HARRISBURG, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) and contractor, Provo River Constructors (Fluor, Ames Construction, Ralph L. Wadsworth Construction, Wadsworth Brothers Construction joint venture), partnered with TransCore to develop an innovative approach to provide real time arterial traffic information during the I-15 Corridor Expansion (I-15 CORE) and minimize traffic delays for local motorists.
UDOT began a $1.725 billion project last April, the largest roadway project in the state’s history, to widen and rebuild 24 miles of I-15 in Utah County 30 miles south of Salt Lake City. Known as I-15 CORE, the project is currently 30 percent complete and on schedule for its December 2012 deadline. The project is an important investment to restore aging infrastructure, address long-term transportation needs and improve the movement of goods and services throughout the state in one of the state’s fastest-growing counties.
Because the project will span more than two years and there is no other freeway system in the county apart from I-15, the project leaders knew there would be significant impact to traffic on the local streets.
According to Eric Rasband, UDOT I-15 CORE traffic and maintenance of traffic manager, “We put a high emphasis on minimizing the inconvenience to the traveling public. Under a competitive bidding environment, our contractor, PRC, looked for an opportunity to improve mobility on local roads throughout construction as a value-add in their overall traffic management proposal. PRC asked TransCore to design and construct a traffic management system that extends the concept and success of freeway management travel time systems to the arterial roadways during construction and one that will continue to help drivers make informed choices when the freeway reconstruction is complete.”
The travel time application designed by TransCore includes the installation of a monitoring system along US-89 and connector routes to I-15, which uses anonymous vehicle data obtained from Sensys Networks' Travel Time Detectors. This data is used to measure actual traffic flow conditions. The information is then fed directly to TransCore’s TransSuite software to automatically update roadway Trailblazer signs with current travel time information. This system also feeds information directly into the Utah CommuterLink website to allow motorists access to information before their trips begin.
Nine Trailblazer signs placed on the roadside include a hybrid display that combines a static message with a dynamic insert that incorporates real-time data. The small size of the sign allows for placement in areas with little or no need for the acquisition of right of way. Motorists are directed to take the least congested routes – either I-15 or the state road U.S. 89 – which leads to a reduction in delays, stops, emissions, and the number and severity of traffic incidents.
An accelerated schedule of six months for design, construction and software development allowed the Trailblazer project to come to fruition in time to provide a positive impact for the remainder of I-15 CORE construction and into the future.
According to UDOT, the Trailblazer signs are unique as they compare local road travel times versus freeway travel times. Other signs like these in Utah show freeway travel times only. Not only does this system provide an immediate benefit to manage traffic during the I-15 CORE project, the installations will be left in place once construction has been completed, becoming a legacy product to enhance regional mobility.
About TransCore
The company’s 75-year heritage spans the development of RFID transportation applications at Los Alamos National Labs to implementation of the nation's first electronic toll collection system. With installations in 46 countries, a vast portfolio of intellectual property, and pioneering applications of RFID, GPS and satellite communications technologies, TransCore's technical expertise is unparalleled in the transportation markets it serves. The breadth of the company’s expertise includes systems integration, design consulting, operations, maintenance, manufacturing, traffic management systems, intelligent transportation systems (ITS) and extensive Web-based logistics systems. In 2010, Engineering News-Record (ENR) ranked TransCore No. 140 out of the Top 500 Design Firms. TransCore is a U.S. owned and operated company with products designed, engineered and manufactured in the United States.
TransCore operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of Roper Industries, a Standard and Poor’s S&P 500 Index company. For more information, visit www.transcore.com.
About Sensys Networks
Sensys Networks is the world’s leading provider of wireless traffic detection and integrated traffic data systems. Our universal platform delivers the most dependable, flexible, and cost-effective solution on the market today. Our patented, wireless magnetic sensors install in a fraction of the time and with far less disruption to traffic than traditional detection technologies. Deployed in more than 40 U.S. states and 10 countries, the Sensys Networks wireless vehicle detection system is the technology standard for the world’s largest traffic data systems.