How to Use The Guide
Summary
The ITS Toolkit is designed to assist transport planners and engineers in the selection of appropriate ITS tools, in comparison with conventional approaches, for inclusion in transport plans and in the building of the business case for investment. The Guidance can be read in conjunction with Traffic Advisory Leaflets and these are referenced where appropriate.
The focus of this guidance is to provide:
- information which enables transport planners to relate their authority's objectives to ITS tools that may help in meeting those objectives;
- supporting information on how to develop a cohesive package of measures to deliver maximum benefit for minimum cost; and
- information on what others have done, found and learnt, when implementing and operating ITS tools.
The ITS Toolkit supports the Department for Transport's (DfT) guidance on the conduct of transport studies, hereafter referred to as TAG guidance. The TAG guidance provides a 15-step process for the assessment and appraisal of possible policy instruments to address transport problems (see Figure 1).
Figure 1 - TAG Guidance 15 Step Process
Advice on each step in the process is available from the DfT's WEBTAG website http://www.dft.gov.uk/webtag/. The ITS Toolkit provides additional, detailed advice to support steps 5, 7, 8 and 9 of the assessment process shown in Figure 1.
The ITS Toolkit contains the following sections:
- How to use the guide (this section);
- A worked example of using the guide in practice;
- Generic guidance on assessing the use of ITS tools and developing an ITS Strategy;
- The ITS Tool Directory and Decision Tree process to determine candidate tools for further assessment;
- Guidance on evaluation and reporting of project outcomes;
- Case Studies of ITS tools in use; and
- An accompanying Digest of Results, summarising reported costs and
benefits of ITS Tools.
Use of the ITS Toolkit within the WEBTAG assessment framework
This sub-section summarises the DfT's transport assessment process with a short commentary on each of the 15 steps shown in Figure 1 and the work required by authorities when applying the process. Further advice on undertaking each step is provided in the TAG guidance. It highlights, in particular, where the ITS Toolkit provides supporting information and advice specifically related to the assessment of ITS tools.
- OBJECTIVES
Firstly the authority must determine its objectives and vision and transport policies. When considering transport options for an authority, the TAG guidance process begins by requiring the determination of objectives. Comprehensive advice is provided on this point in Introduction to Transport Analysis TAG Unit 1.1 and in The Overall Approach: The Steps in the Process TAG Unit 2.1. These objectives should be determined in conjunction with the Authorities Traffic Manager.
- UNDERSTANDING THE CURRENT SITUATION
The authority should then investigate the existing situation in order to understand the problem(s) to be addressed. More information can be found within the TAG guidance Objectives and Problems TAG Unit 2.2;
- UNDERSTANDING THE FUTURE SITUATION
The authority should then investigate in order to understand the anticipated future situation. More information can be found within the TAG guidance Objectives and Problems TAG Unit 2.2;
- CONSULTATION, PARTICIPATION, INFORMATION
A period of consultation, participation and information gathering should then follow. The result of this stage in the assessment process should be a clear set of objectives and a clear understanding of the problems the authority faces now and is likely to face in the future.
During this period of consultation, it is important to consider neighbouring authorities' objectives, problems and proposed tools for managing those problems.
Greater co-ordination and collaboration between adjacent local authorities and/or regions can bring several benefits with regards to ITS tools.
Benefits from co-ordination and collaboration in the deployment and operation of ITS tools include:- limiting the impact of later cross-border interoperability issues;
- easier data exchange across the urban-interurban interface by aggregating local data feeds;
- the sharing of technical and project management skills, experience and personnel;
- the development of common technical standards and architectures, as supported by the Urban Traffic Management and Control Development Group initiatives;
- possible bulk procurement of products and associated services from the supplier market, in areas such as detection and signal control, where systems can reasonably span across authority boundaries, as within Bournemouth and Poole for SCOOT; and, likewise
- the sharing of operational and maintenance costs, as within the
MATTISSE consortium of West Midlands authorities.
Figure 2 shows the likely relative scale of benefits (where 1 = least benefit and 5 = most benefit) for urban ITS tools currently implemented by authorities resulting from collaboration between adjacent local authorities and/or regions. Three key areas are assessed:
- interoperability, of systems and services;
- ease of implementation; and
- cost reductions through bulk purchasing and shared operations.
In practice such ITS tools as those summarised in Figure 2 will not be implemented in isolation, even within an individual authority, but as suites of applications (see Figure 3).
Figure 2 - Perceived Benefits of Collaboration with Respect to Three Key Areas
Figure 3 - Relative Benefits From Collaborative Working
The figure shows benefits of collaboration between transport practitionners. Benefits are divided in accordance to the level of their perception. Similar benefits are grouped together for enhanced clarity - OPTIONS FOR SOLUTIONS
Once objectives have been set, the situation in the study area has been examined and problems have been identified, the next step is to start developing ideas for solutions. The following sources of ideas are likely to be available to those undertaking the assessment:
- the public, if consulted in step 4, will have some ideas;
- ideas considered previously may be reviewed to check whether any of the proposals discarded in the past may now be worth reconsidering; and
- Policy Instruments (TAG Unit 2.3) reviews the significant policy instruments, which may be of use in studies.
The ITS Tool Directory can assist in the process. It provides detailed information to support TAG unit 2.3. The electronic ITS Tool Directory is accessed via a 'Decision Tree' (Figure 4a) which encourages users to explore the linkage between policy objectives and ITS tools. Firstly the user must choose whether to select a single or multiple objectives.
Figure 4a - The ITS Tool Directory
If the 'Select Multiple Objectives' box is ticked, then the user will be prompted to select specific objectives and sub-objectives by ticking further boxes, as shown in Figure 4b.
Figure 4b - Selecting Multiple Objectives
Selecting these multiple objectives generates a Combined Policy Matrix showing which ITS and other tools can contribute to the achievement of the selected policy goals (see Figure 4c), as well as a filtered version of the decision tree containing only those objectives selected previously (see Figure 4d). Clicking on the hyperlinks for each tool in the Combined Policy Matrix will take the user directly to that tool.
Figure 4c - Multiple Objectives & Tools Matrix
Figure 4d - Filtered Decision Tree (Multiple Objectives Selected)
If the user does not tick the multiple objectives box then they can access the full, unfiltered decision tree. The Decision Tree process allows the user to select the objective, sub-objective, mechanism and then tool from pull-down menus. The user is then automatically taken to information about the tool they have selected. A screen shot of the decision tree in action is shown as Figure 4e.
Figure 4e - The unfiltered Decision Tree
By entering the authority's objectives and sub objectives, a selection of mechanisms and ITS tools are revealed which are designed to achieve the stated objective.
An Authority might, for example, aim to improve safety (the objective), focusing on reducing road traffic collisions (the sub-objective). The possible mechanisms are to focus on: reducing speed, reducing dangerous driving, developing safer infrastructure, displacing vehicles, or reducing secondary incidents.
In this example, the practitioner has decided to investigate reducing speed as the mechanism for reducing road traffic collisions. The possible ITS tools available are then shown. These are: reducing speed limits, altering road and junction design, introducing speed enforcement, introducing variable speed limits or introducing vehicle activated signs. More detail is then available on each tool with information presented under the following headings:
- Tool Objectives;
- Tool Description;
- Integrated Systems;
- Key Cost Drivers;
- Costs;
- Benefits;
- Assessment Approach;
- Monitoring Requirements;
- Other Important Considerations; and
- More Information.
Where appropriate, under the more information section, a link is provided to relevant case study(s).
In reality, all Authorities will have multiple objectives and many different mechanisms by which to achieve those objectives which is why the multiple selection option has been developed. The ITS Tool Directory can then be used to assess the relative merits of a range of tools, used in combination with or instead of conventional measures.
Having reviewed alternative approaches, where appropriate, with reference to associated case studies, scheme options can then be developed, in line with TAG Guidance, bearing in mind considerations raised within the ITS Planning Guide.
- APPRAISAL FRAMEWORK
The Appraisal Framework should be completed following 'option testing and appraisal' (step 9) using information on the objectives of the scheme, anticipated value for money, the amelioration of problems etc. Information from the ITS Tool Directory and Generic Guidance sections of the ITS Planning Guide can be used, where appropriate, in completing this framework.
- APPRAISAL TOOLS AND PROCEDURES
These tools support the completion of the framework in step 6 above. Information and advice on use of the tools is available in The Appraisal Process TAG Unit 2.5.
- COSTS
Supporting information on costs can be derived from the ITS Tool Directory and Case Studies where appropriate. The Generic Guidance section of the ITS Toolkit also contains relevant material on maximising the benefits and minimising the costs of suites of ITS tools. Each scheme must be costed individually, based on the suite of tools and components which will be procured and installed in the environment in which they will be deployed, at current prices discounted to the DfT's standard base year.
- OPTIONS TESTING AND APPRAISAL
Option testing and appraisal should be undertaken as described within in the TAG guidance. Cost information and likely benefits of schemes can be validated against real findings contained within the ITS Tool directory and Case Studies.
- DISTILLATION AND COMPARISION OF OPTIONS
The ITS Toolkit provides evidence from other Authorities about successful schemes which will help inform this process.
- CONSULTATIONS
The ITS Planning Guide, Case Studies and Tool Directory will provide demonstrable evidence of similar scheme success which can be used when consulting with stakeholders and residents.
- OUTPUTS FROM THE STUDY
The preferred scheme option should be selected, based on the assessments and consultations undertaken.
- FUNDING SOURCES
Information on possible funding sources for ITS will be provided in a forthcoming DfT Traffic Advisory leaflet.
- IMPLEMENTATION PROCEDURES
Information on other Authorities' experiences can be gleaned from the ITS Planning Guide.
- MONITORING AND EVALUATION
Authorities should then conduct monitoring and evaluation. Guidance on monitoring in evaluation is presented within the Feeding Back Results page of the ITS Toolkit.
The Process in Practice
The use of the 'ITS Planning Guide' in developing a business case for investment in ITS, in the context of the preceding assessment process, is demonstrated by the Worked Example.
