TRAFFIC EFFICIENCY & MOBILITY
Vienna
THIS CITY IS OPEN
Vienna’s strong C-ITS game
While some might be concerned about timings and sales opportunities of new technologies, cities mostly care about the common good. But what does this mean in Co-operative ITS terms? Helmut Augustin has Vienna´s answer on how to play this game for the common good and set the right framework for C-ITS
How will the future of mobility look like in Vienna?, © City of Vienna/Schreinerkastler
Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems, also known as C-ITS, have been rapidly developing and influencing our everyday travel, from the cars we use to the routes we decide to take.
Among all cities, Vienna is playing the C-ITS game in a really smart way: it recognises the necessity of physical mobility in modern society, but it also acknowledges the negative outcomes caused by ill-managed transport, such as excessive land use, skyrocketing emissions, energy depletion and frequent crashes. For this reason, it is developing a framework that balances it all and to ensure the management and control of digital infrastructures on one hand while allowing technology to contribute to the city’s goals on the other.
Quantity, quality, equality of public space
Cities and their public spaces fulfil a variety of functions, of which providing space for vehicles to move is only one among several. Indeed, streets are much more than spaces for traffic flow, which is why the optimisation of road space must not solely focus on motorized traffic. Within this frame, C-ITS carved out a special place for itself as it creates new possibilities to organize the road space, both spatially and temporally, while increasing safety and spatial quality (eg, environmental zones, school zones, etc.) and, last but by no means least, equality. As a matter of fact, streets are an open system that must remain usable for everyone without restrictions, including "non-connected" users. Looking at Vienna’s example, traffic is predominantly organised as a mixed system, making multimodality extremely important. C-ITS applications can enhance a seamless transition between the different modes, and in the areas of competition between different modes for scarce traffic space, C-ITS services can also help implement priority regulations set in the public interest, such as UVAR (Urban Vehicle Access Regulations like zone management, access restrictions, zero emission zones, school zones), prioritisation at intersections and clearance of priority routes.
A view of Vienna’s mobility future, © City of Vienna, MA 18/Atelier Unterkircher Jankoschek
Managing traffic – making it dynamic
Digital technologies are able to efficiently distribute scarce spaces through dynamic usage patterns. In particular, efficient kerbside management is of great importance, especially in areas with high density of uses and functions. Cities should be mixed-use and compact, allowing people to easily reach a variety of destinations. This would facilitate a shift towards non-motorised modes of transport, increasing the affordability of mobility and road safety. Shared micro-mobility can be an alternative to car transportation – especially on short distances, providing a suitable solution for the first and last mile to/from public transport stops, which is necessary in more peripheral locations.
C-ITS is also able to optimize traffic flows and minimize energy consumption and emissions. Vienna’s take is that traffic should only occur when the benefits exceed the costs. The remaining traffic should flow optimally to minimise energy consumption and emissions, using dynamic routing and travel information services, as well as reservation and billing services for combined forms of mobility and so-called "Day 1 Services".
Shared micro-mobility can be an alternative to car transportation, especially on short distances, providing a suitable solution for the first and last mile to and from public transport stops
How will the future of mobility look like in Vienna?, © City of Vienna/Schreinerkastler
Safety – from… Day 1 (Services)
Road safety is a high priority for the City of Vienna. Therefore, modes that pose fewer dangers should be promoted – public transport and not-motorised modes topping the list. Even though vehicles should already safely function without the support of C-ITS, this could represent an additional safety net when available as ITS "Day 1 Services" can contribute to minimize potential hazards. As a matter of fact, it is fair to say that C-ITS services are not infallible, which is why transport systems and vehicles must be classified as acceptably safe at all times ("fail safe"). With regard to the transport infrastructure, this state – or fall-back level – is the existing system without C-ITS services. Remote control of motor vehicles must be excluded in order to avoid creating a new category of threat scenarios, and IT security must be guaranteed over the entire planned lifetime of C-ITS and IoT components.
Infrastructures at all costs?
The City of Vienna has clearly stipulated that it will avoid implementing ITS technologies in long-lasting and exclusively analogue infrastructure elements as those shall not be subjected to the maintenance needs of IT equipment nor to their much shorter obsolescence cycles. Rather, traffic light signal systems and switch boxes are considered as suitable locations for roadside equipment with C-ITS infrastructure. If C-ITS, Big Data and quality-assured data offer great opportunities, associated costs may be justifiable. However cost and possible refinancing must be taken into account from the beginning. The City of Vienna also wants to make sure that public C-ITS offers do not lead to strongly extended liabilities of the public sector. The responsibility for the behaviour of road users shall remain with them
The City of Vienna also wants to make sure that public C-ITS offers do not lead to strongly extended liabilities of the public sector, as the city does not take responsibility for the risk and behaviours of road users
Open city – open data
In its framework, the City of Vienna considers data-based decisions, believing that data sharing should not be a one-way street. For this reason, Vienna is pursuing an open data policy and recognises the need to provide relevant data in high availability and standardised formats to support public interest. If gathering data is necessary to pursue efficient evidence-based decision making, vehicle sensors, rather than roadside units, should be prioritized to collect data. To ensure data protection and efficiency, special business-to-government services shall provide anonymised data. For traffic and incident management, infrastructure planning and maintenance data, such as traffic volume, speed, routing data, sensor data (critical situations, conditions of the road) and parking (search time, availability) is needed. C-ITS supports public transport management in data collection and control. Ideally, it also works anticipatively thanks to the transmitted "in-vehicle data". However, it is not exclusively committed to the interests of a specific road user but follows policy objectives. Lastly, if decisions in transport are made or influenced by algorithms, the underlying decision-making logic and data must be disclosed in order to support professional and societal discourse.
A street in Vienna, © Pixabay
The road ahead
While some seem concerned with the timeframes and sales opportunities of new technologies, the City of Vienna focuses on the ways C-ITS can improve citizens' quality of life. As with most technologies, the impact of C-ITS will indeed depend on how it is implemented, determining whether it will benefit the common good or lead to dystopian developments. The road ahead is clear: the consequent task of Vienna’s urban and transport planners is to provide a comprehensive framework for the implementation of C-ITS to make sure the connected transport system will follow the goals of public interest.
Helmut Augustin is Head of the Coordination Unit for Digitization, Section Mobility Strategies, Department Urban Planning and Development at City of Vienna. Contact him: helmut.augustin@wien.gv.at
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