Overview

The TIS-Introductory provides an overview of the Deployment Guidelines for traveller information services and incorporates those common issues relevant to all five content based Guidelines. These documents have been produced by EasyWay primarily for use by EasyWay partners who are themselves predominantly comprised of local and national road operators. Figure 9 outlines the relationship between the Reference Document and individual Guideline parts. The TIS Reference Document should be read with each Guideline DG02 to DG07.

This TIS-Introductory has been produced to reduce repetition between the individual information content based Guidelines DG02 to DG07:

• DG02      Forecast and Real-time Event Information
• DG03-05 Traffic Condition and Travel Time Information
• DG04      Speed Limit Information
• DG06      Weather information
• DG07      Co-modal Traveller Information

General traveller information service description

The General Service description for all Traveller Information Services is that they should provide the European traveller with comprehensive real time traffic information allowing for well-informed travel decisions before setting off (pre-trip information) as well as information during the journey (on-trip). It includes real time information concerning the TEN-T road network as well as interfaces with peri-urban networks and with other transports modes, especially in urban areas. Such interactions include the physical road interfaces i.e. key routes linking motorway and urban networks; and ICT interfaces such as DATEX II to exchange information between relevant actors.

This content-based approach to the production of the Guidelines for traveller information requires a strong understanding of the actors and processes which govern the relationships in this field. An appreciation of the current actors in the value chain is also an important prerequisite to the development of any business models for traveller information as outlined in the corresponding section of this report.

The specific service descriptions for each traveller information service are outlined in the individual Guideline documents DG02 to DG07.

Contribution of Traveller Information to overarching European ITS-objectives

The deployment of Traveller Information Services in the second EasyWay period (2010 – 2012) should contribute towards the overarching objectives for 2020. The work already undertaken by the Evaluation Expert Group (EEG) during EW I will help illustrate the benefits of traveller information service implementations in terms of the above objectives and underline their contribution to EasyWay objectives. It is acknowledged that ITS evaluation is complex; the achievement of these targets could be affected by other external factors outside the control of the EasyWay project. Currently there is no (agreed) methodology on how to measure the contribution of a single TIS service to the overalls goals set; so input from the EW EEG should be sought.

Overall, the initial EasyWay evaluation shows that where services have been deployed, the benefits delivered are in line with the objectives set by the project. The deployment of on-trip Traveller Information Services and warning within EasyWay (e.g. roadside and on-board information) have shown a positive impact on road safety (up to 11% reduction in injury accidents during adverse weather conditions), mobility (up to 20% reduction in travel times with roadside VMS) and environment (up to a 10% reduction in energy consumption, with commensurate impacts on CO2 emission). When displayed pre-trip (e.g. internet, travel time predictions), the impact of Traveller Information Services on safety and congestion is lower (up to 2% reduction in congestion) but the provision of co-modal information, which aims to foster modal shift, could lead to a greater reduction in CO2 emissions overall.

Safety

Traveller information has three primary impacts in increasing road safety.

The first is largely theoretical. It assumes that an increase in mode share for public transport can be achieved through high quality pre-trip and co-modal traveller information. The reduction in traffic levels on the road in turn has a positive impact on safety by reducing the number of accidents and managing demand on the road asset particularly at peak times. It is also generally accepted that travelling by public transport is inherently safer than travelling by car, the UITP states that the public are 10 times more likely to be involved in an accident travelling by car that by public transport .

A more direct impact of traveller information, although still difficult to quantify, assumes the timely provision of on-trip traveller information reduces accident rates. For example, informing drivers of extreme weather conditions or current traffic conditions ahead of their travel can increase drivers’ awareness and therefore reduce accident rates. For example, in San Antonio Texas, deployment of dynamic message signs combined with an incident management program, resulted in a 2.8 % decrease in crashes.

Information which principally addresses the efficiency of driving such as travel time information also has an indirect safety effect as informed travel leads to less risky driving behaviour. Past TIS studies have revealed that traveller’s value timely information on the traffic conditions, and that real-time traffic information reduces travel uncertainty and the stress due to uncertainties .

Network Efficiency

In a similar manner to safety, supporting increased modal shift toward public transport requires good quality pre-trip and co-modal traveller information. This allows for more efficient pre-trip routing decisions and/or departure times; thus increasing network efficiency and improving asset efficiency. On-trip information related to current road conditions (i.e. travel time, weather status/ warnings) should have a positive impact on network efficiency as drivers should use this information to make more effective travel decisions. In future it may be possible for well informed travellers who improve their choice of mode, route and departure time to contribute to a more even spread of traffic throughout the day. Relevant research in this area has shown that:

• making information services work well under incident conditions is likely to be cost effective
• providing travellers with information as early as possible is likely to increase its effectiveness in terms of behavioural adaptation.

Environmental Impact

The positive environmental impact of traveller information is primarily tied to the increase in network efficiency noted above. So, for example, avoiding stationary or slow moving traffic will reduce congestion and therefore emissions of CO2 and other air pollutants. More recent research also indicates that where such information is available the more environmentally conscious traveller may, by comparing the impact of their vehicle journey with public transport alternatives, opt for the most environmentally friendly journey choice. Furthermore, keeping the environmentally aware driver informed “on trip” of environmentally sensitive areas and linking this with suggested speed control may promote better compliance with the variable speed limit. In France, it is common to reduce the general speed limit by 20 or 30 km/h on a temporary basis, generally in case of high temperatures, with the aim to reduce air pollution and smog.

Traveller Information Services Radar Diagrams

The radar diagrams below, Figure 6, show the strength of the relationships between the TIS Services and the EW objectives. The applied scales for the service radars are based on an expert view and not on specific scientific analysis.

Lore Ipsum

TIS Deployment Guidelines Benefits Radar Diagrams

As shown in the radar diagrams, the main benefits delivered by TIS services relate to safety and efficiency; the main objectives of the majority of road operators, the EasyWay Project and the European Commission. Thus, by providing road users with high quality, accessible traveller information benefits can be gained on existing networks without deploying significant additional infrastructure