 January 2006 - ODOT ITS NEWSLETTER - VOL. 4, NO. 1
We hope you enjoy the 2006 Spring edition of ITS News, a quarterly publication produced by the Oregon Department of Transportation Traffic Engineering and Operations Section, ITS Unit. Previous editions can be viewed at the ODOT ITS News and Events Web site. Please feel free to contact the newsletter editor, Jon Lazarus, ITS Project Manager, at (503) 986-6586, with any questions or comments.
Craig Tutor, Oregon Travel Information Council (OTIC)
Craig has been the Marketing Director for the OTIC for the last 4 years. He is responsible for new program development, legislative communication, Tourism Indsutry liaison, revenue generation and fund raising and the overall marketing of the OTIC programs to business and the public. Prior to coming OTIC, Craig worked for 25 years with the Oregon Parks and Recration Department in a variety of roles. Craig’s work the Parks Department started as a park aide at Champoeg and then moved on to Ranger, Regional Planner, District Park Manager(South Beach SP and Fort Stevens SP), NW Regional Manager and for 6 years he was head of the Public Services section, which included, public relations, marketing, volunteers, interpretation.
ITS News: Craig, Thanks for agreeing to the interview. In past ITS News publications, we've seen a mention of the partnership between ODOT ITS and the Oregon Travel Information Council (OTIC). Could you give us a recap of the partnership?
Craig Tutor - Oregon Travel Information Council
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CT: Back in 2001 Galen McGill and Cheryl Gribskov (TIC Director) started discussing TripCheck and the role TIC could play in the new design (adding the TravelCentersection). I was hired in 2002 to work with Galen and Glen Hammer to add the same kind of service that TIC currently provides to the traveling public with our logo road sign program onto the new TripCheck redesign. In 2004, our agreement was publicaly announced and TIC paid for a portion of the TripCheck upgrade which included the Travel Center section and maintenance of the Travel Center section data base. The TIC continues to solicit new customers and offers the partnership with TripCheck as a valuable addition to our program. I worked very closely with Glen Hammer to make sure that we had a product that would work for TripCheck users and for the businesses that signed up to be on the web page. I was involved from the beginning of the process to the completion of the new Travel Services section. We are very excited about the new page and about adding to it in the future.
ITS News: Since travel services information has been on TripCheck for a while now, what are you hearing from your travel services business partners? Do you have some ideas for future enhancements?
CT: We have had a great response to the web page and many businesses have signed up. We currently have a total of about 485 listings on-line, including lodging, dining, attractions, state parks, chambers of commerce, and visitors bureaus. Travel related businesses are often making sure that they have TripCheck bookmarked on their computers because it’s a great customer service tool for them. We added the chambers of commerce and visitor centers for free in exchange for a link to TripCheck on their webpage, and many of these visitors centers are using it as a customer service tool as well. This has gone over very well and we have had quite a few business sign up because of this relationship. I am excited about the future for TripCheck, and we have some cutting-edge plans in place. We are currently looking at making the page downloadable to PDAs, and I am hoping for some refinements to the maps and the current data base. We are now offering free wireless access to TripCheck at Midland and Ontario rest areas through our wireless internet program, and also at Valley of the Rogue State Park and rest area, Harris Beach State Park and rest area, and Multnomah Falls.
ITS News: What are your current plans for other ITS related projects or initiatives?
CT: I think in the future you will see TripCheck on plasma screen TVs in all the welcome centers, giving current travel information to the public. Also, plans are being made for a TripCheck sign up page that will allow you to subscribe to receive email messages about the travel route that you drive each day, plus a trip planning page so you can map out and save a route or itinerary and include all the travel services that you will need along the way (restaurants, gas, hotels, attractions).
On the wireless project, I hope to get wireless service in most of the rest areas so that TripCheck can be available to truckers and the public on the road. Washington DOT has set a contract for 41 rest areas to get wireless internet. TIC is also currently working with Galen to put 511 call boxes into all the travel centers that we operate so that the traveling public will know what the road conditions and weather reports are for their area of travel. One day we would like to see the 511 travel services include information on hotels, restaurants and attractions so that when you call you can say “hotels” and a list of the hotels will be available. We would also like to see our travel center kiosks provide more ITS information in the form of touch screen kiosks and plasma screen TVs, all with the latest ITS information.
ITS News: Could you discuss how a private business, like a restaurant or lodging establishment, benefits from the ITS - OTIC partnership?
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CT: It is not often that a state agency allows a private business to sign up to be on their webpage, so that is a real benefit especially when TripCheck gets an average of 1.13 million visits a month! Its all about exposure for a business, and being listed on TripCheck definitely provides that, so it’s a benefit to them. Having businesses on TripCheck is likewise a benefit to TripCheck as it provides the business community a window on the great programs that ODOT offers the public. And, it increases awareness and use of the site because once a business signs up with TripCheck, they are also likely to become a TripCheck user and to refer the site to their customers. I think getting businesses to sign up for TripCheck has given the business world a real good look at what ITS and ODOT are doing to keep the public moving safely down our highways.
ITS News: How do you see the ODOT ITS - OTIC partnership continuing to develop over the next 5 years?
CT: I think we will continue to push the technology envelope to make it easier for the traveling public to get real time, up-to-date road, weather and travel information on our highways where the public wants it. I think that TIC provides a conduit for ITS programs to the business and tourism world, and that is important to ODOT and Oregon. We have enjoyed over 30 years of partnership with ODOT through the sign program, and now with TripCheck I see that continuing for the next 30 years.
ITS News: Thank you for taking the time time to meet with us today.
CT: Thanks.
For additional information on these programs visit the Oregon Department of Transportation's ITS unit's web site: http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/ITS/
For more information regarding the Oregon Travel Information Council try their web site at:
http://www.oregontic.com/
Winter Weather Pictures
 During this ITS News, I've taken some advice from our loyal readers and included some winter weather pictures. The winter of 2005 has seemed particularly wet for Oregon. Data on percipitation, current conditions, future forecasts and more valuable weather information is provided by the National Weather Service at this URL:
These pictures below were for the New Year's flooding and slides ODOT personnel encountered.
This first picture to the left is I-5 south of Ashland, with a mudslide and debris on the road.
The second picture to the left is of Oregon 42, South at Coquille.
The third picture to the left is again of Oregon 42 South at Coquille.
The fourth and final picture is of Oregon 42 South, showing the debris buildup due to the rainfall and weather.
These should be reminders to us all that the weather is not to be taken for granted and to keep 'safety first' in our minds.
Following is an update on select Transportation Application Development (TAD) and ITS Unit projects currently underway. For more information on a specific project, see the ITS Internet projects page at http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/ITS/projects.shtml.
 TripCheck 2.0 Update - TripCheck's total visits for 2005 (ending December 31, 2005) are 13,605,567. December 2005 was the thrid highest month recorded for number of visits (2,442,645), only superseded by January 2004 and December 2003, which were 3,241,411 and 2,447,552 respectively.
Check it out at http://www.tripcheck.com and find useful road and weather conditions at ODOT's TripCheck.com web site.
You've provided us with feedback and we've responded. Here are some of the excellent suggestions and changes we've made because of the feedback we've received:
- Return of the statewide camera map - TripCheck will be launching an update to include the old state camera map which was removed from the 2.0 upgrade. This was a direct response to our loyal customers writing in and asking for it back. Have a look for this returned feature in February 2006.
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Provide a list of URLs for the individual camera images - TripCheck is will be able to provide those URL's when requested. Please email us at TripCheck.Support.ODOT@odot.state.or.us and request them.
What to look for:
- Winter operations are working well - ODOT's staff has been tested with the weather conditions already this winter and is ready to keep going! The pre-winter tests and running 'what-if' scenarios proved to be extremely valuable and showed that the web site continued to deliver the best possible data for your driving decisions during the worst weather of this past year, even through it was one of TripCheck's highest volume months.
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More businesses are signing up to be featured on TripCheck - The partnership with the Oregon Travel Information Council (OTIC) is showing increased traffic on our site as users look for hotel, restaurant, fuel, and attraction information. We hope this information is valuable to folks.
- New winter maintenance page - TripCheck added a page for common winter questions, for example 'What winter deicing liquids are used by ODOT?' or 'Why doesn't ODOT just use salt?'. Answers to these, and more, can be found at http://www.tripcheck.com/Pages/RCMap.asp?mainNav=RoadConditions&staticNav=WinRoadMainecent or at the bottom of the left hand side of the TripCheck home page.
For more information related to TripCheck, please contact Glen Hammer, Glen.A.HAMMER@odot.state.or.us, at (503) 986-3977.
For more information related to the Oregon Travel Information Council, please contact Craig Tutor, craig@oregontic.com, at (800) 574-9397.
Regional Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Architecture and Operational Concept Plan for Portland Metropolitan Area - This project will update the existing ITS Regional Architecture and develop an Operational Concept Plan for the Portland Metropolitan Area and will guide the implementation and operation of ITS technologies for the region. The project was completed in October 2005. Here is the link to the documents posted on ODOT's ITS site: http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/ITS/its_documents.shtml
For additional information, please contact Ed Anderson, Edward.L.ANDERSON@odot.state.or.us, at (503) 986-3588.
Regional Trip Planner - This project is developing a system that will collect and deliver comprehensive public transportation information (bus, train, shuttles and taxi's) to the public in Oregon and Washington state. The information will be delivered to the users via a Web site in each state. ODOT and the Washington State Department of Transportation are continuing to work on the system design. ODOT has contracted with Pacific Intermedia Inc., from Portland Oregon, to develop and implement the data system for the Web sites of each agency. This work will include development of public and provider data administration interfaces. System design activities are expected to continue through the first half of 2006. Development and testing will occur later in 2006 and it is anticipated that the Web sites will go live in both states in the first or second quarter of 2007.
For more information on the Regional Trip Planner project, please visit
 TransPort Advanced Traveler Information Implementation (TATII) - The TATII project team will usher in a new era of communication as it quietly rolls the first phase of the newly named TripCheck Traveler Information Portal into production around the first of February 2006. The portal is currently being tested with production feeds as the final supporting web infrastructure is being completed. The final TTIP deliverables will include a map of the Portland regional area for use by partner agencies. It features 3 levels of detail with event icons which can be clicked for information popups. TTIP will also include public and agency data sharing feeds. The public data feed can be used by Internet Service Providers to publish to public web sites for a wide dissemination of Oregon and Portland regional traveler information. The agency feed will be used by other public agencies to enhance their internal traffic management. The current project is slated to complete by the end of March 2006.
Transportation Operations Release 1 -
Oregon has four Transportation Operations Centers (TOCs) with the goal to provide and track transportation information for dissemination to ODOT operations, law enforcement, other State and public transportation systems, and the general public through a series of mission critical services. The purpose of the TOCS project is two-fold.
- Enable all of Oregon’s TOCs to work in a coordinated and more tightly integrated manner by consolidating stand-alone systems, devices and processes into one.
- Provide enhanced communication, more complete information and immediate dissemination to ODOT customers and partners, both public and private.
Region 1 TOC - Transportation Operations Center
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The project is on schedule to complete the system architecture phase at the end of January and has been given approval to move forward into design and construction in early February. The achievements of the architecture phase include:
- A clear understanding of the driving business processes and how they will be affected by TOCS
- Documented functionality of all underlying systems to be replaced.
- A complete list of Event Type codes that support ODOT
A high level system design including:
- Tools and software to be used
- System reusability
- Data Models
- User interface analysis and conceptual design
- Resource commitments for design and construction to allow us to move forward with the first release immediately
Key tasks scheduled in the next quarter:
- Finalize architecture deliverables
- Finalize resource procurement for the design and build of the TOCS
- Complete and present initial user interface prototypes for review and feedback.
- Begin the design and build of the Event Management portion of the system
Contact Lorena Lambert, Lorena.LAMBERT@odot.state.or.us, at (503) 986-4017 for more information.
RWIS Strategy and Project work - There are 60 Road Weather Information Systems (RWIS) throughout the state of Oregon. An RWIS typically has temperature, humidity, precipitation, and wind sensors.
A typical RWIS site
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Many also have pavement sensors that give temperature, condition, and other factors of the road surface. An RWIS can provide very useful information to those that perform highway maintenance and operations, especially during seasons where hazardous road conditions are common.
Utilizing and understanding RWIS data has been an issue in the past. This is partly due to a lack of consistent training on how to understand and apply the RWIS information to maintenance procedures.
Additionally, RWIS data has been limited to those with access to the network. Upon considering the issue, an "RWIS Strategy" was created to assist in making better use of the RWIS information. This RWIS strategy had three components:
- Conduct winter operations training sessions focusing on RWIS data and understanding weather behavior
- Provide easy access to RWIS data and other weather related information through a kiosk type system at maintenance stations
- Create an RWIS notification system to alert users via e-mail or page of certain weather conditions.
Currently RWIS components are obtained through a contract with Surface Systems Inc. (SSI), so it was thought best to use an SSI representative to present a winter operations training workshop throughout the state. This was the first element of the RWIS strategy.
Kiosk Interface
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Attendees of the workshops were mostly maintenance managers as well as district and area managers.
Training sessions on the use of RWIS data in winter operations were held at several locations around the state. The four hour training revolved around RWIS and how weather information could be incorporated into better maintenance practices. Topics included RWIS hardware, software, weather, and application.
The second element of the RWIS strategy was the installation of a kiosk at maintenance stations. Currently there is a list of 46 maintenance stations due to have a Kiosk installed. These locations are distributed over all five regions of the state. The purpose of the kiosk is to provide road and weather information to crew members 24 hours per day. The system is always on and can be used by any member of the crew, particularly those who have no login ID or internet access. The systems are generally place in the crew's break room.
The kiosk consists of a, monitor, mouse, and PC connected to the network. It uses special software to restrict internet access to only the following:
- Tripcheck - Incident maps, road camera and conditions
- Scanweb - RWIS data, history and graphs
- NOAA - weather forecasts, radar, satellite, etc.
- Digital Video Log - screenshots of every state highway (every 0.01 mile) in both direction.
A screenprint of the RWIS network interface
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The last component of the RWIS strategy is an RWIS Notification System. This allows users to be alerted via text page or e-mail when certain weather conditions are met. These alerts were created as a guide to assist in decision making. There are four possible alerts available for an RWIS site:
- Frost/Ice Alert - preset condition based on pavement status and dew point.
- Fog Alert - preset condition using air temperature and dew point
- Wind speed alert - user defined
- Visibility alert - user defined. Each RWIS will display only alerts that are available for that particular site.
Users can subscribe to any number of RWIS and alert combinations. All alerts will reset based on either weather conditions or time. It will always be the judgment of each user on how to utilize the alerts in conjunction with maintenance practices.
Once completed the RWIS Strategy components will offer valuable resources to aid the highway maintenance crews in their decision making. It will also take advantage of highway and weather related resources previously unavailable to most members of a maintenance crew.
Contact Adam Bradford, Adam.P.BRADFORD@odot.state.or.us, at (503) 986-3475 for more information.
Ladd Canyon Heating project - The Ladd Canyon Deck heating system (Bridge Project) is up and running. The maintenance crew for La Grande believes it has prevented closures already. For more information follow the link below to the original story. Here is an excerpt: "The Oregon Department of Transportation will be testing a bridge deck and roadway heating system this winter along a one-mile section of Interstate 84 (I-84) in the Ladd Canyon area, east of La Grande. The project is designed to..."
The URL for the complete story is:
http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/REGION5/ladd_canyon_heating.shtml
For more information, contact Howard Richardson, Howard A RICHARDSON@odot.state.or.us, at (541) 963-1336.
McKenzie Over-Length Detection System Update - ITS real world, rural solutions. Some readers may remember this project from our summer edition of ITS News in 2005. Here is the URL: http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/ITS/news_2005_07_07.shtml.
Overview: On the McKenzie Highway there is an 18 mile section of rural, seasonal use only highway and is restricted to vehicles and vehicle combinations over 35 feet in length due to narrow lanes and sharp corners. The ITS unit designed and implemented a device to measures each vehicle approaching the corridor for length. When a vehicle or vehicle combination exceeds the length threshold, beacons on a static sign begin to flash informing the driver that the vehicle is too long and to use the pull out ahead to turn around. If the vehicle proceeds through the corridor, a second detection system measures the vehicle length and sends an e-mail notification to the Traffic Operations Center notifying them of the violation.
Since the implementation of the equipment, there have been a trend of more over-length vehicles turning around. Please click HERE for the PDF graph showing recent McKenzie Highway data.
For more information, contact Hau Hagedorn, Hau.HAGEDORN@odot.state.or.us, at (503) 986-3301.
ITS CONSTRUCTION - List of current ITS construction projects
Following is a list of projects that are currently under construction:
Port Orford Camera Screenshot
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- Astoria VMS (Hwy 101 at MP 9.98 NB). Construction is complete and the sign is operational.
- Baker City VMS (Old Oregon Trail Highway, I-84 at MP 309 WB). Construction is complete. The sign started the 30-day acceptance test on January 11, 2006.
- Doak Mountain RWIS (Hwy 140 at MP 53.70). Project is currently under construction.
- I-5 Hugo (I-5 at MP 64.22, NB); Glendale Road (I-5 at MP 83.32, SB); and Crowson Road (I-5 at MP 13.17, SB). This project consists of three variable message signs and is currently under construction.
- I-5 North Santiam Highway to Kuebler Boulevard. This project includes two cameras to be operated by the NWTOC. The project is currently under construction.
- Lake Creek VMS and CCTV (I-5 at MP 214.53 NB). Construction is expected to be completed in January, 2006.
Seaside Camera Screenshot
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- I-5 Siskiyou Summit VMS (I-5, MP SIS 66.51 NB in California). Sign contract awarded to Skyline Products, Inc. Project is under construction.
- I-5 South Medford Interchange (I-5 at MP 27.3), Camera and fiber optic installation.This project is currently out for bid with a March 2006 bid opening.
- Modoc Point RWIS (US 97 north of Klamath Falls). Project is in construction.
- Portland Area VMS (I-205 at MP 11.66, SB; I-205 at MP 24.5, SB; and OR 99W at MP 7.87, NB). Design is complete with a February 2006 bid opening.
- Region 1 Rural VMS (US 26 at MP 61.82, WB). Design is complete with a February 2006 bid opening.
- Region 5 VMS (I-84 at MP 214.00 EB and OR 207 at MP 26.5 NB). Construction is expected to be completed in January, 2006.
- Region 2 Miscellaneous Operations: This project consists of 3 Highway Advisory Radios (HARs), with warning signals in the Eugene-Springfield area and an upgrade to the Cushman Flood Warning System near Florence on US 101. This system will report status into HTCRS, 511, and TripCheck systems. A camera will also be added for verification purposes. This project is currently out for bid with a January 2006 bid opening.
- US97 South Madras VMS (MP 214.11 NB) and ORE138 Junction VMS (MP 97.13 NB). The project is currently under construction.
Select projects in design include the following:
- I-5 North Albany VMS and Camera (I-5 at MP 236.8 NB). This project is currently under design. Anticipate a December 2006 bid opening.
- Region 2 VMS and Traffic Cameras (I-5 at MP 186.9, NB; I-5 at MP 190.99, SB; OR 69 at MP 7.84, EB; US 20 at MP 31.25, EB; OR 22 at MP 48.77, EB; and OR 126 at MP 48.6, EB. This project includes six VMSs and traffic cameras located in and around Eugene and Springfield. The project is currently under design.
ITS METRICS - Get the Latest ITS Statistics
 TripCheck usage data - A quarterly summary of the TripCheck and ODOT travel information phone system usage numbers follow. The ITS unit homepage will shortly be bringing you the TripCheck Metrics in its new URL location. This page will include graphs of the current month's usage data for TripCheck visits, pages views, hits, and calls to the ODOT phone system. At this site, will also see a forecast of TripCheck visits estimated through March 2007.
The approximate TripCheck averages for the fourth quarter of 2005 (October, November, and December) are**:
1,639,139 visits per month
16.7 million page views per month
88.76 million hits per month.
The approximate ODOT road and weather phone system (including 511 calls) average for the same period last year was 117,129 calls per month:
24,789 calls in October
202,225 calls in November
382,586 calls in December*
The average for this period is 203,200 calls per
month.
*December 2005 marked the second highest number of calls in a month since the road conditions telephone number was available. During December ODOT also received the second highest calls in a single day, which was on December 30, 2005 with 20,793 calls. The highest call volume recorded was during January 2004, when the system received
507,303 calls. January 6, 2004 has the highest one day call total with 43,078 calls.
**For the 3 day period of Dec 30-Jan 1, ODOT road and weather phone system handled over 100,000 calls and TripCheck handled over 400,000 visits.
 Green Light Metrics -
The Green Light weigh station preclearance program is now serving 3,800 trucking companies with 34,750 trucks equipped with transponders.
By late-December 2005, the program was on pace to weigh-in-motion, electronically screen, and allow trucks to avoid stopping at weigh stations a total of 1.4 million times for the year. Activity in 2005 was up 16% compared with 2004 and it was the fourth year in a row that the program precleared more trucks than the previous year.
The Woodburn Port of Entry on southbound Interstate 5 continues to be the busiest Green Light site. On average, trucks are precleared to pass this weigh station 23,200 times each month. Well over half of all trucks approaching that site (59%) are transponder-equipped and 54% get a green light to proceed.
Other busy sites include the Woodburn Weigh Station on northbound I-5 (an average 9,400 trucks precleared each month), the Ashland Port of Entry on northbound I-5 (8,800), the Cascade Locks Port of Entry on eastbound I-84 (8,100), and the Umatilla Port of Entry on southbound I-82 (6,900).
Green Light Web site -- http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/MCT/GREEN.shtml
 Trucking Online Metrics -
More than 8,300 companies are signed up for Trucking Online, including 2,200 based in Oregon. There are about 24,000 companies with trucks registered in Oregon so now the ones doing business online include 41% of those based in another state or Canada and 24% of those based in Oregon. From January 30, 2003, through late-December 2005, these companies have used a home or office computer for nearly 500,000 transactions or record inquiries that formerly required a phone call, fax, mail delivery or field office visit.
Trucking Online ran hot with activity in the 4th quarter 2005 because for the first time it was possible for every trucking company to go online to complete the annual process of renewing registration or tax credentials for trucks that will operate in Oregon in 2006. This is normally a paper-intensive exercise that's dreaded by both the companies and the Motor Carrier Transportation Division staff. Online renewal was available in 2004, but only for out-of-state companies renewing their tax credentials. Now Oregon-based companies can go online to renew truck registrations. But it was the out-of-state companies that took full advantage this time and used Trucking Online to renew more than one third of the 283,000 tax credentials they will carry in the cab of trucks operating in Oregon in 2006.
As a result of online renewals, the Motor Carrier Division has saved at least 176 reams of paper (a stack that would reach 37 feet high), plus well over $10,000 in postage and staff time to process and mail renewal-related materials.
Trucking Online now has a simple Internet address http://OregonTruckingOnline.com/ that provides access to the Public Access Menu and a jump to the login page and secure pages for registered users. The old Web addresses are still operational so this doesn’t change the way people do business online. The new address is just a simpler pathway to services. Visit the site for more information.
ITS MAINTENANCE - System Maintenance Updates
 ITS System Maintenance Report - This section update shows some of the requests for work completed by our staff and gives a break-down of high-lights and areas where maintenance and enhancement work was done. TripCheck.com, 511 phone line, Herbicide line, and HTCRS are examples of the systems supported.
October 1-December 31, 2005
78 Requests for Work received; 41 were completed and 13 cancelled. Of the completed requests, 36 were for repairing system failures, 5 for creating new capabilities, making system enhancements, or generating special reports.
Here is a sampling of significant ITS system work:
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TripCheck and HAT/511 successfully handled the network and processing load for a major winter storm.
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Have migrated both ODOT and Oregon State Police off the old satellite data feed for NOAA weather forecasts, to use Internet based collection of the same information. This allows us to retire a complex, aging, obsolete and failing system with a very simple and reliable system.
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Moved Camera Services image processing to a more stable and secure server location.
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Implemented tools for monitoring and logging ITS application/server performance and outages. These tools notify IS staff when system failures occur, and log system performance. We have repeatedly been able to detect and resolve system failures soon after they occur, and before others are aware of them.
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The server that processes data from RWIS stations has been hanging up; we are working to move all RWIS processing to a new server. In the interim, we are using monitoring tools to restart the old RWIS server when it hangs.
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In Region 1, a second “video to still image” capture workstation has been put into service, so that camera images continue to be captured and fed to TripCheck and other destinations if the first workstation fails.
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Developed updates to HIS’s Highway Advisory Radio software, and delivered these updates to SSI for implementation in future version. These are updates to the user interface needed for multi-user and multi-regional use.
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Eliminated a vulnerability with the HAT system; a connection failure to the server creating voice messages would cause the entire HAT system to crash. This has been fixed.
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Repaired a problem with TripCheck navigation, where the back button was not functioning correctly.
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Upgraded all ITS servers except HAT to run Windows 2003. HAT servers are running Windows 2000 due to Dialogic card compatibility issues. This improves system stability and enables us to keep the systems current with security patches and system updates.
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Developed a new ITS server patch plan/schedule that will reduce the amount of IS time and effort needed to apply
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Microsoft security patches to servers.
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The Butte Creek ice warning sign is up and running. Manual override for the sign beacons is under test.
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Many ITS applications run under a scheduler that launches each application every few minutes. This scheduler has been subject to locking up all applications if one application has a problem. A new ITS scheduler is under development, and is up and running in production running Camera Services and RWIS. Remaining systems will be added in the next quarter.
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A standby instance of the Scanweb server is now up and running, so that if the Scanweb server or software fails, we can switch over to the other server. At this time, this means directing your web browser to Link to http://s-salemtoc-131/scanweb/. In the future this will be an automatic redirection.
For questions contact Jim Weisgram at (503) 986-3211 or James.D.WEISGRAM@odot.state.or.us
ITS in the News
Winners and losers from throughout Oregon
Statesman Journal, Salem, Oregon January 20, 2006
Link to site:
http://159.54.226.83/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060120/OPINION/601200307/1048
*Accidents Lead to Idea for Cell Phone that Alerts Drivers to Traffic Lights
[transport-communications] Thursday, January 12, 2006
Link to story in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer:
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/255305_cellsignal12.html
Link to further information from Global Mobile Alert Corporation:
http://www.gma4.com/
*Bus Data Detects Traffic Snarls Seattle
[transport-communications] Wednesday, January 11, 2006
Link to Wired News story:
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,69991-0.html?tw=wn_tophead_3
*News from ITS America
[transport-communications] Wednesday, January 11, 2006
- Integrated Corridor Management – ICM Demonstration Site Approaches http://www.itsa.org/itsnews.nsf/180c9c506bf5856985256c2d00174a12/f15a50842efd5997852570f3005466a7?OpenDocument
- Transportation System Operations and Planning (TSOP) Forum – Open Meeting with Forum Members – January 24 – Washington, DC http://www.itsa.org/itsnews.nsf/180c9c506bf5856985256c2d00174a12/0a7df75a5d1bcf75852570f3006beb22?OpenDocument
- ITS America 15th Anniversary Open House – January 25 – Washington, DC http://www.itsa.org/itsnews.nsf/180c9c506bf5856985256c2d00174a12/4d2389b501ef0877852570f3006fb9ef?OpenDocument
Participate in a Topic Survey for 2006 USDOT ITS JPO Publications
Category > Opportunity: January 10, 2006 (U.S. DOT)
Link to site:
http://www.itsbenefits.its.dot.gov/its/survey.nsf/foTopicSurvey
January Issue of The Intelligent Highway Now Available
Category > International: January 10, 2006 (The Intelligent Highway)
Link to site:
http://www.intelligenthighway.com/ITS/tiharticle1.pdf
*ITS Benefits, Costs, State of the Practice and Deployment, and Lessons Learned - 2006 “Leaflet” Publications
[transport-communications] Tuesday, January 10, 2006.
Link to further information:
http://www.itsbenefits.its.dot.gov/its/survey.nsf/foTopicSurvey
Idaho Storm Warning System Operational Test – Final Report
[transport-communications] Wednesday, January 4, 2006
Link to report from the Federal Highway Administration: http://www.benefitcost.its.dot.gov/ITS/benecost.nsf/ID/3E759773E190D96885256A100070DD4A?OpenDocument&Query=State
Mapping a Better Way to Go
[transport-communications] Monday, December 26, 2005
Link to story in The Business Journal:
http://milwaukee.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/stories/2005/12/26/focus3.html?hbx=e_sw
Short on Road Money, States Use Tech to Unsnarl Traffic
Category > Now Available: December 23, 2005 (USA Today/Gannett News Service)
Link to site:
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/techinnovations/2005-12-19-smart-roads_x.htm
Snow Storm Leads to 511 Refinements in Idaho
Category > Now Available: December 9, 2005 (Idaho DOT)
Link to site:
http://www.itd.idaho.gov/Transporter/2005/120205_Trans/120205_TravelInfo.html
New Report: Traffic Congestion and Reliability: Trends and Advanced Strategies for Congestion Mitigation (2005) Now Available
Category > Now Available: November 23, 2005 (FHWA).
Link to site:
http://www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/congestion_report/index.htm
511 Service Instituted in Idaho
Category > Now Available: November 23, 2005 (Idaho Transportation Department)
Link to site:
http://itd.idaho.gov/Apps/MediaManagerViewer/NewsRelease/NewsRelease.aspx?Id=357
Map Sites Offering More Travel Data
Category > Now Available: November 23, 2005 (Knight Ridder) –
Link to site:
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/living/travel/13217333.htm
Metro Networks Presents 'The Top Ten Worst Holiday Traffic Tie-Ups in America'
Category > Now Available: November 23, 2005 (Westwood One)
Link to site:
http://westwoodone.com/Press%20Releases/2005/11/11_21_05(traffic).asp
ITS Joint Program Office Announces New Website Feature for State by State Information
Category > New Resource: November 9, 2005 (U.S. DOT)
Link to site:
http://itsdeployment.ornl.gov/technology_overview/ITSInMyState.asp
*Analyst Insight: Digital Mapping Industry
[transport-communications] Wednesday, November 9, 2005
Link to story on Forbes.com:
http://www.forbes.com/technology/2005/11/09/stocks-navteq-telematics-cx_ld_1109navteq.html
ITS Lessons Learned Knowledge Resource
Category > New Resource: October 5, 2005 (U.S. DOT)
Link to site:
http://www.itslessons.its.dot.gov
ITS America Issues Two White Papers on Vehicle Infrastructure Integration
Category > New Resources: October 5, 2005 (ITS America)
Link to sites: Primer on Vehicle-Infrastructure Integration
http://www.itsa.org/itsnews.nsf/c6fa6954858ac75785256f3a00682593/59239300c4cd5b198525708e0011808f?OpenDocument
Technology Evolution: Lessons Learned and their Impact on VII Applications
http://www.itsa.org/itsnews.nsf/c6fa6954858ac75785256f3a00682593/8286770950ccb65b8525708e00136e76?OpenDocument
*These stories provided by Bernie Wagenblast and The Daily ITS news, in the Transportation Communications Newsletter. For a free subscription send an e-mail to transport-communications-subscribe@yahoogroups.com or contact the editor, Bernie Wagenblast, at i95berniew@aol.com.
UPCOMING EVENTS
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Stay informed about ODOT ITS activities across the state.
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 ITS OREGON Meeting
MONDAY, February 8, 2006, at the NW
Conference (see below).
* ITS Oregon is sponsoring 3 sessions at the NW Conference: Performance Measures, Congestion Management, and ITS & Operations.
* The Congestion Management session is scheduled to include speakers on ODOT tolling concepts and on Minnesota's I-394 HOT lanes.
Visit the ITS site for more information about upcoming events.http://www.its.pdx.edu/itsoregon/
____________________________________________________________________
CITE Offering Introduction and Advanced Telecommunications as "Blended" Courses in February and April
* The instructor for the course is Andrew Afflerbach, Ph.D., P.E., CEO/Principal Engineer for Columbia Telecommunications.
* The Introduction to Telecommunications course will begin on Feb 17, 2006 and continue through April 3, 2006. The Advanced Telecommunications course begins on April 5, 2006 and continues through May 31, 2006. The fee for the each course separately is $150. If students take both courses, the fee is only $200. Students can register by going to the CITE web site at http://www.citeconsortium.org.
You can register on-line and the workshop is free.
http://www.its.pdx.edu/itsoregon/
____________________________________________________________________
NW Transportation Conference
February 7-9, 2006
Oregon State University Corvallis, Oregon
http://kiewit.oregonstate.edu/nwtc/index.html
____________________________________________________________________
Portland State University
Center for Transportation Studies
TRANSPORTATION COURSES
Non-degree students may take classes via Quick Entry:
http://www.pdx.edu/admissions/ugrad_qkentry.html
Tuition and fee information: http://www.pdx.edu/registration/tuition.html
Winter Class Schedule: http://www.pdx.edu/registration/class_schedule.html
____________________________________________________________________
ITS America Annual Meeting & Exhibition – May 7-9 – Philadelphia
Link to site:
http://www.itsa.org/annualmeeting.html
____________________________________________________________________
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