Transportation Professional Mar/Apr 2024

DIGITAL

PIONEERING SPIRIT

WALKING

- National Highways - has been trialling the use of a robotic dog in a series of geotechnical surveys in the South West. The four-legged robot runs down steep-sided embankments, natural slopes and under bridges to capture data and images of the region's motorway and A-road network.

Built by engineers Boston Dynamics, 'Spot' uses a series of cameras and LiDAR technology to assess roadside areas that are difficult to access by (human) foot, providing highly detailed video and terrain data that enables survey teams to identify

geotechnical defects in the ground surface.

"Spot's capabilities will be tested over a variety of terrains and environments, and in differing weather and ground conditions," said Guy Swains, engineering manager in National Highways' South West Geotechnical team. "The data from the trials will be captured and analysed, and depending on the results, we should be able to measure an improvement in safety methods and efficiencies, and employ the technology in our future work."

Just don't expect Spot to chase after any sticks.

It's a dog's life: 'Spot' the robot dog uses LiDAR and cameras to assess

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COINITEINITS

BUILDING DIGITAL SOLUTIONS FOR ALL Nf

~~~::eTiTHE Transportation Professional.This edition has the theme of digital and data, which is hugely important for our sector and our members. We can generate a lot of data but it's vital to understand that data in its own right has to have a purpose and be used effectively.

I am pleased that the report CIHT published on using data and AI to support the decarbonisation of the transport sector has got real traction, and we are now working with the Department for Transport on its data strategy and Al.

A lot of good work has also been done around social exclusion and transport. When you look at data on social exclusion, it shows that many people in the community don't have access to good transport. Data is fundamental, but we need to use it smartly for the communities we serve so that we have a transport system accessible to all.

A FRAMEWORK FOR PROGRESS

Linking into technology and data are skills. Skills are crucial because if you have the right skills, you can be much more effective. It's great that CIHT is relaunching its Professional Development Framework, which supports our members on their journey to gain qualifications, guiding them in

acquiring the skills they need in this fast-moving profession.

CIHT Learn offers a wealth of educational and training resources for our members, and one of our newest courses is on dementia. The course provides expert training and information on how we can plan transport for an ageing population.

As a profession, this is an issue we need to take more seriously. Given the demographics, more and more of us are going to be living with conditions such as dementia, and we need to think about how we operate and plan our transport systems to make them as supportive as possible. The module will help raise that awareness and give us some of the skills we need.

A MODEL FOR THE FUTURE

I'm also delighted to announce the launch of the new CIHTManifesto, which will talk about a number of key issues in the transport industry. As well as skills, these issues will include road safety, the resilience of our networks and decarbonisation. Underlying these issues is how we fund the initiatives and work going forward. We've got to get a funding model that's fit for the work we have ahead of us.

So there are lots of challenges but also lots of opportunities. Ifwe can get these things right and work smartly, we can do a large amount and deliver for the UK public.

"Data is fundamental, but the key is using it smartly for the communities we serve"

Sue PercyCBE, chief executive, CIHT

Smart

Smart ticketing

Find out how the National Smart Ticketing Advisory Board will transform digital travel across Scotland

WORDS / DR ANDREW SEEDHOUSE

- The aim of the National Smart Ticketing - Advisory Board (NSTAB)is to advise Scottish Ministers and the Scottish Government on the strategic development of smart ticketing within Scotland. As well as looking at how ticketing can develop from a customer point of view, we are tasked to consider where the technology might be going and to understand whether it may be appropriate for ticketing within Scotland.

One important factor about the board is the inclusive nature of the modes and sectors that are involved. It brings together bus, rail, ferry, subway, tram and passenger representatives, as well as local transport authorities. We want to make sure that we understand passengers' needs and deliver multi-operator and multimodal ticketing across Scotland in a way that's simple and easy to use.

Simplifyingthe system

Dr Andrew Seedhouse is chair of the National Smart Ticketing Advisory Board (NSTAB)

A three-year work programme has to be prepared and available for the Minister by the end of May.It's likely that the programme will

be a phased approach and will allow us to identify smart ticketing opportunities for the short, medium and long term, with work starting on the review of alternative technological standards that may become viable in later years.

So much work is now progressing across the UK in ticketing, including barcode and QR code ticketing, and contactless payment on buses and other modes, including the development of tap and go, tap on-tap off, capping fares and multi-operator tapping. So by bringing everyone together, we can see what customers are using, what they want to use and what they are comfortable with as standards for delivery.

"We want to make sure that we understand passengers' needs and deliver multi-operator and multi-modal ticketing in a way that's simple and easy to use"

Options increase

One of the key benefits of smart ticketing is convenience in accessing services and understanding the preferred way for a customer to use buses, trains, ferries, trams and the underground. If I want to transact everything on my phone, what are my options?

Equally, a lot of people value a physical smartcard for its identity value as well as security, since they are tangible and not going to run out of battery. It's not just about how customers wish to transact, but making sure that the product they purchase is the right product for them and offers the best value.

In addition, the shift in technology and data over the last five years now enables customers to carry out post-purchase ticketing. Ifl tap on a bus then tap off a bit later and that's the only journey I'm making, my bank card can be debited for the journey I have made. But with account-based ticketing, we are now moving into a world where you can tap in using your phone, a smartcard or bank card, and at the end of the day capture the data of all the journeys.

That enables operators to understand you as an individual and ensure you are charged the best-value ticket you could have bought if you'd known in advance the journeys you were going to make.

Accessibleto all

When looking at our core parameters, it's vital that we improve accessibility for everybody, acknowledging there is a proportion of transport users who do not engage in a digital way. However people wish to engage with the ticketing system, they have to be front and centre when looking at the design alternatives.

There's a lot of discussion about whether we should have the national entitlement card solely as a physical plastic smartcard or embed the smart entitlement within a mobile phone. But if you talk to my parents, who are in their 80s, they don't want their bus pass embedded in a mobile phone. They are very happy with their smartcard that they can show to the driver and goes beep on the bus. But we will need to accommodate societal changes to technology.

Ultimately, it's about understanding that there should always be a range of ticketing options available to meet the needs of the customer. If you want to have your travel card as a physical piece of plastic or embedded within a phone, it should be your choice.

(] SMARTMOVE

For more information about NSTAB, go to bit.ly/NSTAB

- National Highways has - begun a tender process worth £650m for service providers to provide digital connectivity solutions between control rooms and roadside devices. This groundbreaking investment into digital services is part of the agency's National Roads Telecommunications Services (NRTS),which delivers real-time information to drivers across 3,500km ofroads and connects to more than 30,000 end devices.

This information is vital to driver safety and traffic flow, and includes technology that ranges

from flood sensors and CCTV to variable message signs.

The NRTS is a central part of National Highways' Digital, Data and Technology strategy, which sets out the agency's vision for a digital future, covering how it will harness digital, data and connectivity to improve the way the road network is designed, built, operated and used.

"We are at the beginning of a digital revolution in roads infrastructure and expect to see more change in the next decade than we have in the last century," said Nick Harris, chief executive of National Highways.

IDigitaltwins and data strategy

Find out more about this revolutionary technology that's already moving many manual processes into the digital world

WORDS / SHERVIN DEH BOZORGI

- THE CONCEPTOF DIGITALTWINS IS - one of the transport sector's most exciting areas and has the potential to transform the entire industry. From operational maintenance to design and planning, the ability to monitor assets and make informed decisions makes the digital twin a valuable investment for the future of any organisation.

11 Twin not BIM

Many people confuse digital twins with BIM (Building Information Modelling). The difference between them is that a digital twin can be a representation of an object, a system or a process related to an asset. But the key part is the connectivity between the virtual and the physical asset, which allows us to get real-time data from the physical assets.

That connectivity can be through sensors, Internet of Things devices or visual captures, using technology such as photogrammetry or 3D scans. But the crucial factor is that there is regular information capture of physical assets that's sent automatically to the virtual asset. So every time you access the virtual asset, you know the latest status of the physical assets without actually having to go on-site.

2 What's your strategy?

It's vital that you understand the purpose of your digital twin before you create it. Is it being created to maintain assets, improve customer experience or simply to have a visual review of your assets? Once decided, you then need to define your digital and data strategy. So what sort of IT infrastructure, processes and capabilities do you need to use the digital twin?

Also, what's your long-term strategy? Digital twin technology is always evolving, so you need to ensure it doesn't become obsolete, otherwise all the investment and capability you have put in place will be worthless. Creating a digital twin is a complex process that requires input and continuous collaboration across various parties such as asset owner, maintenance team, designers and specialists.

3Minimisingmanual maintenance

The biggest value of a digital twin comes during the operational maintenance of an asset. Asset maintenance is still quite a manual process, which means there's a lot of wasted time and cost. So it's important that you use a digital twin in a way that it adds value to your maintenance team. In order to do that, you

Shervin Deh Bozorgi is group digital transformation lead at John Sisk & Son

need to look at your whole maintenance strategy and understand what data, systems and processes are critical for the maintenance team.

For example, if they need to carry out health and safety checks for a bridge every year, is there any data you can capture virtually and have sent to the digital twin so teams no longer need to go to the physical area to capture that?

Also, maintenance teams may not have any historical data on the asset, such as when it was built, the material used, who the contractor was - lots of basic information that can create confusion and delays. A digital twin can provide that information with the click of a mouse.

Chooseyourdata wisely

Many companies' digital twin project fails because of their data strategy. For a digital twin to be effective, a company needs to have the confidence that the information on the screen is actually what's happening on site. However, many companies undermine the whole project by thinking they can sort their data strategy out at the end of the project.

Without a clear data strategy at the project inception, you run the risk of gathering a huge amount of irrelevant data that someone has to

then refine and structure in order to provide something meaningful. Many companies without a data strategy at the beginning of a project end up with thousands of data points handed over to them but have no idea which has priority to get the best outcome.

SThe roleof Al

Al will have a significant role in the development of digital twins as it can analyse vast amounts of data from sensors in real-time that allow the twin to predict when a component is likely to fail or identify anomalies in the system. This capability enables proactive maintenance, reducing operational costs and downtime. It's is a complex process and needs knowledgeable and capable people, and there aren't many of those currently available. There's a skills shortage but AI can help fill that gap.

AI is a massive enabler to put ourselves on the right path for the creation of digital twins, and will help us further down the line on data analytics and machine learning. Not needing people to manually structure, capture or sift through the data would be a game changer for digital twins, and that should happen within the next five years.

"It'svital that you understandthe purpose of the digitaltwin before you create it"

Cracking the code

From the first journey planning software to the latest machine learning solutions, Al is transforming how we plan, use and maintain the road network

WORDS/ANNAJORDAN

- THE TIMELINEFOR DATA-DRIVEN - technology in the transport sector goes back to 2007, when Google Maps was widely adopted on mobile phones. That fundamentally changed how people and individuals chose to move around the built environment.

With these navigation apps, people suddenly had a journey planner that could help build a route. The way people chose to move, and therefore the way every stakeholder in the transport ecosystem needed to operate, was about to change dramatically.

Fast forward to the present day, and you see how our built environment has become more and more digitised, with widespread investment in hardware and sensors across our networks resulting in a better ability to monitor everything that's going on. This digitisation improved our understanding of the shifting patterns of travel, allowing the industry to build more and more ways of measuring and influencing how people move.

The lightbulbmoment COVIDwas one of the most seismic things to happen to the transport industry for a long time. Suddenly, the patterns of how people, workers, students and businesses interacted with the mobility infrastructure completely changed in a way no one was able to predict.

When COVIDhit, network operators became aware of how little data-driven evidence they had to understand their networks, realising they didn't even have a baseline measuring what good used to look like compared to what good should look like now. They may have carried out manual surveys once a quarter to understand flow rates at certain junctions, but nothing on a widespread scale. COVIDwas a

"Weneededbetter and more dynamicwaysof measuring and monitoringwhat'sgoing on to decidehowto operate"

Effective Al solutions require reliable data sources to make better decisions

lightbulb moment to push the agenda that we needed better data. We needed better and more dynamic ways of measuring and monitoring what's going on to decide how to operate next.

That's where machine learning comes into play. The moment you have better data availability and quality, you can use that to inform better decision-making. However, having the data is only part of the story;

gathering data from several different sources quickly becomes complicated.

All of this information is hard for a human to process and come to a decision in real time.

Machine learning is a key tool in crunching through a huge volume of information to provide guidance on the right thing to do.

Drivenby data

Machine learning is valuable across the data-driven decision-making stack, from pre-processing raw data to making an optimal decision. Unlocking the value of AI requires the public sector and transport infrastructure to invest in solid data foundations.

We've seen some of this investment come through in the form of the Bus Open Data Service, digital TROs and an industry-wide

DATAHEADS

TRENDS

consensus that investing in data infrastructure is key. This provides the start-off point for AI solutions that can propose more optimal ways of working to drive better outcomes.

Key to adopting AI is embracing a more data-driven way of operating, which will have significant benefits in productivity and efficiency. But that will require infrastructure owners and operators thinking and operating in a different way.

Valuing data and understanding where it can support decision-making takes a broad set of skills and knowledge. It's not about everyone suddenly needing to code or be a software engineer, but it is about having a basic understanding of what to expect from data, what you can inherently trust, and what you should question and what you can believe.

Understanding the bounds of what AI is supposed to be doing and therefore what you can use it for is key to addressing the skills gap.

Buildinga better journey

As an example, Alchera is currently working with Connect Plus, the operator of the M25, helping it use the road space better when booking planned roadworks. Its current way of working is to go out during a fixed time window, when the flow rate is safe, which is typically late at night.

So we pulled in historical data on flow rates, alongside other data sources such as events and weather, and developed a predictive algorithm to understand what the flow rate would look like in the future. That was then used to update the safe time window.

That resulted in works that would usually take five to seven days taking just four or five days. With the 10,000-plus sets of works that have to happen on that highway in a year, the algorithm is identifying opportunities to drastically increase the amount of work that can be done, minimising the cost impact and how much customers are disrupted. We're now building more KPis into the system, which will help us understand more about the M25, as well as the entire strategic road network.

That should make everyone's journey better.

Anna Jordan is CEO at Alchera Technologies

Yourjourney starts here

Route-planning technology offers the potential to revolutionise how we drive to provide safer, more reliable journeys

WORDS/ DOUGLAS GILMOUR

.JL People often see new route-finding ,r technology as having negative impacts on traffic build-up, particularly on smaller roads. It has been blamed for undermining new traffic flow schemes and reducing their efficiency compared to the model. But a model is, in many ways, similar to a navigation app. It routes optimally and finds the shortest and fastest route at a certain time of day.

Route-finding technology offers huge scope to improve road safety and the efficient routing of people, as well as an ability to make travel more democratic. As individuals and drivers, we don't have perfect information about the

road network, so we use these apps because they know more about current road network conditions and can therefore route optimally.

Knowledge and understanding of how and where people have driven in the past enables authorities to plan new road schemes or assess existing schemes. On major UK highways and roads, TomTom sees up to a third of traffic at peak times, and we are present in a wide range of car brands. From ignition on to ignition off, we receive data from 80% of all new vehicles with a sat nav. That data can not only be used in road design, but implement wide-ranging road safety initiatives and traffic reduction.

Douglas Gilmour is global business development manager -traffic at TomTom

"Route-findingtechnology offers huge scopeto improveroadsafety"

DELIVERYDYNAMIC

One area that's ripe for innovation is fleet and delivery. During the COVID-19pandemic, vehicle fleets for delivery increased enormously. That created a new dynamic on the roads and transformed the number and length of trips of all vehicles, as well as the routes that people took.

There was a fascinating experiment in the United States where a delivery company implemented a routing algorithm for a very large fleet of delivery vehicles. This algorithm directed its drivers to avoid turning across traffic to reduce the risk to their drivers. But it also ended up saving time because drivers weren't queuing in filter lanes and waiting until it was safe to cross the road. Now, turn that on its head and think about vehicles such as last-mile delivery solutions, motorbikes,

two-wheelers, cyclists and couriers. How could their routing technology be adapted to improve safety, not just for the drivers and riders but for all road users? How could we use nudge factors to reduce vehicle travel, particularly private trips, so that the only drivers on the road are delivery drivers or autonomous driving delivery vans?

Delivery vehicles have a big influence on the road network, and the increase of local on-demand deliveries and ride hailing is something that local authorities should be thinking more about in the future.

QUICKER,BETTER,SAFER

Another trend in route-finding technology is the increasing use of mobile phones rather than in-car navigation. Many people still like their vehicle's sat nav and are willing to pay for it. However, in general, the automotive sector and road authorities have seen the mobile phone as more of a distraction and threat to interactivity with the car. How might that interaction change in the future, particularly with better voice interactivity and AI enablement?

In terms of data for planning and network management, I think it's unaffordable for road authorities to install and maintain more and more hardwarebased solutions, such as counters, cameras and vehicle messaging signs. Their cost and unreliability make it hard to monitor what's happening at different levels of the network. That's where there is an opportunity to use GPS-based speed and movement data.

A third trend is the increasing use of AI and machine learning to build more effective routes and near-term predictions using historic patterns of driver behaviour and performance of the road network. This has the potential to identify more consistent and reliable routes in terms of journey time. It can also be safer, as the system can take into account a much wider range of features and the context of the network such as low bridges and vulnerable road users.

The journey to a more efficient, effective and safer road network that works for all modes starts with understanding how it has evolved to be used now. Route-finding technology continues to change the way we plan and route to our destination.

GOFURTHER

Digital technology and data solutions have opened up a world of transport information to make travel simpler and smoother for everyone

HE ART OF PLANNINGA journey has become a lot easier in the last few years thanks to the proliferation of technology and data. To navigate traffic, locate EV charging stations or secure affordable parking, there's now plenty of websites, apps and digital information to make your journey smoother.

Whether it's navigation platforms such as Google Maps or specialised apps from official transport providers, users simply need to input their origin and destination to receive updates on routes, transit times and disruptions.

"We have 'totems' across the West Midlands," says Zoe Smith, transport data lead at Transport for West Midlands (TfWM)."These display the bus network links and how to get to major travel and entertainment destinations. We also have a regional transport coordination centre that acts as a hub for the West Midlands to monitor planned and unplanned disruption."

PAYPALS

Payment is another area that digital technology has transformed since the introduction of smart

cards such as London's Oyster card or Swift in the West Midlands. As well as payment, these cards enable seamless transfer between modes of transport as well as contactless payment, doing away with paper tickets.

Transport East and consultants Arup have also produced BERTIE(BEhaviouR & Transport: Impact & Equity), an agent-based modelling platform that provides data across multiple transport modes to help Transport East answer questions, test assumptions and generate insights that reflect the real-life choices people make about how they travel. This helps the region make better decisions for the East's future transport needs.

Andrew Summers, chief executive at Transport East, is a firm believer in the value of data in improving the customer experience. "When I was at Transport for London," he says, "I saw the power of being able to collate, integrate and package data from multiple providers to give customers a seamless digital experience - from customer information to integrated ticketing.

"There is a greater challenge in the East, with more operators and local authorities

WORDS / TOM AUSTIN-MORGAN

Andrew Summers, Transport East

and less availability of open data for transport. Our partners are investing to improve digital customer service information, particularly through enhanced partnerships, using county-wide apps. Bus operators have increasingly invested in contactless ticket machines that allow people to pay by card. We are also keen to see the government's £2 bus cap extended beyond the current period at the end of 2024."

OPEN ACCESSTRAVEL

Public transport services often provide free Wi-Fi to keep passengers connected, while transport authorities use social media for real-time communication on disruptions and delays. Recent initiatives also focus on enhancing accessibility for passengers with disabilities, offering real-time information on accessible routes and facilities through apps and websites.

Transport For All aims to eliminate travel barriers for people with disabilities. "Between

20-25% of people are disabled," states Caroline Stickland, CEO of the charity. "That's around 16 million people across the UK. The transport accessibility gap stands at about 38%, meaning disabled people make 38% fewer journeys every year than non-disabled.

"There's a lot of untapped potential and the industry should be aware that those journeys aren't being made. Our research found that removing barriers to transport would increase the number of journeys that disabled people make by 50%."

UNTANGLINGTHE WEB

One of the biggest challenges for the transport sector is being able to provide the accurate, real-time information that passengers rely on. "It's a tangled web of systems and information and there's no industry standard," says Zoe Smith from TfWM. "Asan organisation, the access to information from suppliers such as Google has raised the bar of what we need to do for our customers with the TfWMapp."

"Removingthe barriersto transport wouldincrease the numberofjourneys that disabledpeople make by SO%"

There's an increasing focus on improving accessibility for disabled travellers

Smith adds that the app works well when there are no disruptions, but admits that if a bus or tram service gets cancelled, it doesn't quite deliver because the information must weave through each of those systems and multiple organisations before it appears on the real-time information platforms.

"Aspart of our Mobility-as-a-Service project," she says, "we're streamlining that and putting standards in place to remove intermediate systems to get the latest information to customers more quickly."

Integrating the various ticketing and payment systems across all transport modes, including active transport, buses, trains, trams and ferries, is a similarly complex task Each operator and bank has their own individual system that requires a secure link with just the essential information transferred. The Transport East partnership is exploring 'broker systems', such as the one being developed in the West Midlands, to securely link multiple bus operators. I.U

A WORLD OF TRANSPORT SOLUTIONS

Five creative customer experience projects

11UK:Demand-Responsive Transport(DRT)

DRT services operate without a fixed timetable and typically utilise smaller vehicles compared to fixed-route bus services. Traditional examples include dial-a-ride services with scheduled bookings. Dynamic DRT (D-DRT) involves real-time route adjustments to accommodate new pick-up requests, often made just minutes in advance.

2Finland:Mobility-asa-Service (MaaS)

Finland is the world's first country to implement a law that integrates all modes of transport, including buses, trains, taxis and bike-sharing, into a unified digital platform. This groundbreaking initiative enables users to plan, book and pay for their entire journey seamlessly through a single app.

3UAE:InteractiveTouchpoints

Dubai's public transport system incorporates interactive touchpoints at metro stations and bus stops. These touch points provide information and way-finding assistance, allowing users to provide feedback and contribute to a more engaging and responsive customer experience.

~~ Japan:Innovative VehicleDesign

Japan has long been known for its innovative approach to train design. For example, some trains feature luxurious interiors, panoramic windows and themed cars to create a more enjoyable and comfortable travel experience.

5Sweden:Art in Transit Stockholm's metro system features artistic designs and installations in many stations, transforming the commute into a cultural experience. This initiative enhances the aesthetics of the public spaces and results in a more pleasant travel environment.

"We want to see providers of information around mobility working with the end user," she says. "Not making assumptions of what they think passengers need but actually asking us, working with the community and co-producing a scope for what information can and should be provided, then working to find solutions." In addition, individuals who are deaf, blind, have mobility disabilities or rely on specialised software for website use have unique needs. Stickland emphasises the importance of considering these factors in the early stages of any design or project to ensure safety and accessibility are not compromised.

VISION OF THE FUTURE

While acknowledging improvement over the past two decades, there is unanimous agreement that the transport sector must do more to enhance the customer service experience for everyone.

CUSTOMER CONSIDERATIONS

Despite the emphasis on technology and interconnectivity, the parallel consideration of people facing digital poverty, disability, old age or children without bank accounts is crucial, as they may lack internet access. Sharon Kindleysides, interim head of the Bus Centre of Excellence, is aware of the role buses have in the lives of millions of people.

"Research has shown that bus users tend to be in the poorer demographic are unduly affected by transport poverty," she says.

"Around seven million British adults are not completely confident readers and 1.1 million are unbanked, so solutions must go back to basics. My feeling is you should always be able to pay for your bus ticket by cash."

COUNTRY CONNECTION

Rural areas are often the last to experience technological advancements. Approximately 600,000 people in Transport East's operational area reside in 'rural transport deserts', lacking alternative transportation to private vehicles. These areas frequently overlap with 'not-spots', characterised by poor internet connectivity.

"It's important that providers ensure that important customer information is available in other formats including en route, at appropriate public points, and by phone or messaging services," says Transport East's Andrew Summers. "It's also important that in designing and improving services, providers should consider both seen and unseen disabilities at all stages of the journey."

Stickland adds that 62% of people with disabilities plan journeys in advance most or all the time, and that a third of the people that responded to the Transport For All survey use printed timetables.

';\.round seven million British adults are not completely confident readers and 1.1 million are unbanked"

A PUBLIC REALMFORALL

Later this year, Cl HT will be producing a report that will:

Identify the existing challenges and barriers that people face when using the public realm.

Collect good practice both in the UK and worldwide on inclusive design and technological innovations.

Provide a comprehensive literature review of work done in this area.

For more information on the report, please email technical®ciht.org.uk

"Abalance needs to be struck between being flooded with information and not getting enough of it," says Smith. "My concern is that we risk overwhelming customers with information, at which point they will start to ignore it. We will improve modal shift to public transport through reliable, consistent and open sharing of information of disruptions and journey times, allowing customers to make informed choices."

Summers says: "Our future vision is to create a flourishing region with safe, efficient and net-zero transport networks, promoting inclusive and sustainable growth for decades. Over the next 10-20 years, the role of data and digital tools will expand, enabling customers to make faster, more personalised and wellinformed decisions about their travel choices."

Kindleysides adds: "The future for buses will be smaller vehicles; not necessarily DemandResponsive Transport, but something between a single decker and a mini-bus. They will also be cleaner -in rural areas buses will likely run on hydrogenated vegetable oil and in cities they will be electric, while hydrogen will fuel motorway travel. The future landscape suggests a diverse range of vehicle types tailored to specific applications."

Stickland concludes: "Equity is our goal, aiming for an experience equal to everyone else's, with information playing a pivotal role. Transport justice involves disabled individuals actively participating in the delivery, design and evaluation of services, ensuring their involvement throughout the transport lifecycle. Inclusive design works better for everyone."

NEXTSTOP

For more information about the Bus Centre of Excellence, go to bit.ly/BCoE-website

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We have carried out over 18,000 Road Safety Audits for a diverse range of clients throughout the UK, Ireland and internationally. We understand the pressures of tight project deadlines and the need for clients to receive a competitive, efficient, responsive, and flexible service.

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The founder and CEO of data solutions company Gaist, Steve Birdsall understands the power of data to boost efficiency and improve road safety

WORDS / JOHN SHARP

HEN TALKINGABOUT

data, high-tech imagery and AI, Steve Birdsall has one simple request: "Hype responsibly".

Nonetheless, the CEO of Gaist knows that if harnessed wisely and not blindly adopted as The Next Big Thing, the technology available to the transport industry will improve efficiency, safety and costeffectiveness across the nation's infrastructure.

MILITARY PRECISION

Born and raised near Bradford, UK, Birdsall was keen to travel from an early age, which led him to leave school at 16 and join the Army. There he took on the role of technical assistant in the Royal Artillery.

"I never liked school, but I really enjoyed the Army and the responsibility I was given," he says from his office in Skipton, Yorkshire. "That can be scary at such a young age, but I learned that you have to go outside your comfort zone and face your fears to succeed,

Steve Birdsall joined the Army aged 16

as well as trust a team of people. In the Army, that trust could be with your life. It improved my confidence and made me more resilient."

In the Army, Birdsall was quickly promoted, and one of his responsibilities was positioning and targeting gun batteries. "That sounds easy but there are a lot of variables," he says, "one of which is location, so I became a surveyor as part of that role."

After leaving the military, Birdsall worked around the world on seismic survey ships, but by the early-2000s, he was keen to spend more time on dry land. And when the Hatfield train crash of17 October 2000 triggered a major investigation into the state of Britain's railways, Birdsall was hired as project manager for the contractor Omnicom Engineering, and tasked with applying his expertise in data collection and integrating surveying systems.

"They needed a survey of the entire rail network within a year," he explains. They achieved it quickly and efficiently using 14 cameras attached to a modified train, which traversed the network capturing

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Gaist specialises in using vehicles fitted with high definition cameras to survey the road network

the railway in unprecedented detail.

At Omnicom, Birdsall worked with the developers of a new road imaging system, an evolution of the technology he'd used on the railways. He then moved into surveying roads at national road survey company DCLas operations director, using SCANNER(Surface Condition Assessment for the National Network of Roads) systems.

The Department for Transport (DfT)were driving the specification for SCANNERbut Birdsall felt the DFT's focus was on national performance indicators, while local authorities needed a different level of detail and accuracy to make local maintenance decisions as they were still relying on traditional methods.

FROM IMAGE TO INSIGHT

In 2008, Birdsall set up Gaist, with a view to collecting and analysing high-definition imagery of road systems. The company offered clients such as local authorities a more detailed and efficient automated view of what was happening to their highways, from asset

':Alcan crunchthrough a lot of data very quickly. But it'sonlyas good as the traininginformation you put into it"

identification to carriageway and pavement condition. Gaist would also offer consultancy services to allow their clients to develop short, medium and long-term maintenance strategies.

"We developed a image capture system to survey the road network," explains Birdsall. "So instead of having 10 people walking around a town surveying on foot, we could just send a vehicle. It increased the detail and accuracy of the data and reduced the cost."

Gaist found themselves in snowballing demand. Their use of machine vision capitalises on the very high definition imagery that can now be achieved, which "gives us a massive amount of information - a picture tells a thousand words." But Birdsall is keen to stress that image data is only the start. "What we're good at is pulling the information out and turning it into information our clients can use."

That analysis includes the identification and prioritisation of areas needing the most attention and the projects required to address them; long-term deterioration models helping to create projections for budgets

PICTUREPERFECT

to manage wear and tear to the roads; and "dynamic data", which uses sensor information from connected vehicles to enhance road safety and minimise traffic problems.

Birdsall takes a similarly holistic view of technology such as AI. "The amount of investment that's gone into AI has been enormous. The casualty of that is quality. What AI does is heavy lifting; it can crunch through a lot of data very quickly. But it's only as good as the training information you put into it.

"There are so many variables in the real world that AI often has a relatively high failure rate in detecting defects," he adds. "Our competitors are offering fully automated AI solutions that are 80% accurate at best, but when you're surveying the state of roads and feed the data into a deterioration model, any long-term projections become useless. Our clients don't want to spend 80% of their budget in the right place and 20% in the wrong place; they want to optimise all of their maintenance funding."

A FORCEFORGOOD

Gaist uses a hybrid approach in its employment of AI machine vision and human quality control, putting an emphasis not on AI or data, but the insights they draw from them. Birdsall

"If we can build

an integrated link between car and infrastructure, we can move around more safely and with less emissions"

says quality and dependable information is what's important for Gaist's clients.

As an example, Gaist's surveys were instrumental in helping to introduce the 20mph speed restrictions across Wales last year. Yet within the same arena, he sees the most palpable examples of Al's progress coming from vehicles, as long as their intelligence can link up with the infrastructure they use.

"There's a lot of potential for self-driving vehicles," he says. "IfCAV[Connected Autonomous Vehicles] become commercially viable then personal car usage will be changed forever. If we can build an integrated link between car and infrastructure, we can move around more safely and with less emissions. That would be a massive step forward."

The safety aspect is an area of personal job satisfaction for Birdsall. "What we're really proud ofis that we're now starting to improve road safety. For example, we're working with connected car data suppliers to look at the amount of harsh braking at a particular point, which is one of the best ways to find an accident blackspot before serious incidents happen."

For Birdsall, data is crucial. But it's only when we fully understand it and act wisely on it that it really does become a life-saver.

INFORMATIONSUPERHIGHWAYS

Steve

Birdsallexplainshow Gaist'ssurveyinghas fast-tracked their clients' projects

can be really dangerous to drivers, cyclists and motorcyclists."

HELPINGWALES TO SLOWDOWN

UPGRADINGBRISTOL:S ROADSURFACES

After they found that the established SCANNER systems were producing unreliable data about their road surfaces, Bristol City Council turned to Gaist. The company not only identified current issues with surfaces but also those likely to cause problems in the future.

"As a result, Bristol has massively reduced their category one or two defects [potholes or worse], which

The Welsh government's plan to impose 20mph speed limits across Wales' residential and built-up areas required an inventory of the roadscape. But time and budget were limited.

"We managed to survey the whole of Wales within six months, which gave them the information they needed, on time and on budget."

UK MAPPINGFOR FTTP BROADBANDROLLOUT

Gaist has found their services of value in the telecoms sector. Installers of ultrafast fibre-to-the-

premises (FTTP) broadband require detailed knowledge of the working environment to minimise issues with installation across towns and cities. ':A.ccessto our data helps those operators to plan the network cost-effectively, massively reducing their in-field roll-out costs."

ROADSCAPECONDITION GRADING IN STOCKPORT

Lacking the resources to fully survey their roadscape,

Gaist delivers detailed data overviews of transport systems

Stockport Council began working with Gaist in 2014. Gaist was not only able to deliver detailed overviews of their network and performance indicators, but also implement a system of condition grading for footways and carriageways, which can be viewed on GIS mapping software. Gaist has supported Stockport by producing the business case for and delivery of elevated maintenance strategies.

TREESON OUR HIGHWAYSNEEDYOU! {AND WHY YOU NEEDTHEM)

Discover why the Trees, People and the Built Environment 5 conference is a must-attend event for highways and transportation professionals

IHIow often do we get the opportunity to step outside of our comfort zones and engage with a wide range of professionals from allied sectors to collaborate for the benefit of our urban environments?

Trees, Peopleand the Built Environment 5 (TPBES)is just that opportunity-a unique multidisciplinary conference hosted by the Institute of Chartered Foresters in partnership with key cross-sector professional institutes and organisations.

THE POWER OF TREES

The integration of green and blue infrastructure (GBI) is recognised by CIHT as having the potential to transform our urban areas from social, economic and environmental perspectives. Our streets, roads and highway networks play a vital role in delivering increased GBI across the built environment.

GBI will create climate-resilient streets and roads, promoting healthy and safe communities in addition to helping to deliver our net-zero ambitions. Our streets and roads can have a crucial role in creating green corridors, connecting green spaces and helping to mitigate the effects of biodiversity fragmentation.

Trees and roads have the potential to be pivotal in delivering GBI, and your involvement as highways and transportation professionals is crucial ifwe are to improve how we work together and re-establish trees as an important feature along the highways network.

A COMPELLING LINE-UP

Across two days, TPBESwill examine and discuss the role of trees in the urban environment from a variety of perspectives. Chaired by Kevin McCloud MBE FICFor (Hon) from the popular Grand Designs television programme, day one includes a Cl HT-curated session featuring leading practitioners with experience in researching and implementing trees on our streets and roads.

These experts will cover issues such as:

• The success stories of integrating trees on streets and roads

• How we convince stakeholders that GBI is a critical element in highway design

• How trees can be used to meet biodiversity net-gain targets and tree-lined routes help to improve biodiversity

• How we create green streets and roads that safely accommodate multiple users

• The research highway professionals need to help their work relating to trees

Chaired by CIHT's CEO Sue Percy CBE, the session will debate how the highways sector can shift the narrative from being solely for vehicles to safe active travel routes, biodiverse green links and places for people.

The session will also feature Ben Addy, head of networks at Sustrans, James Elliott FCIHT,director of Elliott Asset Management, and Andy Jackson, project manager at Leicestershire County Council.

Join your fellow professionals at TPBES and play your part in the future of trees in the built environment.

TAs we develop more digital services, there's a risk of leaving more travellers behind

WORDS

/ CRAIG THOMAS

HE ABILITYTO ACCESS

transport is central to a fair and equal society. Without it, people cannot access essential services, education, employment, healthcare, leisure and a social life. Currently, the one in four people in the UK defined as disabled make 30% fewer journeys each year than non-disabled people. That figure hasn't changed in over 20 yearsan indictment of how society still overlooks the needs of disabled travellers.

'Smart' transport services won't shift the dial either. Indeed, most of the initiatives that have been developed so far suggest that the use of digital solutions will exclude even more people, with older transport users struggling to get to grips with services primarily created by and aimed at digital natives.

To minimise digital exclusion, we must consider the Social Model of Disability - the view that individuals are disabled by the barriers that exist in the world, rather than their bodies or minds. Those living with impairment or illness aren't inherently

'disabled'; that's created through exclusion. In a truly accessible world, where all barriers are removed, people would still experience the effects of their impairments, but living with them wouldn't result in exclusion from society.

BARRIERSAHEAD

There's little doubt that transport services present barriers to disabled people. Research by the campaign group Transport for All found that 56% of disabled adults report being unhappy or extremely unhappy making journeys. In addition, disabled people make far fewer journeys than non-disabled people, with an average of just 5.84 journeys per week, compared to the national average of 17.

Ann Frye, a specialist in the field of mobility for older and disabled people, was the head of the Mobility and Inclusion Unit at the Department for Transport until 2006, and has worked on a number of landmark projects for governments around the world involving digital exclusion. She has found that the move to online ticket sales, for example, not only limits access but also fmancially penalises

older and disabled travellers thanks to the increased cost of tickets purchased offline.

"There's great enthusiasm to introduce new app-based technology without thinking about who you're leaving behind," says Frye. "The example of train tickets is a classic. Most ticket offices are closed and it's much more expensive if you have to buy a ticket at the station. The ticket machines usually involve a touchscreen and a lot of people who are older or have low vision either don't understand or can't use the technology. We're replacing the human element with equipment they can't use."

DIGITAL DISCONNECT

Frye's views are supported by Age UK statistics, which show that 25% of people aged 65 and over in the UK don't use the internet, while almost half (46%) of over-65s in the UK are unable to complete all eight of the most fundamental tasks required to use the internet safely and successfully. That adds up to 5.8m UK citizens who don't go online.

At the same time, public transport operators and authorities are attracted by cash-free, touch-in/touch-out technology that's faster, smoother and more efficient. By taking this approach, however, they are excluding those who don't feel comfortable with the technology or don't understand how to use it. People who have been excluded then simply stop travelling.

This represents a failure of imagination on the part of those responsible for developing these smart services. Returning to the Social Model of Disability, these services are badly designed in the first instance because they exclude so many.

A DESIGN FOR LIFE

Andy Hyde, director of Go Upstream, is a consultant who specialises in services for people living with dementia, and has worked on a wide range of projects that involve transport and older people.

"Our traditional starting point is how do we make digital services more accessible?" he explains. "There are technical standards and policies, so we need to make sure that screen readers can read an app or provide BSLfor the deaf community so that they can understand the information, along with features such as colour contrast, text size and the right audio.

"Then we ask people to test our solutions and ask if it works for them. What could be higher, bigger, lower, brighter or darker?

LOST GENERATION

New digital services run the risk of excluding a large • • section of travellers, says Ann Frye (below)

However, the focus is very much on the delivery of the information, not on the information itself. We also need to look at information as a starting point, because poor information made more accessible is still poor information."

Of course, we're all subject to the complexity of public transport operations and confusing announcements, but as Hyde says, while some might cope with the uncertainty and delay, and move on with our journey, others may have a bigger challenge navigating and responding to such situations.

THEPERSONALTOUCH

A common demand among those excluded from the digital world is the ability to speak to another person, an option that's being gradually phased out. Finland has addressed this problem by introducing a law that any new app-based system for travel also has to provide a phone system operated by a live human being.

"That's the only way to do it," says Frye. "There has to be a legal obligation to stop and think about who would be excluded."

The recent Transport for All report, 'Are We There Yet?', addresses this exclusion and makes the following recommendations for Mobilityas-a-Service (Maas) platforms:

1. Work with disabled people to produce solutions to guarantee accessibility to websites, booking platforms and apps.

2. Provide information that disabled people rely upon, such as real-time information on station accessibility features or alternative routes in the face of disruption.

"There's a great enthusiasm to introduce new app-based technology without thinking about who you're leaving behind"

IS ANYONE THERE?

The availability of human help at stations i:; vital

3. Go further than the government's Maas code of practice which 'recommends' accessibility and design platforms taking a co-production approach.

Implementing these suggestions will lead to disabled travellers having all the information and options to make the journeys they want to make, using the transport mode and route of their choice. Another result will be the easy availability of information and tools required to plan, make and adjust journeys in a range of accessible formats.

In this future, disabled people and disabled people's organisations will work as equal partners in the design and development of technology platforms, taking a pan-impairment approach to accessibility, data requirements, user testing and measuring success.

Complete digital inclusion for all travellers is certainly possible, but we must act now to include all those currently excluded from accessing services.

The new CIHT ProfessionalDevelopment Frameworkprovides clear pathwaysto CEng, IEng, EngTech and CTPP qualifications

WORDS/ CAT GOU MAL

7rhis year, CIHTis relaunching its Professional Development Framework. As the only competency-based training programme for the highways and transportation sector, the framework is designed to provide a structured approach for individuals to enhance their skills and achieve professional registration.

Updated to cater for the evolving needs and expectations of the industry, the framework is based on extensive feedback from CIHT members, including reviewers, framework users and employers.

THE ROUTETO SUCCESS

The new Professional Development Framework offers clear and flexible

pathways to Chartered Engineer (CEng), Incorporated Engineer (!Eng), Engineering Technician (EngTech) and Chartered Transport Planning Professional (CTPP), which reflects the diverse range of roles in the sector.

The framework has a number of shared competencies that all framework users will work towards at a level appropriate for their target qualification. These shared competencies include:

• Leadership and management

• Quality management and continuous improvement

• Communication and interpersonal skills

• Professionalism and ethics

• Health and safety and risk management

• Project management

• Transport decarbonisation.

The framework is designed to work according to the specific needs of each qualification, so individuals will also work towards competencies based on their target qualification.

For example, those aiming for registration as CEng, !Eng or EngTech will delve deeper into engineering-focused competencies, while those aiming for CTPPwill focus on topics that align with the Transport Planning Professional (TPP) units.

EMPLOYER SUPPORT

Whether you are a recent graduate or an experienced staff member, our framework enables you to gain recognition for your skills. To make the most of the framework, you must be employed by an organisation that's signed up to the scheme and is committed to supporting the professional development of its staff.

Since the framework is hosted online, it's easy to upload evidence to share with your mentor and track your progress. Employers can register for the framework and enrol staff as framework users.

"We are confident that the framework will help our members achieve their career goals and aspirations"

THE CIHT TRANSPORT MANIFESTO

As we head towards a UK election in the next 12 months, CIHT has been developing its manifesto that outlines the key highways and transportation asks for the future government.

Titled 'A Transport Network For All Our Futures', the manifesto is a strategic priority for the institution and will be used to influence the development of political party policies, as well as highlight the key issues CIHT wishes to see addressed.

CIHT will show how people need an effective transport network that supports economic activity and social wellbeing by providing access for employment, goods, services and opportunities. It will also demonstrate the impact of investment and use on climate change and public health. At the next general election, CIHT will call on all

Every member of staff on our framework should be supported by a mentor, and we provide mentors and framework users with guidance, templates and training to ensure they have a smooth journey as they progress towards professional registration.

THE FLEXIBLE FRIEND

We understand that everyone goes at a different pace when achieving their professional goals, so our framework is designed to be flexible. This allows you to stay on the framework for as long as you need before you are ready to apply for Professional Review.

"The relaunch of our Professional Development Framework is a significant milestone for CIHT and our members," says Sue Percy, CEO of CIHT."It demonstrates our commitment to supporting the development and recognition

political parties to reflect and champion six strategic objectives to ensure that:

• Our transport networks are resilient

• The transport sector decarbonises in line with legally binding obligations

• Everyone has the opportunity to travel sustainably

• Everyone has the opportunity to travel safely and feel safe

• There is a skilled workforce with the capacity and capability to deliver

• Funding is reprioritised to support timely and effective delivery.

Developed in consultation with CIHT's Council and Board of Trustees, the manifesto will also contain specific calls to action linked to its strategic objectives.

For more information, go to ciht.org.uk/manifesto

of the highways and transportation profession. We are confident that the framework will help our members achieve their career goals and aspirations, as well as deliver excellence in their work"

CIHT's Professional Development Framework is a great way to support professionalism and promote learning. It provides a supportive journey for individuals in the highways and transportation sector to achieve their career goals and aspirations. Join us now and become a part of the journey that will elevate your career.

Cat Goumal is head of education and professional development at CIHT

IHIOVNTOooo IMPROVEACTIVE TRAVELUSING DATA

Discover how new data sources and digital tools are improving networks for cyclists and pedestrians

WORDS / DR ROBIN LOVELACE

- THE CURRENTTRANSPORT

- system is an uncontrolled experiment that's been running for over 100 years. It answers the question of what happens when you put high-powered machines in close proximity to people. With railways, you had a planned expansion, but the fact that cars are so mobile and able to go anywhere has meant that the development of roads has happened at an explosive rate.

So monitoring and gathering data about what people are doing on the roads is absolutely key to developing and improving all transport systems. And we could do a lot better at it.

SOURCINGTHE DATA

For active travel, I use a three-way classification for data sourcing.

The first category is behaviour data, which can be gathered using GPS sensors or typical traffic counters. It can also be census data, and we have information on how the vast majority of people travel to work thanks to the census.

As well as existing methods of data collection, there are an increasing amount of new methods. One project that's worth flagging is TELRAAM,a Dutch word that means 'abacus'. This is a low-cost camera that citizens can place on a window in their home that counts how many cars, bikes and people are going by. It's used by community groups to assess

traffic flow in their neighbourhoods to provide evidence for lowering speed limits or reducing the amount of traffic.

The second category is physical infrastructure, which is presenceabsence data - for example, whether there's a cycleway for cyclists and a pavement for walkers. The Ordnance Survey MasterMap Highways Network has data on the transport network and can give you the location of all the roads and the width of the carriageway.

But the gold standard in terms of national coverage infrastructure data is the Public Sector Geospatial Agreement, which will give you a lot of detailed information.

The third category is impact - what actually happens when you

put in new infrastructure. For example, if you create a one-way street that was previously two ways for motor traffic, you suddenly have five metres of extra road space. What do you do with that space? You could monitor the number of walkers and cyclists using the road, take data from local businesses and even look at house prices.

This category is the area that's least explored but is the most important. We need to get a good handle on behaviour in terms of how people are travelling and where they are travelling, as well as the infrastructure, before we can understand the changes that could happen. And this is where you get onto active travel intervention.

"In the next five years, I'd liketoseeawideroll-out of tools that allow anyone to provide feedback"

FROM DATA TO ACTION

A great platform that shows the power of data is the Propensity to Cycle Tool (PCT).Launched in 2017, the PCT uses behaviour data from the census and is a game-changer because it shows where people are going to work at much higher levels of geographic resolution.

As a result of that data, there are two examples of infrastructure being built: a bridge in Warrington and a protected cycleway in Manchester that goes from the city centre down to Chorley. What's interesting about the PCT is that the data it uses isn't particularly huge or revolutionary - it's census data. But it's a good example of how doing new things with existing data sets can be really beneficial.

ON THE HORIZON

Active travel can be seen as a magic solution because it tackles health

issues and inequality, and has a big economic impact. If it was something your doctor could prescribe, it would be seen as a miracle cure. But in terms of how to increase active travel, I don't think there's one single solution.

To improve active travel, we need to operate on multiple levels. There are hard interventionsthe new infrastructure and roads, which are absolutely vital. But there also need to be soft interventions, which include publicity campaigns and subtle things such as small adjustments to pavement parking or parking prices.

One potentially game-changing technology is the new tools that allow two-way communication. Many existing data tools are one way, where the evidence is developed then the user consumes the information. The PCT and Network Planning Tool

for Scotland are good examples of that. But in the next five years, I'd like to see a wide roll-out of tools that allow anyone to provide feedback about active travel.

Ifwe want lots of data, we need lots of data points, and one of the best ways to collect data about an area is through the people who live there. So if someone notices that a traffic light timing is too long or there's a pavement trip hazard, there should be a way for them to contribute to a platform.

Get this right and you could see a dramatic improvement in active travel networks.

Dr Robin Lovelace is associate professor of transport data science at the University of Leeds

The Network Planning Tool for Scotland l,-INiffllftMIPlf$11M!W

The Scheme Sketcher tool in the Active Travel Infrastructure Platform

THE FUTUREOF SURVEYING

Commended in the 2023 CIHT Awards, the Mapping And Visual Imaging Scooter uses the latest camera and data collection technologies to deliver detailed footway surveys

- If you live in the London - Boroughs of Ealing, Barnet, Merton, Greenwich or Newham, you may have seen a curious machine roaming around your streets. It looks like a mobility scooter, but with a camera on the roof and a sign saying 'Surveying' on the back. This is a Mapping And Visual Imaging Scooter -or MAVIS - and it's providing authorities with detailed information about the condition of their footways.

As a small mobility scooter,

MAVIShas the advantage of being able to go where standard vehicles can't, getting close to the footway to capture high-definition imagery that, taken with GPS data, can provide local authorities with comprehensive carriageway and asset condition surveys in order to cut costs, improve efficiency and reduce the number of site visits.

ACCESSIBILITYASSESSMENT

The idea of using a mobility scooter to carry the technology

EYEIN THE SKY

The Mappingand VisualImaging Scooter can remotely identify accessissuesand areas requiringwork

required to assess footways first came from a desire to improve accessibility. James Wallis, executive director at XAISAsset Management, needed a vehicle that could travel around areas that were simply inaccessible to cars.

"Having the mobility scooter allows us to assess footways and hazards by getting close to them," says Wallis. "One of our first projects was on a housing estate for pensioners and there were a number of access issues, which we

Iidentified using the scooter. We're actually getting a lot of interest from housing associations to assess their footways for defects."

But it's not just trip hazards that MAVIScan identify. The 360-degree, high-resolution camera will capture other footway issues such as illegally parked cars, overgrown hedges and poor lighting, collecting the visual information before the data is processed by AI to deliver highly detailed analysis of the condition of the carriageway.

"The nature of defects on footways is quite sporadic," says Wallis. "There are a number of different assets and materials on footways, as well as trees and vehicles, so you need to get much closer to the footway to make a valuable assessment."

EFFICIENCY BOOST

The Al technology behind MAVIS is tailored to UK footway requirements, identifying UK Pavement Management System defects, highlighting fretting on the footway and recommending cut-back where the footway is

"Havingthe mobilityscooter allowsusto assess footways and hazardsby getting closeto them"

overgrown. Once the data has been uploaded, organisations have the digital tools to complete a number of online tasks, which can:

• Measure distances and quantities

• Check the inventory

• Forecast works and budgets

• Produce appropriate activity schedules and bills of quantities

• Identify any possible issues that need to be investigated further.

In addition, local authorities can identify accessibility issues and obtain a first-hand picture of how their network is performing against key accessibility metrics, with clear visual evidence of any areas that may require more immediate attention.

"Asan example, we surveyed the highway network for Buckinghamshire, which enabled verge extraction and produced a cutting regime," says Wallis. "They knew the state of the verges and the number and location of assets

such as manholes, so they knew whether they needed a lawnmower or a strimmer, and could create a bill of quantities."

NEW AVENUES

The next step for MAVISis to expand the service by increasing the amount of scooters available and improving the technology to make it even quicker, with more information available.

According to Wallis, as well as the UK's road authorities, the rail industry is also interested in using the technology to remotely survey the state of its station platforms.

"We're exploring a number of different options for expansion," he says. "There's lots of potential in many different areas, but highways and footways are definitely our main focus at the moment."

MOREDETAILS

(]

For more information on MAVIS, go to bit.ly/XAIS-MAVIS

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION

Discover the many advantages of geofencing and how it can improve on-site safety, efficency and productivity

WORDS/ JAY MOORHOUSE

- FIRST USED BYTHE

- military, geofencing has been around for years. The concept is based on creating a virtual perimeter or fence line on a Google Maps-type interface, then monitoring the location of assets such as plant, equipment and people. It's now used for a range of things, from locationbased marketing to pet owners being alerted if their dog has jumped out of their back garden.

At Onwave, we first developed geofencing technology in 2017 for a local authority highways team. They wanted to manage their maintenance works -the cutting of grass verges and hedgerows - to ensure that the correct sections were worked on each day and prevent environmental harm.

Workers would be alerted if they came close to protected or invasive species, with an audit trail collected to help with customer and stakeholder queries.

There are three main reasons to use geofencing in transport:

1. SAFETY: Exclusion zones can be set up around construction plant, with alerts triggered if people enter the zones, helping to mitigate the people/plant interface risk

2. ENVIRONMENTAL: Exclusion zones can be set up around sensitive areas such as the habitats of protected species and other ecological assets.

3. LOGISTICS: Alerts can be triggered if vehicles leave designated routes to ensure any impact on local communities is minimised.

Keep it simple

The key to effective geofencing is making sure that it's as simple as possible for the end user. In that first project for the highways team, we gave each person in the field a tablet so they could see where they were working that day. But if they went too close to one of the red zones that we'd created around the assets, it would alert them.

There are two ways of using our geofencing solution out in the field. The first is a smartphone app, which gives you the locational context of where you're working at any time. You can select any of the zones and get the information you have attached to it, whether that's safety, asset or ecological.

The other way is by using one of a range of wearable devices. These

KNOW YOUR LIMITS

Geofencing provides clear on-site guidance for workers to increase hazard awareness and productivity, as well as protect ecological areas

"The key to effective geofencing is making sure that it's as simple as possible for the end user"

can be either be designed for use by people or to track the movement of plant, equipment and vehicles. There are varying levels of accuracy depending on what the use.

Safety on the railways

For the rail sector, the main use of geofencing is monitoring the location of people and preventing them inadvertently going outside their work areas and potentially into areas of live trains or overhead lines. From a safety perspective, two metres can be the difference between life and death (our wearable devices are accurate to less than 200mm).

The main focus has historically been on preventing a loss of situational awareness, which has been a key factor in rail incidents. Geofencing can be used as a secondary means of protection; not intended to replace existing working practices but to complement them.

One thing that's really important with geofencing is simply to allow people to get hold of the technology and start using it. When you present the technology and let people try it for themselves out in the field, that's when they understand how it works and how it benefits them.

We carried out a series of intensive trials for Network Rail for over six months, getting end-user feedback about the wearable technology - what the equipment was like to wear and what the alerting was like -while making sure that lots of different people did lots of different tasks in different locations. Getting that feedback was key for us, and afterwards we went away to improve the technology further.

ThetwoPs

There are two subjects we are regularly asked about when talking about geofencing: privacy and

productivity. There are many ways to maintain personal privacy, including anonymising all images of people (unless customers have a specific reason for knowing who the individual is). Monitoring can also be dropped outside certain boundaries and working times.

Geofencing collects a lot of information about where alerts have been triggered, which can be really insightful to help identify where an intervention may be required, such as additional training or layout improvements to a certain location.

With productivity and efficiency, the collected data can help determine if your effort is focused where you need it to be, whether your resources are used on critical activities and utilised in the best way. From a productivity perspective, data can tell you if you are getting value for money out of your equipment and plant, or whether you can reduce the equipment on a project at a particular time.

One of the great things about geofencing technology is that everybody seems to have a slightly new application for it or another way it can be used. Aviation is going to be a big area, along with the energy sector. Transport is a key focus because that's where we think we can make the biggest difference.

Jay Moorhouse is CEO of Onwave, which developed the Onwave Locator {OWL) to help customers with on-site hazard information

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For

about Onwave, a

Partner, go to onwave.com

ITSUKPresident's Dinnerand Awards

EXPERT VIEW

ANALYSETHIS

The more high quality data we gather, the more our transport system can improve WORDS/MAXSUGARMAN

- AS THE INDUSTRY

- association for transport technology, Intelligent Transport Systems UK (ITSUK) is a broad organisation, covering everything from demand-responsive transport and radar technology to ANPR and road user charging.

We have 160 members covering the public and private sectors, which include TfL, National Highways and a number of local authorities. On the private sector side, our members include a range of technology providers, SMEs and start-ups that are doing some really interesting stuff with transport data and applications.

LATESTTECH TRENDS

We're talking about data a lot more than we ever used to, which is fantastic. There are also more tools that can take the public sector's massive amounts of data and use it to improve transport services.

A good example is the Bus Open Data Service, which is used for a number of different applications, products and services. The Government is also opening up data more widely with initiatives such as the digitalisation of Traffic Regulation Orders and the Rail Data Marketplace. I think it's realised that if you bring together the authorities to standardise and improve data quality, the private sector can offer better products and services for the public.

The other big trend is a focus on integrated transport and the benefits a joined-up transport network has. The industry has talked a lot about Mobility-asa-Service, but we're now starting to see some traction in creating a seamless travel experience. There's more consideration of integrated payment and navigation, and how that can get people out of their cars and onto public transport.

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Many people think that active travel doesn't need technology, but it's vital when planning transport schemes. Knowing how people move around is central to knowing which roads should have cycle routes added or be pedestrianised.

One of the biggest sources of data to understand this movement is connected vehicles. These are part of the vision of the smart city, where infrastructure and vehicles talk to each other. But a connected vehicle doesn't have to be a car; it can be a bike, and a number of suppliers are doing some fantastic stuff in taking that data and helping decision makers to understand how people move around. That's really exciting.

On the other side, you are seeing an emerging market in the e-scooter and shared micromobility industry, and it's correct that the Government comes in and sets some regulations. That's what that sector has been asking for:

a definition of a light electric vehicle for scooters and rules and regulations around bike sharing.

Coming back to the subject of integrated transport, it was interesting to read a statistic that said that the significant majority of journeys taken on a shared mobility scheme are from one mode of transport to another. So micro-mobility is key for the integration of the transport network, as people are able to hop onto a bike to get to a train station as part of a seamless journey. But making journeys as smooth as possible requires new technology, as well as clear Government policy.

DATAHEAD

For more information about ITS UK, go to its-uk.org

Max Sugarman is the chief executive of Intelligent Transport Systems UK

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FROM THE UKRLG

HOW DO WE MAKEOUR ROADSMOREDIGITAL?

Increasingdigitalconnectivityfor roadswillincrease safety and transform the user experience

WORDS/ JUSTIN WARD

- TECHNOLOGYIS A CRUCIAL

- asset that will make a huge difference to our roads. The question of how our roads can become digital is one that's gaining particular significance for the transport industry, and one that the UK Network Management Board (UKNMB)is currently addressing through collaboration and knowledge sharing.

The UKNMBrecently spoke to Michael Ones, head of future roads technology at the Department for Transport (DfT), and listened to him explain what was on the near-term horizon for road technology, especially for local authorities across the UK.

Ones stated that enabling our roads to become more digital is crucial. At a strategic road level, National Highways state that digital roads will harness data, technology and connectivity to improve the way the network is designed, built,

operated and used. This will, in turn, enable safer journeys, faster delivery and an enhanced customer experience for all.

At a local level, there are several applications where digital technologies can make people's journeys easier, such as the National Parking Platform. Funded by DfT,this publicly owned initiative is open to both public and private parking operators, and enables customers to locate suitable parking for their journey. Users can check costs, whether there's a space available, then pre-book a space and pay before starting their journey.

TRO transformation

The UKNMBidentified the potential for Digital Traffic Regulation Orders (TROs)many years ago, but this has only

recently become a reality.

Announced in the King's Speech last year as part of the Automated Vehicles Bill, local authorities will be required to send TROs to a central publication platform.

This tells us that a lot of the technology is not as futuristic as you'd imagine. It's about making life a bit less difficult: easier parking, information on roadworks and reducing paperwork.

Further on the horizon is the question of how to prepare the world's roads for the arrival of automated vehicles. For example, the German law on automated vehicles (AVs)only allows them to drive on the autobahn under defined conditions, so infrastructure that enables AVsto 'see' a road is critical.

Dedicated lanes is one solution. However, for automotive companies, there would be downsides as this could limit the attractiveness of their vehicles.

Near-term tech

Technology is moving fast. In many ways it's easier to articulate a vision for 2050 than one for the next few years. So what are the near-term priorities?

Mobile connectivity, in-vehicle signage, harnessing e-call data, promoting cutting-edge safety, early-stage automation, charge points, mobile connectivity, supporting kerbside regulation, supporting pathfinder councils?

There's no one simple answer, but the questions need to be posed, and posing the questions outlines the scale of change required.

For more information about the National Parking Platform, go to npp-uk.org

OBITUARY

WILLIAM MCCOUBREYFCIHT

The former Presidentof CIHT and chairof the PIARC NationalCommittee remembered by a closecolleague

WORDS/ JOE BURNS

- I HAVEKNOWN BILLY

- Mccoubrey for the last 31 years. As chief engineer, he represented Roads Services NI on the Overseeing Authorities Chief Highway Engineers Group and the PlARCNational Committee, which he later went on to Chair.

As a young engineer, Billy served as an inspiration to me. He commanded the respect of his peers through his road engineering knowledge and dedication to public service. This was borne out of a lifetime working for Roads Services NI (he started as a quarryman and went on to be chief executive) and, of course, his wicked sense of humour.

Despite the serious nature of the decisions that the chief highway engineers debated, the meetings were enjoyable and astute, with insightful engineering judgements and a chuckle never far away.

An eye for detail

Billy went on to be only the second president of the IHT (CIHT)from Northern Ireland, bringing great honour to the local association and adding to the respect in which he was held. Around the same time, he was sponsored by Professor Martin Snaith to become a Freeman of the City of London and Liveryman in the Worshipful Company of Paviors.

He remained active in both the IHT and the Paviors Livery,taking every opportunity to introduce others and support their careers and professional development. When not helping others, he was recording events for posterity.

"WilliamJames Mccoubrey was simply'Billy',a family man, respected colleague Fi,t·IGM,t·i

A keen photographer, he was always seen with a large camera around his neck. I am sure that many events would have passed unrecorded without him, and for that we are grateful.

An inspiration

In addition to being inspirational as a professional engineer, Billy was a great leader with a genuine interest in people. When, in 2012, I became chairman of the PIARC National Committee, he was one of the first to congratulate me and, in 2016, he supported my admission to the Paviors. He was a consummate and knowledgeable professional engineer, a dedicated public servant and simply a kind man of great integrity that gave people

BillyMccoubrey was rarely seenwithout a camera and a smile time. His daughter, Linda, is also a Pavior and his granddaughter, Zoe, has recently become the Paviors latest apprentice. Billy was a family man who instilled the values of tradition and endeavour in his children and grandchildren.

A memorial to remember

At Billy's memorial service in his hometown of Ballynahinch, warmth and inclusivity were evident, with a family who clearly adored him, alongside many former colleagues, CIHT president Karen McShane and several former CIHT presidents, and great friends Geoff Allister and Ronnie Porter.

For all his achievements, William James Mccoubrey was simply "Billy", a family man, respected colleague and friend. It was most poignant to see his trusty camera on top of his coffin, cover hanging off, ready to capture the next memorable moment.

Joe Burns is head of technical excellence for Pell Frischmann

MY OUTSlAINIDIIINIGJOURNEY

Stephen Hunt, associate at i-Transport, on achieving Outstanding Performance for his CTPP interview

- GAININGCHARTERSHIP

- is the ultimate end goal in qualifications. It builds on my undergraduate and Masters degrees, and helps to increase my credibility in the wider transport planning industry.

I work for private sector clients on development proposals, from early-site appraisals to planning applications and beyond. That includes designing accesses, traffic modelling and sustainable transport connections, which can be for a single dwelling scheme right up to strategic sites that are 3,000-plus homes.

Just before the pandemic, I did a Master's in Transport Planning and Engineering, and chartership was a logical progression from that. The consultancy I work for are committed to developing their staff and encouraging them to work towards becoming a Chartered Transport Planning Professional (CTPP),with other people in the business ready to act as mentors to help people through the process.

PROJECTPRESENTATION

During my review. I did a presentation on the Whitenap, Romsey project, something I've been involved in since 2017. It's a strategic site that's a key part of

Stephen Hunt CTPP

"Partof the reasonwhy I didthe processwasto improvemy confidenceand credibility"

a local plan to build around 1,100 houses, a new primary school and a series of employment uses. I actually grew up near to Romsey so it's been great to work on an area that I know really well.

The project itself was interesting because it spanned the pandemic. Seeing how travel behaviours shifted throughout that time was fascinating and has influenced the transport strategy for the site as we've sought to incorporate some of the positive behavioural shifts observed. We're still working on the project and I'm enjoying the process of taking it forwards.

OUTSTANDINGCANDIDATE

When I heard that I'd won the Outstanding Performance at Professional Review Award, I was delighted. It was a fantastic surprise. Part of the reason why I did the process was to improve my confidence and credibility, and in the summary of my review, there were some very encouraging

comments about why I'd got it.

One that stood out was "Stephen stated that he was looking to earn CTPP to provide him with the confidence and qualification to undertake the role of expert witness at a planning public inquiry, and the reviewers considered that he would have the potential to excel in this role."

Now I've gained chartership, I'm looking to encourage other people in the business to do the same and mentor them through the process. I'm also planning to expand my current role and will be working towards my goal of giving evidence at public inquiries.

Prior to obtaining chartership, other people I knew with CTPP in i-Transport and the wider industry had a lot more experience. So the fact that I've got CTPP status after just eight years will hopefully be a step change for the business, where less experienced staff are encouraged to work towards it and see the benefits it brings.

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