collaborative planning and a regional approach to operations. Institutional mechanisms are needed to develop and think through how, where, and when the regional ITS architecture can be applied. The collaborative process provides institutional mechanisms for using and maintaining (Steps 5 and 6 of the ITS regional architecture process) the regional ITS architecture effectively as part of an overall regional operations strategy. In this sense, regional collaboration and coordination has the longer-term, broader agenda that leverages the regional ITS architecture to improve transportation systems performance in the region. Where collaboration among agencies and regions is absent or minimal but an architecture development process is underway, the ITS architecture process can jump-start regional collaboration by providing the forum and the momentum for bringing together organizations whose participation in the regional effort is critical. This regional teamwork, which an existing ITS architecture will only start, requires that operators and service providers jointly develop a vision for regional operations and a strategy for achieving the vision. Based on experience to date, leadership for developing the ITS architecture may come from either an operating agency (e.g., State DOT) or a regional planning body (e.g., the MPO). If, however, regional transportation operators (State DOTs, public safety agencies, departments of public works, transit authorities) want to work together and no current regional ITS architecture development process exists, the fundamentals and framework presented in this document can serve as the starting point for initiating regional collaboration. Initially, if collaboration and coordination is to become the primary mechanism for achieving institutional integration, operating agencies will: gather and engage stakeholders; identify operational needs and strategies; develop a regional concept of operations; and implement the necessary regional model and interagency agreements. Regional collaboration may well bring with it the perceived need for an ITS regional architecture, especially when regionwide electronic information sharing is desired. If so, this collaboration can serve as a platform for initiating the architecture development process. Defining the Regional ITS ArchitectureThe regional ITS architecture has been defined as “a regional framework for ensuring institutional agreement and technical integration for the implementation of ITS projects in a particular region.”2 The regional ITS architecture serves to broaden the scope of operations. In the past, transportation agencies focused on the implementation and operations of single technology components. The ITS architecture moves this focus to the implementation and operations of a complete, regional system. Therefore, the architecture process, which is being applied in numerous major metropolitan areas across the country, embodies the idea of regional collaboration and coordination. Not only can it facilitate collaboration and coordination, but it also offers unique opportunities for synergy. The Regional ITS Architecture Development Process Guidance Document3 outlines a systems engineering process for developing a regional ITS architecture that incorporate the following steps.Steps in the Development of a Regional ITS Architecture: Step 1: Getting Started
Step 6: Maintaining the Architecture The regional ITS architecture development process results in either a specific ITS project or a series of integrated, interoperable projects. The architecture, a living construct that will facilitate collaboration, integration, and interoperability, emphasizes systems and how systems are deployed. Leveraging the Regional ITS Architecture ProcessThe regional ITS architecture development process can serve as a key enabler in identifying constituencies, establishing champions, and initiating the institutional relationships that will sustain regional collaboration and coordination. The process requires actions similar to those required to develop other agreements and procedures to be implemented at the regional level. For example, the processes used to inventory systems, develop operational concepts, and define functional requirements can also be applied to traffic incident management, traveler information systems, advanced freeway management, and emergency evacuation.The regional ITS architecture development process results in specific standards and protocols for communications and information exchange. These standards and protocols can serve as the foundation for broader agreements among regional partners that involve other resources and processes. The concept of operations developed during the architecture development process may serve as a template for a more comprehensive regional concept of operations that includes functional areas and responsibilities well beyond those addressed in the regional ITS architecture. Although the ITS architecture development process does not address resources explicitly, the sequencing of projects and activities needed for regional integration and interoperability imply significant resource commitments. The regional ITS architecture can help guide the projects and electronic infrastructure needed to integrate regional operations. Regional collaboration and coordination identifies ongoing staff, equipment, and other resource needs for regional interoperability and integration. The regional ITS architecture development process focuses primarily on performance measures related to implementing technology-related projects associated with the ITS architecture. Fortunately, many of the projects likely to emerge from the regional ITS architecture development process will provide the infrastructure needed to measure regional transportation system performance in a meaningful way. In fact, the ITS architecture development process can serve as the forum for identifying performance measures that have widespread support among the region’s operators and service providers. Table 6 illustrates how the process of developing the Regional ITS Architecture can help leverage regional operations collaboration and coordination and vice versa. Table 6. Interactions of the ITS architecture development and regional operations collaboration and coordination processes.
2 “Regional ITS Architecture Development Process Workshop,” prepared by National ITS Architecture Team, U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, DC, January 2002. 3 Regional ITS Architecture Guidance: “Developing, Using, and Maintaining an ITS Architecture for your Region,” Publication No. FHWA-OP-02-024, prepared by National ITS Architecture Team, U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, DC, October 12, 2001. |