GALVESTON - BOLIVAR FERRY SYSTEM ITS Implementations
Presentation Outline ITS Implementations at the Galveston Ferry History of the Galveston Ferry System Closed Circuit Television Cameras Communications Ferry Travel Times Dynamic Message Signs Current Improvement Activities Questions?? 2
History of the Galveston Ferry System State operated since 1934 Toll free service since 1949 8 million passengers yearly 5 ferries - 24/7 operation 3
Timeline of Implementations Fixed Cameras on Ferry Rd PTZ Cameras on Bolivar PTZ Cameras on Ferry Road Ferry Travel Times Fiber Connection to Ferry Office Current Improvement Activities 2000 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2015 Wireless Communication to Bolivar Today Dynamic Message Signs Wireless Communication to Ferry Office
Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) Cameras Fixed Cameras on Ferry Road 4 Camera System on Ferry Road 2 at Harborside Drive, facing each direction Dolphin Avenue Tarpon Avenue Pan Tilt Zoom (PTZ) Cameras Bolivar Cohu 3920 Series i-dome Galveston Ferry Road Cohu 3960 Series 5
Communications Isolated Fiber Network Wireless Communications Network Motorola Canopy PTP, 2.4 GHz, 20 Mbps Established link to TxDOT hub Permanent Installation Motorola Backhaul, 5.8 GHz, 60 Mbps Adequate Capacity Intelligent Dynamic Frequency Selection Environmental Challenges Replaced Backhaul in 2008 and 2013 6
Communications Established Communication to Bolivar Motorola Canopy PTP, 2.4 GHz Existing Infrastructure 7
Communications Fiber Connection to Ferry Office Fiber extended from 61 st to Seawall Seawall to Ferry Road at Harborside Houston Transtar Traffic Map Extension TxDOT Business Network over fiber 8
Ferry Travel Times Bluetooth Readers used to estimate wait times Anonymous Wireless Address Matching using Bluetooth enabled devices Tested multiple locations to determine which would provide the most matches for estimates 9
Ferry Travel Times 10
Ferry Travel Times Evaluation of Wi-Fi readers 4 existing Bluetooth locations chosen for evaluation Volume of data and matches vs. Bluetooth readers 7/3/2011 Bluetooth Reads - 14152 7/3/2015 Wi-Fi Reads - 39705 11
Ferry Travel Times 7/3/2011 Bluetooth Matches - 783 7/3/2015 Wi-Fi Matches - 1530 12
Dynamic Message Signs for Ferry Operations Three Skyline DMS signs installed for Ferry Operations IH45 South at Tiki Island SH87, between Loop 108 and the Bolivar Landing SH124, south of Winnie 13
Current Improvement Activities Full Matrix, Color DMS Signs for Ferry Landings FY 2016 Letting Bolivar CCTV poles and new Wireless Backhaul Currently being procured and installed Automated Identification System to Improve Travel Time Accuracy Recently installed and began data collection 14
Marine Automatic Identification System (AIS) AIS is an automatic tracking system used on ships Key information transmitted includes: Unique ship ID Position Course/heading Speed International organizations and the US Coast Guard require AIS transmitters on ships of 300 tons or more and all passenger ships regardless of size. Applications and Benefits: Collision avoidance Vessel traffic services Maritime security Search and rescue Accident investigation Fleet and cargo tracking 15
AIS at the Galveston-Bolivar Ferry This is a fairly simple system: AIS receiver (reads VHF transmissions & GPS signals) AIS antenna & cabling Lightning/surge protection Internet connection (currently cellular; transition to TranStar net later) Back end processing, interface and data archive Collaboration between TTI and TxDOT Houston District Installed late September 2015 at the Galveston Ferry Office & initial data processing began on October 5 Hundreds of thousands of data points are being generated per day 16
AIS Coverage Most position data is within 20 miles, but reading up to 100 miles away Typically we are covering about 1500 square miles, easily getting ferry trips 17
AIS Interface Example of visual interface 18
Ferry Traveler Information Travel time generated by Wi-Fi probes, CCTV images New information is anticipated to include: Number of ferries in operation Departure times Estimated arrival times Real-time map Security: AIS data is public info = kill-switch capability 19
Questions & Contact Info Valerie Taylor, P.E. Special Projects Transportation Management Systems TxDOT-Houston TranStar Valerie.Taylor@houstontranstar.org (713)-881-3283 Tony Voigt, P.E., PTOE Texas A&M Transportation Institute Houston Research & Implementation a-voigt@tti.tamu.edu 713-613-9208 20