Location, Location, Location Reg Souleyrette Gerald and Audrey Olson Professor of Civil Engineering CTRE/Iowa State University

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Location, Location, LocationReg
SouleyretteGerald and Audrey Olson Professorof
Civil EngineeringCTRE/Iowa State University

• Safety Data and Analysis Tools Workshop
• Sponsored by Transportation Safety
• Planning Working Group (TSPWG)
• TRB March 27-28, 2006

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4 Topics

1. Iowa crash data GIS location and analysis systems
2. How we work with local agencies
3. Some issues in crash location
4. SAFETEA-LU and location

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Crash Location

• TraCS Incident Location Tool (ILT)
• Custom GIS Application for Location Capture
• Tie Roadway Attributes to Crash Locations
• Useful for Geo-Locating other types of Incidents
• Integrated with TraCS
• Stand-Alone for Location Capture of Paper Reports
• ALL Iowa crashes located using ILT

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Zooming In for Location Capture
Measuring from an Intersection
Approving Location Results
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Crash Analysis

• GIS-ALAS SAVER
• Accident Location and Analysis System/Safety,
  Analysis, Visualization, and Exploration Resource
  
• Analyst oriented, 10 years of data
• Arc View/Avenue
• CMAT Crash Mapping and Analysis Tool
• Traffic Engineering/Design oriented
• Annual Crash/Roads Snapshot, 5 years of data
  (00-04)
• VB/Map Objects
• IMAT - Incident mapping and analysis tool
• Law Enforcement oriented (includes citations)
• Works with Local TraCS data (up to today, if
  desired)
• VB/Map Objects

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Leveraging User Familiarity and Existing Source
Code
Collection (ILT)
Analysis (CMAT/IMAT)
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Data Flow
Architectural Context
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(No Transcript)
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Iowa DOT help to the locals

• TraCS
• sharing crash data
• crash analysis tools
• TEAP studies
• traffic safety fund grants (1/2 of construction
  funds on top of HSIP)
• free safety engineering training
• support ITSDS

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• Quick-response service
• Aides other agencies in obtaining, mapping, and
  evaluating crash information.
• Facilitates decision-making, effective
  presentation of information, and education.
• Activities
• Policy and Practice Assessment
• High Crash Location Identification
• Project and Site Review
• Targeted Enforcement

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Data Manager
Emergency Response Planning
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ALCOHOL
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YOUNG DRIVERS
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Mobility Issues
OLDER DRIVERS
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Safety Plan Support

• Strategic Highway Safety Plan
• Traffic Records Strategic Plan
• MPO Plans

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Iowa DOT District 1 Rural Two-Lane Primary Road
Fatalities and Major Injuries (1998-2000)
2 LANE ROADS
20 unlocated injury severities not
represented. (0 Fatal, 20 Major Injuries)
High Crash Location Identification
Disclaimer The Center for Transportation
Research and Education presents these data as
preliminary.
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Statewide Rural Four-Lane Primary Road Fatal and
Major Injury Crash Severities (1996-2000)
EXPRESSWAYS
Non-Interstate Unlocated crash severities not
represented.
High Crash Location Identification
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BEFORE
High Crash Curves
CURVES
AFTER
Horizontal Curves
Change in bearing between road segments
High Crash Location Identification
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Before
After
BEFORE AND AFTER
1993 -1995
1998 - 2000
Project and Site Review
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SAFETY AUDIT
Safety Audit
Project and Site Review
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School-Age Pedestrian Crashes
PEDESTRIANS
City of Des Moines 1995 to 1999 Ages 5 to
19 August 15 to June 15 Monday to Friday 700
a.m. to 500 p.m.
Project and Site Review
Middle Schools
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SPEED ENFORCEMENT
Targeted Enforcement
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Rural Alcohol-Related Fatal and Major Injury
Crashes
ALCOHOL ENFORCEMENT
Rural Alcohol-Related Crashes Corridors Ranked
by Frequency
Targeted Enforcement
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WEB SITE
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DEMAND
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Some not-so simple questions
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Location methods
Not a simple question
Spatial analysis methods

• address
• offset from known point (intersection, bridge,
  crossing, milepost)
• Literal description
• Smart map
• Lat/long or other coordinates (GPS)
• Aerial photo
• Multiple methods required

• Spot/Intersection Analysis
• Strip Analysis
• Cluster Analysis
• Sliding-Scale Analysis
• Corridor Analysis
• Spatial statistics is an emerging area

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Where are the crashes?

• Crashes are not necessarily point events
• Some crashes may be located using different
  methods and degree of accuracy
• Temporal (e.g. link node to lat long)
• Spatial (e.g., state police v. local)
• Techno (GPS v. smart map)

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Where are the roads? (Incorrect or incomplete
cartography)
Feature under construction
Feature not represented
Alignment Off
Alignment OK
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Where are the roads? (Improving cartography)
Alignment moves
Alignment stays put
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What was the traffic volume on the road? (and
other road attributes at the time of the crash)
this is a biggy!

• Need traffic level for the year the crash
  happened
• Requires multiple files in Iowa, working on
  going back past 1998 difficult to do
• Was the road even there then? Is the road still
  there?

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How to segment the road system?

• Requirements
• Logical breaks (engineering and public)
• Relationship to inventory data
• Long enough for manageability and presentation
• Short enough to reflect important changes
• Clear and understandable to use
• Facility location and type
• What is rural/urban? Character is important

Designated rural
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What is an intersection crash?
Can use attributes and/or proximity Red
probable, Yellow spatial _at_ 75, Blue possible
spatial
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SAFETEA-LU Sec. 1401 Must Identify Top 5
not easy to do in many states
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Collect data on all crashes?
Yes Some, quality issue, or working on it No No
Response
R Souleyrette, 1/2006
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State system crashes mapable (x-y or milepoint)?
Yes Some, quality issue, or working on it No No
Response
R Souleyrette, 1/2006
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Inventory data on all roads? The quadrennial
needs legacy
State system as a percent of all public roads
Yes Some, quality issue, or working on it No No
Response
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Can 1401 be met without GIS?

• Kansas, for example
• Has crashes on system only
• Has 70 of crashes located to road by route
  milepost
• Does sliding spot (nongraphical) named
  intersection (program)
• Assuming the 30 missing does not affect the
  outcome
• No brainer to do top 5

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Yes, but spatial systems can

• Not only meet 1401 location challenges,
• also can

• Address integration issues
• National level conflation of state cartography
  to federal base map
• State level coordination of hundreds of local
  agencies on map development and update
• Enable proactive approaches

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Sample - DRAFT
Sample - DRAFT
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Sample - DRAFT
Sample - DRAFT
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Sample - DRAFT
Sample - DRAFT
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Sample - DRAFT
Sample - DRAFT
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For more information

• Reg Souleyrette
• Iowa State University
• 515-294-5453
• reg_at_iastate.edu
• www.ctre.iastate.edu/itsds