“Caltrans has committed to replacing more than 7,700 traffic operating system elements such as traffic cams, pavement sensors, ramp meters, roadside message boards, etc.,” said Caltrans spokesman Mark Dinger, who responded via email to Techwire’s questions about how much of the agency’s share of the new gas tax revenue would go to tech.
The legislation that created the revenue windfall, SB 1, also dedicates $250 million per year for targeted improvements in highly congested areas. A pilot program involving Caltrans, UC Berkeley PATH, L.A. Metro, Los Angeles County and the cities of Pasadena, Arcadia, Monrovia and Duarte “includes a Decision Support System (DSS),” Dinger wrote, “that runs in the cloud (secure and quickly portable) and uses advanced modeling and simulation (AMS) to predict system conditions for up to an hour in the future. Data from local arterials and the state highway system are sent to this core DSS through ITS elements including traffic signals, ramp meters, trailblazer signs and changeable message signs. These data-sharing technologies are all connected and used to manage negative travel impacts on a multi-modal, multi-jurisdictional transportation network.”
Vendors who want more information about the technologies and opportunities flowing from Caltrans can find details at www.rebuildingca.ca.gov. “Project information is uploaded as soon as it becomes available,” Dinger noted.
Vendors, systems integrators and others who want to get ahead of the competition should watch for “an increase in the deployment of Internet provider-based communication networks to transport data and video from freeway Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) Devices,” Dinger wrote. “The ability for vehicles to communicate with and better understand the roadway infrastructure and dynamic road conditions also poses new challenges for Internet of Things (IoT) devices and Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS)."
He also noted other tech areas where the department expects to see growth:
- Moving away from analog and dial-up communications
- More fiber-optic communication infrastructure
- Increased use of 4G/LTE service (and 5G in the future) in many areas
- More Model 2070E and Model 2070LX Microprocessor-based Traffic controllers that are used for managing freeway system applications — ramp meters, traffic signals
- Deploying IP-capable High-Definition (HD) CCTV Cameras
- Updating IT infrastructure to the latest standards for improved reliability and security
- Updating servers and data warehousing appliances
- Upgrading Transportation Management Center (TMC) central systems and supporting data networks
- Upgraded TMC video walls supporting HD video and video sharing
- Improved Freeway CCTV Cameras video distribution through standard transport protocols and updated appliances
- Improved ATMS (Advanced Traffic Management System) applications to support more traffic management functions such as Variable Advisory Speed signage
“More technology in support of — and on — the roads means a larger ‘attack surface’ for hackers,” Dinger wrote. “We would like to see the cybersecurity industry and university researchers provide new technologies and industrywide standards to safeguard the traveling public prior to their widespread deployment in the field." He then listed some of the needs and challenges involved in deploying those new technologies:
- Cars, particularly autonomous vehicles, are "rolling networks of interconnected devices and sensors," which are all potential targets for hacking, also affecting each of the devices' supply chains.
- The potential for hijacking or modification of communication protocols between vehicles and infrastructure like traffic signals or emergency systems.
- Connected traffic signals that will allow for efficient traffic control, but will be vulnerable to remote control by a third-party bad actor.
- Privacy concerns surrounding the the unintentional collection and/or release of data regarding citizens' travel.
