Skip to main content

MnDOT to pilot radar system for traffic monitoring

The US’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has given approval to the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) to trial the use of a radar system to monitor and study traffic flow on Interstate 94. The idea to use radar for traffic monitoring was originally submitted to the agency under its Innovative Idea Program last June. Currently, the proposal is to deploy a traffic detection system that can monitor six lanes of traffic and two overhead bridges from one location. The objective is to
April 15, 2015 Read time: 2 mins
The US’s 2115 Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has given approval to the 2103 Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) to trial the use of a radar system to monitor and study traffic flow on Interstate 94.

The idea to use radar for traffic monitoring was originally submitted to the agency under its Innovative Idea Program last June. Currently, the proposal is to deploy a traffic detection system that can monitor six lanes of traffic and two overhead bridges from one location.

The objective is to gather accurate traffic and congestion information from the trial, with the collected information to be provided to necessary staff for emergency situations. The information is also to be stored to provide congestion and incident metrics. As a side benefit, the proposed system can also detect lane changes and manoeuvres, helping identify driver behaviour.

The proposal has been accepted by MnDOT in conjunction with its partner 3525 AECOM, a consultant and technical services partner on the project, and RhiZone, a local innovation partner.

The ultimate goal is to perform traffic data collection activities using the 360 degree radar, test the accuracy of the devices, and provide a detailed summary of traffic data and driver behaviour at the selected field site, which is located on I-94, just east of the Lowry Hill Tunnel near the I-35W overpass.

The system will use a radar unit provided by 819 Navtech Radar to gather real-time traffic data from the site, and software installed at the MnDOT Regional Traffic Monitoring Center (RTMC) will detect traffic incidents based on analysis of the traffic data collected.

The AECOM Team will be responsible for deployment of the system, data collection, monitoring and reporting. The next steps in the pilot project include producing the Systems Engineering documentation to guide design and deployment activities, and to deploy the radar system for six months of operation, beginning in spring 2015.

Related Content

  • AGD’s new radar delivers multi-lane monitoring
    June 16, 2015
    AGD’s new multi-lane monitoring radar, the 342MM, is an FMCW radar measuring the number and speed, range and length of passing vehicles for traffic profiling and incident detection. According to AGD, the radar monitors multi-lane highways at 195 frames per second, allowing it to process up to ten times more data per vehicle than some other units, providing greater count, speed and length accuracy. The high frame rate is said to reduce the effects of occlusion from central reserve concrete barriers and other
  • Travel times halve for tolling converts
    August 5, 2013
    The Port Mann Bridge in Vancouver is a prime example of how the latest ITS systems enable new infrastructures to be built and paid for while still providing additional user benefits. Vancouver has 2.2 million inhabitants and, like so many major cities, is divided into two by a river, the Frazer river. This combination makes Vancouver the second most congested city in North America and the most congested in Canada. Through the middle of the city runs the Trans-Canadian Highway 1 which crosses the Frazer Riv
  • The Asia-Pacific poses a multitude of ITS challenges
    May 30, 2014
    The Asia-Pacific ITS Forum and Exhibition in Auckland, New Zealand, provided a focus for the region’s ITS Associations. Mary Bell reports. In late April, ITS New Zealand hosted the 13th Asia-Pacific ITS Forum and Exhibition in Auckland. Around 350 delegates from 24 nations gathered to share and advance ITS applications on both strategic and technical levels and to discuss the differing and various challenges faced in the region.
  • Electronic toll collection: Change is in the air
    November 7, 2024
    Trends in technology plus users’ comfort in adopting new advances indicate that the environment for a new electronic toll collection architecture is evolving. Hal Worrall considers what this might look like