FTA Seeks Additional Information About Intelligent Transportation Systems

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is preparing its 7th in a series of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) State of the Art (SOA) reports for 2005. Information contained in these reports highlights the very best transit ITS deployments (also known as Advanced Public Transportation Systems, or "APTS") and serves as a useful communication tool to inform the industry of this increasingly complex subject.

In addition to highlighting successful ITS applications, FTA's SOA Report will provide a description and overview of each major ITS technology, highlight the lessons learned by agencies with successful implementations, and present the issues and hurdles surrounding ITS deployments. The SOA 2005 report will also include a stronger focus on many of the important but often overlooked support systems and business processes needed to successfully implement ITS technologies. All of the major public surface transportation modes will be addressed including bus, rail, ferry, and intermodal service operations.

The FTA Intelligent Transportation Systems Office has contracted with the Palisades Consulting Group, Inc. of Tenafly, New Jersey, to prepare its next SOA report. As part of its search for SOA information, Palisades is asking transit agencies and vendors with successful ITS implementations to complete a simple, online form.

The cutoff time and date for submitting the surveys is 5 pm, EDT on June 15, 2005. A Palisades representative will follow up with additional questions if needed.

Topics where information is requested include:

• ITS Integration, including transit ITS standards and architecture, geographic information systems (GIS), and enterprise data;
  
  
• Fleet Management, including communication systems (i.e., radio, AVL, etc.) service planning support systems, transit signal priority, and transportation operations systems;
  
  
• Electronic Fare Payment, including fare system, fare payment products, and clearinghouse/regional service centers;
  
  
• Traveler Information, including pre-trip information systems, in-terminal/wayside systems, in-vehicle systems, multi-modal systems, and transit trip information infrastructure;
  
  
• Transit Safety and Security, including vehicle, facility and station security, incident response, and incident planning and management systems;
  
  
• Transportation Demand Management, including dynamic ridesharing, automated service coordination, and multi-modal transportation management centers; and
  
  
• Intelligent Vehicle Systems, including on-board bus integrations, Intelligent Vehicle Initiative, and intelligent rail vehicle.

For additional information about the project, contact Eva Lerner-Lam, Palisades Team Project Director at 201-567-0088, ext. 11 or elernerlam@palisadesgroup.com.