Vehicle probe technology is emerging as a means of monitoring traffic without the need for deploying and maintaining equipment in the right-of-way. In contrast to speed sensors, vehicle probes directly measure travel time using data from a portion of the vehicle stream. Commercial vehicle probe data services primarily include the use of cell phones and automated vehicle location (AVL) data. Early demonstrations of such systems relied heavily on a single method or technology. However, services are emerging that combine information from multiple probe sources and technologies, as well as data from existing fixed-sensor networks into a comprehensive traffic information service.

The I-95 Corridor Coalition is a partnership of state departments of transportation, regional and local transportation agencies, toll authorities, and related organizations, including law enforcement, transit, and port and rail organizations along the Eastern Seaboard. In order to achieve the Coalition’s mission of “working together to improve multimodal transportation services in the region through information sharing and coordinated management and operations,” the Coalition initiated a regional traffic monitoring project in 2006 based primarily on vehicle probe technology. The project will establish a system that will act as a continuous source of real-time transportation system status information along a major portion of the corridor. When fully implemented in 2008, this service will provide a comprehensive traffic monitoring system without the need for additional fixed sensors in the right-of-way. The traffic data will not only serve to enable advanced traffic management systems (ATMS) and ATIS throughout the corridor, but also support a myriad of other internal engineering and planning applications.

Related Project Documents:

• Project Summary (pdf) (January 2008)
• Request for Proposals (pdf) (As released on April 27, 2007)

Core System Coverage Maps (DRAFT):

• Delaware (pdf) (December 2007)
• Maryland (including D.C.) (pdf) (December 2007)
• New Jersey (pdf) (December 2007)
• North Carolina (pdf) (December 2007)
• Pennsylvania (pdf) (December 2007)
• Virginia (pdf) (December 2007)