Development and Benefits of Computer-Aided Travel Time Data Collection

Link travel times are one of the most widely used and valuable measurements of congestion. Travel time measures are compatible with multimodal analyses and are understood by nontechnical audiences, yet are rigorous enough for technical analyses by transportation engineers and planners. The “average” car and floating car techniques are the most widely used travel time–based measures. Although there are cost, safety, and data limitation problems associated with collecting travel time data manually, the use of computer-aided travel time technology solves most of these problems. Detailed speed, time, and distance information can be safely collected in up to 0.1-sec intervals for a reasonable cost. The consistent format of the computer data lends itself to an automated analysis process. The development and benefits of using computer-aided travel time data collection techniques using distance-measuring instruments (DMI) and laptop computers are discussed. Automated analysis techniques and developmental software can produce results such as speed profiles, average speeds, level of service, and vehicle accelerations. Current and future research on air quality methods, fuel consumption information, and planning model potential is also presented.