Task 3 Report: Visualization and Analysis Tool

TASK 3 REPORT :

VISUALIZATION AND ANALYSIS TOOL - ADVANCED SOFTWARE

FOR STATEWIDE INTEGRATED SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORTATION

SYSTEM MONITORING AND EVALUATION (ASSIST-ME)

Developed by

RUTGERS UNIVERSITY INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS LABORATORY

Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Table of Contents ...... i List of Figures ...... iii List of Tables ...... v Introduction ...... 1 Subtask 3A. Kick-Off Meeting ...... 2 Subtask 3B. Preliminary Development Plan ...... 7 1. Data Format Description ...... 7 2. Mechanisms for obtaining data on a continuous basis from involved agencies ...... 10 3. Accuracy and Consistency ...... 10 4. Workflow of ASSISTME ...... 11 Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives ...... 14 Brief Description of Available GIS based tools ...... 14 ArcGIS ...... 14 GeoMedia ...... 18 TransCAD ...... 21 MapGuide ...... 22 MapInfo...... 22 Developing customized GIS solutions ...... 23 Usage and Comparison of Software Products ...... 24 Subtask 3D. Develop a Unified Database ...... 28 Development of the Traffic Database ...... 28 County Database ...... 32 Development of the Origin-Destination Trip Database ...... 32 Subtask 3E. DevelopMent of the Visualization/Analysis Tool ...... 34 Data Visualization ...... 34 Data Visualization of Network-wide and Manually Selected Features ...... 35 Data Visualization of Features within a County ...... 36 Data Visualization of Features that constitute a Route ...... 38 Data Visualization of Features that constitute a Functional Class ...... 40 Origin Destination-based Trip Analysis ...... 41 Analysis of Travel Times, Costs and Travel paths ...... 43 k-Shortest Path Algorithm ...... 43 Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation...... 47 References ...... 58 Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual ...... 59 Introduction ...... 59 Data Visualization ...... 59 Demand Visualization ...... 59 Shortest-path Analysis ...... 59 General ...... 60 Network / Input file Requirements ...... 60 Demo Network Shapes Files and Complete Network Shapes Files ...... 60 Creation of New Network Shape Files ...... 60 Creation of New OD Trip Files ...... 67

Initialization and Preliminaries ...... 69 Controls ...... 71 View Controls ...... 71 Map Controls ...... 73 Description of ASSIST-ME Functionalities ...... 75 Data Visualization ...... 75 Link Info ...... 75 Speed Visualization ...... 78 V/C Visualization...... 85 Comparison of Two Networks ...... 91 O-D Trip Analysis...... 93 Comparison of OD Trip Output from Different Time Periods / Years...... 96 Analysis...... 98 Manual Selection ...... 99 Intra-County Selection ...... 100 County-to-County Selection ...... 101 Network-wide Selection...... 101 Clear Visualization...... 103 Comparison of Two Networks ...... 103 Report Generation ...... 104

List of Figures

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: Best Practice Model Structure ...... 8 Figure 2: Workflow for User Input ...... 12 Figure 3: Workflow for Information Processing and Output...... 13 Figure 4: Software tool to estimate the full marginal cost of transporting people in New Jersey (5) ...... 16 Figure 5: Output of RILCA (6) ...... 17 Figure 6: (a) User Interface for RASCS DSS developed in GeoMedia Professional (b) User interface showing lane data configuration (8) ...... 19 Figure 7: Incident and Detour information for Diversion routes created using Dynamic Segmentation ( 9) ...... 21 Figure 8: Comparison of Networks based on Speed using ASSISTME ...... 35 Figure 9: Start Window ...... 69 Figure 10: Select Network ...... 70 Figure 11: Program Window after Network Addition ...... 71 Figure 12: Map Views Menu ...... 72 Figure 13: Map View - Horizontal Views ...... 72 Figure 14: Full Map View - Hidden Panel...... 73 Figure 15 Data Visualization Panel ...... 76 Figure 16: Link Info Output ...... 77 Figure 17: Identify Tool Output ...... 77 Figure 18: Speed Visualization - Selected Speed Range ...... 78 Figure 19: Speed Visualization - All Speed Ranges ...... 79 Figure 20: Summary of Statistics ...... 79 Figure 21: Manual Selection of Links ...... 80 Figure 22: Speed Visualization for Selected Links...... 81 Figure 23: Speed Visualization - County ...... 82 Figure 24: Speed Visualization - Selected Route ...... 84 Figure 25: Speed Visualization - Selected Functional Class ...... 85 Figure 26: V/C Visualization - Selected V/C Range ...... 86 Figure 27: V/C Visualization - All V/C Ranges ...... 86 Figure 28: V/C Visualization for Selected Links ...... 88 Figure 29: V/C Visualization - County ...... 89 Figure 30: V/C Visualization - Selected Route...... 90 Figure 31: V/C Visualization - Selected Functional Class ...... 91 Figure 32: Comparison of Speed Visualization for Different Networks ...... 93 Figure 33: OD Trips Panel ...... 94 Figure 34: OD Trip Analysis – County Selection ...... 95 Figure 35: OD Trip Analysis – Output Report ...... 95 Figure 36: Highlighting of Selected OD pair ...... 96 Figure 37: Analysis Panel ...... 98 Figure 38: Single Path Visualization ...... 99 Figure 39: Multiple Path Visualization ...... 100 Figure 40: Visualization of Path from Report...... 102 Figure 41: Comparison of Shortest-paths from Two Different Networks ...... 104

iii

Figure 42: Create Project Window ...... 105 Figure 43: Project History ...... 106

List of Tables

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Socio-economic Inputs Used by NYBPM ...... 5 Table 2: Outline of Fields in BPM Output and Input Data used by ASSISTME (2) ...... 10 Table 3: Comparison of Software Tools for the Implementation of ASSISTME ...... 27 Table 4: Detailed Description of ASSISTME database created from BPM Output ...... 30 Table 5: County Database ...... 32 Table 6: Description of ASSISTME Origin-Destination Database ...... 33 Table 7: Database created from BPM Output used in Network-wide and Manual Analysis ...... 36 Table 8: Database created from BPM Output used in County-wide Analysis ...... 37 Table 9: County Database ...... 38 Table 10: Database created from BPM Output used in Route-specific Analysis ...... 39 Table 11: Database created from BPM Output used in Feature Class Analysis ...... 40 Table 12: Output of the Data Visualization Process ...... 41 Table 13: OD Database ...... 42 Table 14: Database created from BPM Output used in Analysis of Travel Time, Travel Costs, and Paths ...... 45 Table 15: Additional Features requested by NYMTC ...... 48 Table 16: ASSISTME Updates ...... 53 Table 17: Field Names and Column Widths in the Network Shape File ...... 65

Introduction

INTRODUCTION

This report summarizes the work performed for each sub-task of Task 3 of the project titled “Evaluation and Testing of Regional Models – Phase I”. The first section (Sub-Task 3A) includes a description of the initial stage of the project especially various data sources considered for the software application. The second section (Sub-Task 3B) describes the format of the data required for the software tool and the workflow involved in the development and implementation of the application. The third section (Sub-Task 3C) describes in detail various software tools that can possibly be used for the development of the application, and the pros and cons of using each tool. The fourth section (Sub-Task 3D) presents a comprehensive description of various steps involved in developing a database for the software application. The fifth section (Sub-Task 3E) provides the description of the developed ASSIST-ME software application. The last section of the report (Sub-Task 3F) is a detailed description of the research team’s efforts for obtaining feedback about various aspects of the developed tool namely, ASSIST-ME. The research team used the feedback obtained from NYMTC to enhance the tool and its user’s manual. The updated user manual of ASSIST-ME is included in the Appendix section of Task 3 report.

Subtask 3A. Kick-Off Meeting

SUBTASK 3A. KICK-OFF MEETING

The main objective of this meeting was to determine major traffic data sources and to discuss possible approaches for the development of the proposed visualization and analysis tool. The purpose of the visualization and analysis tool application is to compare and visualize the changes in transportation data over different years and under various policy measures. Data sources that have been considered for the visualization and analysis tool are: Field Data 1. New York State DOT Data Traffic volumes for all state highways 1 2. NYMTC GIS Data a. NYMTC Map Inventory 2 b. NYMTC Traffic Data (Vehicle Counts and Travel Speed) 3 3. NYCDOT Vehicle Volumes at Selected Cordons 4 a. Manhattan central business district b. Queens/Brooklyn, Queens/Nassau and Bronx/Westchester borders c. Bridges and Tunnels throughout the city 4. Port Authority of NY & NJ Traffic Volumes Bridge and tunnel volumes between New York City from New Jersey

Field data can accurately represent the traffic conditions in the region. With the advent of Intelligent Transportation System technologies, the field data collection has become easier. The sources of such data range from Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) systems, to loop detector counts, infrared or radar counters, etc. Although there are various sources of data available for the NYMTC region, there are mainly practical problems in using this type of sources. All the instruments used for the data collection have to be calibrated accurately, which is a time-consuming process.

1 Available online at ( https://www.nysdot.gov/portal/page/portal/divisions/engineering/technical- services/highway-data-services/traffic-data ) 2 Available online at (http://www.nymtc.org/project/GIS/Map_Inventory_Home.html ) 3 Available online at (http://www.nymtc.org/gis/frameset.cfm ) 4 Available online at ( http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/about/dotlibrary.shtml#trans ) 2

Subtask 3A. Kick-Off Meeting

All field data that have almost always many discontinuities. Continuity in the data collected is essential because there is a wide variation in the traffic data from hour to hour, data to day, and month to month. In most cases, data such as traffic speed, delay, travel cost, etc. are not even available. This discrepancy is even more significant in the network outside Manhattan . (1)

The New York Metropolitan traffic network is very extensive and there is no single governing agency over the network. Hence, each source of data is under the jurisdiction of a different agency. To pool all the data together into a usable format can be a monumental task in itself. Formatting the data in an appropriate and unified format and obtaining this data continuously from all these agencies is also a massive and complicated proposition. As a result of these practical problems it is very difficult to obtain, process, and then use the field data in this project given its budget and time limitations.

Forecasted Data Forecasted data can be defined as – data obtained from a well-calibrated transportation demand forecasting model. One major source of data in the New York Metropolitan area is the NYMTC Best Practice Model (BPM). NYMTC BPM data, predicted by the BPM, consists of the following: a. Link travel time, speed, volume b. Classified link volume (SOV, HOV, HOV3+, Trucks, Buses, etc.) c. OD Trips between various zones in the New York Metropolitan area

The single most consistent and continuous data source that can be used by the data visualization and analysis application is, thus, the data generated by the Best Practice Model. The input data to the BPM is collected from several large scale data collection plans, conducted as a part of the development process of BPM. The output data is a resultant of a complex demand forecasting process that takes into account several factors.

Subtask 3A. Kick-Off Meeting

The following information was gathered based on experience of working with the New York Best Practice Model, as well as from its documentation. Detailed information can be found in the NYMTC report titled “Transportation Models and Data Initiative General Final Report: New York Best Practice Model (NYBPM)” developed by a team of consultants led by Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc. (2)

“The BPM model was developed in two phases from an extensive data collection process in the 1990s and early 2000s. During phase one extensive reviews were conducted to determine what data were available or needed to be developed in order to support the development of the NYBPM. This effort focused on content, sources, methods, geography and formats required for a wide range of data related to the model development.” (2) Phase two focused on the “Regional Travel – Household Interview Survey (RT-HIS), and the preparation of final technical model specifications for the NYBPM.” (2) The data collection performed in the development process of the BPM included:

1. Socio-Economic Data Most of the socio-economic data collection took place with the Regional Travel - Household Interview Survey of phase two. “The RT-HIS gathered responses from 27,369 people in 11,263 households in 28 counties, who kept records of the travel made by car, bus, commuter rail, subway, foot and other modes. They reveal travel patterns by age, gender, purpose, time of day and other factors, providing a foundation for transportation decision making in the metropolitan region.” (2) The following table taken from the BPM Final report summarizes the socio-economic inputs in the model.

Subtask 3A. Kick-Off Meeting

Table 1: Socio-economic Inputs Used by NYBPM 5

2. Origin Destination Surveys Data collected included the trip-makers’ origins and destinations, trip purpose, mode choice, trip length, and frequency. (2) 3. Land Use Model “The 28-county BPM coverage area in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut was divided into 3,586 traffic analysis zones and the socio-economic data was distributed as journeys over these zones using a land use model. Land use employment data was collected during the socio-economic data collection procedures”. (2) 4. Highway Network “The developed highway network contains over 50,000 links and 32,000 nodes. Highway links contain capacity, lanes, generalized-costs, and a functional class classification. In addition a volume database was developed with volume data by direction, time, and link for all links in the database. Counts were primarily taken

5 Table taken from Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc., “Transportation Models and Data Initiative General Final Report: New York Best Practice Model (NYBPM)”, Prepared for NYMTC, 2005. 5

Subtask 3A. Kick-Off Meeting

from NYSDOT and NYCDOT databases, with additional data provided by toll agencies and various local departments of transportation or planning. Automatic Traffic Recorder counts were also collected in 1996 at various locations to augment and calibrate available data”. (2) 5. Transit Network “Transit network data was collected based on existing base year 1996 transit networks, and compile for predicted future-year 2020 networks.” (2)

With such an extensive data input, the BPM was calibrated as a part of the BPM model building process to accurately forecast various transportation measures over a very wide area namely, “the 28 counties in the New York Metropolitan Region.” (2) Hence the output of BPM can be considered as a valuable source of consistent and continuous data. The output can be generated for various years and scenarios subject to various policy measures. Moreover, due to the on-going work in other tasks of this project, research team is very familiar with the BPM model and has complete access to it. Hence, they were able to generate data sets for various years and use these to show the capabilities of the proposed visualization and analysis tool called, Advanced Software for State-wide Integrated Sustainable Transportation System Monitoring and Evaluation (ASSISTME). This approach will reduce time and resources that need to be spent to obtain field data. Instead it will focus on the development of the application and it functionalities. This in turn will better serve the purpose of this relatively small task to be a proof of concept for the demonstration of novel approaches that can be implemented for the development of a state-of-the art transportation visualization and analysis tool that can be used by a large number of end users with different backgrounds.

Therefore, the output of the BPM is chosen as a primary data source for the visualization and data analysis application.

Subtask 3B. Preliminary Development Plan

SUBTASK 3B. PRELIMINARY DEVELOPMENT PLAN

Based on input from NYMTC, a preliminary development plan is developed. The most important components of this plan are: 1. The description of the data format and definitions for BPM data 2. The description of the mechanisms for obtaining it on a continuous basis from involved agencies 3. The description of accuracy and consistency problems 4. Workflow for the visualization and analysis tool (include our flowcharts and some explanation).

1. Data Format Description

As discussed in the previous section, the input for ASSISTME is the data from the Best Practice Model. The dataset obtained from the output of the BPM is in the form of a transportation network with predicted link flow, speeds, travel times, etc. This output, or loaded network, is in the form of a GIS file, i.e. all the traffic data represented in a geo- coded format. The loaded network is in the format of a TransCAD network file. The second input for ASSISTME from the BPM is the origin-destination demand data, generated from a forecast run in the BPM. (2)

The structure of the Best Practice Model for a typical forecast run is shown in Figure 1.

Subtask 3B. Preliminary Development Plan

Figure 1: Best Practice Model Structure 6

In the framework of the BPM, the road transportation network under the New York Metropolitan region is divided into links. Each link is geo-coded to represent the network in a geographically accurate manner. Each of these links has various attributes that provide the information regarding the nature of the transportation network. The traffic- related attributes that are necessary for ASSISTME are: 1. Travel time 2. Speed 3. Classified volume (SOV, HOV, Trucks, Buses, etc.)

The origin destination data which is an input as well as an output of a forecast run in BPM – is also a necessary input.

“The trip generation and trip distribution stages of traditional models are combined into a sophisticated Household Auto Journey generation model that utilizes micro-simulation components to generate journeys (otherwise known as tours) between origins and

6 Image taken from Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc., “Transportation Models and Data Initiative General Final Report: New York Best Practice Model (NYBPM)”, Prepared for NYMTC, 2005. 8

Subtask 3B. Preliminary Development Plan destinations.” (2)The journeys are then split and grouped by a Mode Destination Stop Choice model, but before they can be assigned to the highway network they must be split into individual trips and separated by time of day and location (2).The OD data set consists of the number of OD trips by each mode of road traffic between various zones in the New York Metropolitan area. The OD data input for ASSISTME is in the form of text file listing the origin, destination and number of trips by each vehicle class and mode. In order to use this dataset the traffic analysis zones (TAZ) should be geo-coded and indexed. Based on the index of the origin and destination TAZs the number of trips between those zones can be obtained from the dataset.

Both the loaded network and the OD data can be updated for various scenarios by directly using the output of the BPM in the form of a loaded network and the corresponding OD data for that particular scenario. This step can be performed any number of times in order to have various scenarios to be tested at hand.

At the time of development of ASSISTME, the research team had access to the Best Practice Model running 2002 base year, and functioning with the TransCAD 4.5 environment. In addition, “a full set of the NYBPM socioeconomic data (SED) variables were projected from year 1996 (which was the base year for the originally developed BPM) and developed at the zonal level for each of the following horizon years: 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015 and 2020.” (2)The research team’s working BPM model had with it SED data on five year intervals up to the year 2035. (2)

The results of the assignment process of the model are loaded highway networks for four time periods of the day (2): • AM Peak (6-10 AM) • Midday (10AM - 3PM) • PM Peak (3-7 PM) • Night (7PM – 6AM)

Subtask 3B. Preliminary Development Plan

2. Mechanisms for obtaining data on a continuous basis from involved agencies

Due to the decision of using BPM model as the only source of data for the initial version of ASSISTME, the research team did not further pursue the process of procuring continuous data from various agencies. As mentioned earlier, this decision of focusing on the BPM data only enables the research team to focus on the development of various functionalities for the application.

3. Accuracy and Consistency

The loaded network is the output of BPM, which is based on TransCAD. However, the output can be exported into a format compatible with various GIS software. The input to ASSISTME has to be customized in such a way that all the necessary data is available in the correct format.

It is important to emphasize that the input data required by ASSISTME is found in different places in the BPM. For instance, the capacity of the link is not available in the output (loaded network) of the BPM but it is present in the input (base) network of the BPM. Since the link capacity is necessary to analyze network properties such as level-of- service, shortest paths, etc., this field has to be imported into the loaded network from the base network. A comparison of useful fields from the input and output networks of BPM is shown in Table 2.

Table 2: Outline of Fields in BPM Output and Input Data used by ASSISTME (2)

Input Highway Network Output Loaded Network Link ID Link ID Functional Class Functional Class Link Type Link Type Area Type Area Type Lanes Lanes Free Flow Speed Forecasted Speed Predicted Travel Time Forecasted Travel Time Lane Capacity Forecasted Volumes Directional Capacity Volume to Capacity Ratios

Subtask 3B. Preliminary Development Plan

Another issue with migrating data from BPM to ASSISTME is in the accuracy of the format. Since ASSISTME is designed as an application that can be used with the output of any modeled scenario in BPM, the input to ASSISTME has to be in a pre-specified format. In other words, the order and size of the fields have to be consistent with a pre- specified format.

The origin and destination data must also be in a pre-specified format so that the program that processes the data for the requested zonal pairs can perform the task without any hindrance. A number of data formatting routines were developed to extract this data in an accurate and consistent way. This is an important task since it eliminates the need for manual processing of data and minimizes the possibility of input data inaccuracies and inconsistencies.

4. Workflow of ASSISTME

ASSISTME consists of three broad sets of functionalities. • Visualization of traffic data obtained as a result of various scenarios created in BPM • Analysis of OD demand • Analysis and visualization of paths and trip travel times/costs based on the BPM predictions

For each of these functionalities, it is necessary to obtain user input regarding the data to compare and visualize. The user input involves selection of the method of analysis, the method of feature selection for analysis, and feature selection. The workflow is shown in Figure 2.

Subtask 3B. Preliminary Development Plan

Figure 2: Workflow for User Input

Subtask 3B. Preliminary Development Plan

Figure 3: Workflow for Information Processing and Output

After the user input is entered in an interactive manner through the Graphical User Interface of ASSISTME, based on the method of analysis chosen the corresponding database(s) are accessed. The information regarding the features selected for comparison/visualization is extracted using appropriate queries and programs. This information is presented in the form of color schemes and tables which can be saved for future reference and reporting. The process is shown in Figure 3.

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives

SUBTASK 3C. REVIEW OF TOOLS VIS-À-VIS PROJECT OBJECTIVES

A brief review of possible development tools is conducted. The pros and cons of using these tools in the context of the major goals of this task are shown with the focus being on both short and long-term issues. The final selection of the tool that is used for the application development is mainly based on three major factors: 1. Current spatial database management and analysis applications that are being used by NYMTC and other participating agencies 2. Proven track record of the capabilities selected tool as a network-wide analysis and visualization application 3. Time and budget constraints of this project

There are several software tools in the market that can be used to model and analyze various aspects of the transportation network. The software tools required for the tasks involved in this project need to functionality to spatially monitor the changes to the transportation system generated using the output of the Best Practice Model. The BPM output will be stored in the form of databases and the software tool has to seamlessly integrate with various databases. In addition the software has to provide visualization tools to compare the changes in the BPM output.

To perform visualization and analysis of large amounts of spatial data, the use of GIS software is required. The prominent candidates among the GIS-based software tools are the following: 1. ESRI ArcGIS ® 2. Intergraph GeoMedia ® 3. Caliper TransCAD ® 4. Autodesk MapGuide ®

Brief Description of Available GIS based tools

ArcGIS ArcInfo is “ESRI’s full-featured professional GIS software product. It supports the full range of GIS functions including: data collection and import; editing, restructuring, and

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives transformation; display; query; and analysis. ArcInfo’s strengths are comprehensive portfolio of capabilities, the sophisticated tools for data management and analysis, the customization options and the vast array of third party tools and interfaces”. (3) ArcGIS is one of the most widely used suite of GIS software products ( http://support.esri.com/ ). ESRI® provides extensive support with various application and development tools. In addition, because of the widespread usage, there are extensive user forums (http://support.esri.com/index.cfm?fa=forums.gateway). These forums provide valuable advice for both users and developers on all the available tools provided by ESRI.

ArcGIS is one of the most ubiquitous GIS software tool among both the public agencies and private consultants in the industry. The diversity of the industries includes Engineering, Business, Defense and Intelligence, Education, Health Services, Natural Resources, Public Safety, Transportation and Public Utilities. “ ESRI software is used by more than 300,000 organizations worldwide including most U.S. federal agencies and national mapping agencies, all 50 U.S. state health departments, most forestry companies, and many others in dozens of industries. ESRI software is the standard in state and local government and is used by more than 24,000 state and local governments including Paris, France; Los Angeles, California, USA; Beijing, China; and Kuwait City, Kuwait .” (4)

The extent of usage of ESRI products in transportation is evidenced by the presence of transportation planning tools such as Cube, VIPER and TP+. With Cube public transit alternatives, road pricing strategies, land use developments, freight terminal locations, updated signal plans, and alternative geometric designs can be evaluated. Cube generates decision-making information quickly, using powerful modeling and GIS techniques, statistics and comparisons, reports and graphs, high-quality graphics and animations. Cube has various modules from mapping, transportation demand forecasting, mesoscopic traffic simulation, lane-use forecasting, traffic assignment and module for parallel processing several of the above stated processes. VIPER and TP+ are other transportation planning tools based on ArcGIS. The flexibility that ArcGIS tools provide in interacting with various data sources is very useful.

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives

In addition to the ubiquity of the ArcGIS as a software tool the research team also has experience in developing products based on ArcGIS. The research team has previously developed the following tools based on ArcGIS: 1. Software tool to find the cost of transporting people in New Jersey (5): An ArcGIS-based software tool was developed to find the full marginal cost of transportation in New Jersey. The estimates could be estimated between various combination of origins and destinations. This tool is very useful in estimating the short-term impact of various policy implications. Figure 4 shows a screenshot of the software tool with the estimates of various costs. The key component of this tool is the spatial component for the analysis provided by the use of ArcGIS in the development. The menu-driven interface was developed for the ease of transportation planners using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) in ArcGIS.

Figure 4: Software tool to estimate the full marginal cost of transporting people in New Jersey (5)

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives

2. ArcGIS-based software tool to estimate the impacts of short-term freeway lane closure projects (6): This tool developed in ArcGIS can be used to estimate average delay, hourly queue, and queue length resulting from lane closures resulting from short-term road construction projects on New Jersey Turnpike and Garden State Parkway. The spatial visualization aspect provided by ArcGIS is an important characteristic of this tool called Rutgers Interactive Lane Closure Application (RILCA). The tool was developed by customizing the default ArcMap engine using VBA in ArcGIS. A menu-driven, user-friendly interface was developed using VBA for the interactively utilizing the user input for various calculation. Figure 5 shows the output of the tool.

Figure 5: Output of RILCA (6) Migration of the proposed application to an internet-based environment could be a task for the future. A description of ESRI’s ArcGIS-based internet tools is presented below. The pros and cons of the tool are also presented. ArcIMS (Internet Map Server) is a multi-tier architecture consisting of the presentation, business logic and data storage tiers, in addition to a set of applications for management. ArcIMS Viewers, ArcIMS Application Server, ArcIMS Spatial Server, ArcIMS Manager are components that make it possible for the user to interact with the database, i.e. querying, analyzing and editing. The Client Viewers are in HTML and Java web browsers. Customization can be

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives performed in VB, ASP, C++, etc. “It is easier to integrate with other ESRI’s GIS software tools. One of the few disadvantages is a slower web delivery of the product.” (7)

GeoMedia Data can be “stored in proprietary GeoMedia files or in DBMS such as Oracle, MS- Access or SQL Server. GeoMedia enables data from multiple disparate databases to be brought into a single GIS environment for viewing, analysis, and presentation. GeoMedia is built as a collection of software object components. These underlying objects are exposed to developers who can customize the software using a programming language such as Visual Basic or C#. GeoMedia offers a suite of analysis tools, including attribute and spatial query, buffer zones, spatial analysis and thematic analysis ”. (3)

Web-based extensions of the intended software application could be for the future. A survey of the internet extensions of GeoMedia is presented below. The pros and cons of GeoMedia are also presented. GeoMedia WebMap, GeoMedia WebMap Professional, GeoMedia WebMap Publisher are components of Intergraph’s Internet GIS software that perform the preparation of the database, server, web publishing of maps. Intergraph GeoMedia WebMap supports file formats from the following vendors: Oracle, AutoDesk, FRAMME, Microsoft Access, SQL, and ESRI file formats. “GeoMedia WebMap provides vector and raster viewing capabilities. It also performs rendering and manipulation in the browser. There is no programming involved for customization, this may affect the security of the GIS database. Customization can add time and cost to an initially expensive project.” (7) The research team has previously developed software tools using GeoMedia. The following is a brief description of these tools: 1. Evaluation of Adaptive Control Strategies for NJ Highways (8): As a part of this tool a prototype geographical information system (GIS) based decision support system (DSS) was developed to carefully determine optimal locations of a specific adaptive signal control strategy in order to maximize its benefits. First, a novel software bridge is implemented to ensure data exchange between the most widely used traffic signal optimization and analysis software, Synchro and the developed GIS-based DSS prototype – Rutgers Adaptive Signal Control Selection

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives

(RASCS) DSS. A macroscopic simulator, a rule-based expert system built up using various sources, and a benefit-cost analysis module that are integrated modules of this unique GIS-based DSS tool. Figure 6 shows a screenshot of the tool.

(a)

(b) Figure 6: (a) User Interface for RASCS DSS developed in GeoMedia Professional (b) User interface showing lane data configuration (8)

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives

2. Development and Long-term Maintenance of Detour Plans for Traffic Incident Management Operations (9): This tool involves a GIS-based application for traffic incident management. The customized tool is developed in GeoMedia Professional 5.2 using Visual Basic programming language. This tool helps the operator at the transportation authority to identify the location of the incident and assign detour routes for that incident location through a menu-driven application. The information for incidents and detour routes and the exit numbers between which the incident has occurred (for freeways) is stored in customized databases. Flexibility is given to the application by allowing various detour routes to be assigned for the same incident location. Each detour could be assigned for specific functions such as detour for trucks or for cars only. The detour routes can be ranked and colored in the manner the operator chooses to. In cases when the incident occurs on a smaller portion of a long link, the operator has to choose the complete link as the incident location, which is not accurate. In order to avoid this shortcoming, dynamic segmentation feature of GeoMedia is employed to help operator construct smaller links by specifying the start and end point over an existing link. This procedure is automated in the application by letting the user choose the dynamic segmentation option through a button in the menu and then selecting the start and end points. The application is meant to address the freeway network alone, and a combination of both freeway and local arterial networks. Figure 7 presents a screenshot of the diversion information entered using the tool.

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives

Figure 7: Incident and Detour information for Diversion routes created using Dynamic Segmentation ( 9)

TransCAD TransCAD combines GIS and transportation modeling capabilities in a single integrated platform, providing capabilities. TransCAD’s primary function is to serve as a transportation planning and modeling tool. As such it emphasizes transportation planning functions over other GIS and visualization functions. It performs traditional four-step planning procedures: trip generation, trip distribution, mode choice, and a variety of traffic and transit assignment, all with minimal user effort.

Additionally TransCAD supports importing and exporting large data files, provides a database environment to edit and manipulate datasets, and even supports external scripts and applications to run alternative transportation planning procedures not directly made available within TransCAD. For example, the New York Best Practice Model uses external applications to run its advanced journey generation and distribution procedures, but employs TransCAD’s platform in the process and ultimately utilizes TransCAD’s assignment module to perform both highway and transit assignment. TransCAD is also a

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives

GIS tool that can be used to create and customize maps, build and maintain geographic data sets, and perform many different types of spatial analysis. (5)

MapGuide MapGuide is currently under the development of Autodesk ®. MapGuide can deploy interactive, scalable GIS, mapping, and digital design data. It supports integration and access for all major GIS and CAD data formats: ESRI®SHP and coverages, MicroStation® DGN™, MapInfo® Interchange File, Atlas BNA, comma-separated files (CSV), Autodesk DWG, and more. Also supports most relational databases via OLE DB and ODBC, including Oracle®, SQL Server, Microsoft® Access, dBASE®, and more. Autodesk MapGuide legends can now efficiently manage hundreds of layers. But on the down-side most MapGuide applications rely upon a client Plug-in, ActiveX Control, or Java applet with much of the application logic written in JavaScript using the APIs offered by the client-side plug-in. All spatial analysis is performed client-side on rendered graphics rather than on the underlying spatial data. (11)

Web-based extensions of the intended software application could be for the future. A survey of the internet extensions of MapGuide is presented below. The pros and cons of MapGuide are also presented. MapGuide Viewers consist of Plug-in for Netscape, ActiveX Control for Microsoft Internet Explorer, Java Viewer for Sun and Macintosh OS’s. MapGuide Server runs under Microsoft Windows NT. “There is no built in data editing - a toolkit is needed. No redlining functionality out of the box. The developer must be familiar with HTML web design. No easy setup wizard for beginning users. MapGuide uses SDF to deliver data and mapping which are much smaller than ESRI shape files for faster delivery.” (7)

MapInfo MapInfo is another GIS software tool developed by Pitney Bowles Corp. MapInfo has the ability to combine data from widely different sources, even with different formats and projections, in the same map window. MapInfo Professional enables to access local data in a wide variety of formats including vector data in MapInfo TAB and WMF files, tabular data in Delimited ASCII text, XLS, WKS, DBF and MDB files, Microsoft Excel

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives and csv data, Direct reading of ESRI Shape File format, Support for GML V2 (Geography Markup Language). Map Info builds and saves SQL queries that access and integrate data from multiple tables. Frequently performed queries can be written once, re- used and even distributed to others. Customization is possible using MapBasic Development Language for custom menus, dialogs, buttons and external function cells. Integrated Mapping can be performed using Visual Basic, C++, and PowerBuilder.

Developing customized GIS solutions

With the advent of component-based software development, a number of GIS vendors have released collections of GIS software components oriented toward the needs of developers. These are effectively toolkits of GIS functions that a programmer can use to build a specific purpose GIS application. They are of interest to developers because such components can be used to create highly customized and optimized applications that can either stand alone or can be embedded within other software systems. Typically, component GIS packages offer strong display and query capabilities. Examples of components GIS products include Blue Marble Geographics GeoObjects, ESRI ArcGIS Engine, and MapInfo MapX, GISDK TM of TransCAD 5.0. Most of the developer GIS products from mainstream vendors are built on top of Microsoft’s .NET technology standards, but there are several cross platform choices (e.g., ESRI ArcGIS Engine) and several Java-based toolkits. The typical cost for a developer GIS product is $1000-$5000 for the developer kit and $100-$500 per deployed application. Users of these tools often use the run-time deployment is embedded in the other applications.

TransCAD includes the Geographic Information System Developer’s Kit (GISDK TM ). GISDK gives the tools that can create a wide variety of products for delivering mapping and geographic analysis capabilities to customers. GISDK helps to create a mapping application program with a custom user interface. It helps to design the menus, toolbars, toolboxes and dialog boxes, and program the application to respond to user actions.

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives

Usage and Comparison of Software Products

Public agencies and transportation consulting firms use transportation-related software products to a large extent in their analyses. The extent of usage of each of these software products for various purposes such as transportation planning, land-use, etc. will provide an insight into the usefulness in each of these products.

Boile and Ozbay (2005) conducted a study to evaluate the usage and utility of many software products in the transportation industry. (12) The crucial part of the study is an extensive survey performed over many firms in the New York and New Jersey area. The survey covered 51 consulting firms and 160 public agencies. It found that 27% of the agencies used ArcGIS-based transportation planning tools, while 20% used TransCAD- based tools. The study also reported that 67% of the firms used ArcGIS-based land-use planning tools and none which were TransCAD-based. It is quite clear from the report that TransCAD-based tools and ArcGIS-based tools have been the two most widespread software products used by the agencies, hence it is more appropriate to compare TransCAD-based and ArcGIS-based tools only.

The scale of the project in which these software tools have been used is another indicator of the usefulness of the tool. The study reports that though both TransCAD-based and ArcGIS-based tools have been used in city-wide, county-wide, and regional models, it was only ArcGIS-based tools that have been used to model state-wide scenarios.

It was also suggested in the survey conducted by the study that TransCAD has difficulties with compatibility between different versions. This is another important concern since ASSISTME will not be useful to users if they have issues with later versions of software products. Another point to be noted from the study is that at the time of the study, the latest version of TransCAD was 4.5 and ArcGIS was 8.0. But to date TransCAD has released two newer versions, 4.8 and 5.0, and ArcGIS has released much more advanced versions with 9.3 being the latest.

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives

NYMTC Best Practice Model is based on TransCAD. The output from BPM exists as propriety TransCAD file. But these output file can also be readily exported to a format that is compatible with many other GIS software such as ArcView ® Shape file. GeoMedia can take data input in the form of commonly used databases, thus BPM output is also compatible with GeoMedia. (7) Hence it can safely be assumed that the BPM output is present in a format that is compatible with TransCAD, ArcGIS and GeoMedia.

Customized applications based on GIS tools can be developed using ArcGIS, TransCAD and GeoMedia Professional. This customization can be performed using either the existing scripting language or deploying the GIS engine in external Windows applications as a Component Object Module (COM) or .NET object. The scripting language in the case of TransCAD is GISDK or VBA provided with ArcGIS. The version of TransCAD available until the start of development of ASSISTME did not have the capability of deploying TransCAD engine in Windows applications. Deployment of GIS engine in external programs is very important since it: • enhances the usability and versatility of the engine to develop customization for many purposes • is more user-friendly by providing the same executable file for all input files • improves security and stability of the application • eases the process of upgrading the application across various versions

TransCAD recently introduced – with TransCAD 5.0 – GISDK that allows calling mapping functions and macros from another application, written in another programming language using Microsoft’s .NET framework. But TransCAD 5.0 was released in January 2008 7 midway in the development process of ASSISTME. GISDK is a propriety scripting language of TransCAD. Customization using GISDK is comparatively difficult as compared to ArcGIS or GeoMedia since it is very different from the standard programming languages.

7 “TransCAD 5.0 is Now Shipping” ( http://www.caliper.com/Press/pr20071016.htm ) 25

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives

The basic TransCAD license provides all the modules available in TransCAD inclusive of TransCAD GIS engine, land-use prediction, demand forecasting module, traffic assignment module, etc. (13 ) Whereas in the case of ArcGIS the license can be customized to purchase only the GIS engine along with an option of purchasing additional add-on modules. ( 14 ) Hence if the customization is to be performed using TransCAD, the license for all the modules has to be available. Also since the main utility of a GIS engine in the development of ASSISTME is only the spatial analysis capability and access of various data sources, the availability of various other transportation planning modules and the resulting cost in TransCAD is only an overhead.

TransCAD does not have user forums for the exchange of ideas and speedy resolution of issues involved in development. ArcGIS has a very extensive support group and widely used user forums that are very helpful.

Table 3 presents a summary of various issues considered in software selection and the applicability to various software tools. Based on the discussion presented in the current subsection and the criteria evaluated and listed in Table 3, it was decided that ArcGIS should be used for the development of ASSISTME.

Subtask 3C. Review of Tools vis-à-vis Project Objectives

Table 3: Comparison of Software Tools for the Implementation of ASSISTME

Software Tool ArcGIS TransCAD GeoMedia MapGuide MapInfo Compatibility with NYMTC GIS Yes Yes Partly Yes Partly Yes Partly Yes applications Ability for network-wide analysis and Yes Yes Yes No Partly Yes visualization Ubiquity in the transportation planning Very Frequently Frequently Used Moderately Used No Information Used industry Used Available Ease of Deployment in a external Easy None (as of the Easy Difficult Not possible Windows Application date of completion of Subtask 3c)

Cost of development and implementation License for ArcGIS Not Applicable (as GeoMedia Not known Not known Engine Runtime of the date of Professional has Comes with ArcGIS completion of to be purchased Desktop license Subtask 3c) Flexibility in the availability of specific Very Flexible Not Flexible Flexible Flexible N/A modules Extension into Web-based Environment Easy to develop and No web Easy to Faster delivery No web customize with development tool incorporate new than ArcIMS development tool available non-web- available data sources. but difficult to available based applications Difficulty in customize customization Experience of the group in development Very Good Fair Good None None (Time required) Availability of user forums / knowledge Very extensive user No user forums User forums and No information No information database forms and support available knowledge base

Subtask 3D. Develop a Unified Database

SUBTASK 3D. DEVELOP A UNIFIED DATABASE

Available data identified in Task 2 is analyzed and a unified database is developed. The database is consistent with the capabilities of the development tool selected in Task 3C.

Development of the Traffic Database

Once highway assignment is completed in BPM, four time-period specific database files are produced (AM, MD, PM, and NT). These four files are the data files that are connected to the geographic files in TransCAD to produce loaded networks for analysis. Each one of these files contains predicted values for traffic on all 50,000+ links of the network. They also include basic information about all the links, carried over from the input networks, that enable sorting and filtration based on their characteristics; for example all links within a certain state or county, or all highway links. The information contained within these files is as follows 8:

Input Link Characteristics . Some of the basic link information contained within the input data files is carried over into the output files. All links of the model are identified by their Link ID. Sequentially, the first 13,000+ links are centroid connectors, and thus generally excluded from analysis. “These links are numbered between 1 and 49,999.” (2)Over ID number 50,000 are actual roadway links of the existing highway networks. Along with link ID, the From and To nodes are listed. Basic link characteristics such as the link lengths, directionality, any restrictions, and number of lanes contained are also listed. Finally, the links’ functional class, physical link type, and their coded area types are also listed. (2)

Assigned Volumes. The first 16 columns of the BPM assignment tables contain preloaded information given from the input networks. Following these 16 columns are the results of the model run. Total Flow on each link is shown, including directional flow on the link.

8 The information about the individual database elements is based on the descriptions given in “Transportation Models and Data Initiative General Final Report: New York Best Practice Model (NYBPM)”, Prepared for NYMTC in 2005 by Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc.

Subtask 3D. Develop a Unified Database

Flow is defined as the total number of vehicles using that link for an entire time period of analysis (for example, all vehicles during the AM Peak Period). Additionally flows are also split and classified based on the six vehicle classes BPM uses for assignment: “Single Occupancy Vehicles, High Occupancy Vehicles (2) & Taxis, High Occupancy Vehicles (3+), External Vehicles entering the network, Trucks, and Other Commercial Vehicles”. (2) When bus assignment is run, the number of buses on each link is also shown. While link capacities are not listed in the assignment output files, the volume to capacity (v/c) ratio of each link, by direction, is listed. (2)

Link Speeds and Travel Times. The model also calculated the real speed on each of the links of the network – which is different from the free flow speed contained with the input network database. The same applies for compute travel times, which are always greater than or equal to the free flow travel times of the input networks. Speeds and travel times are also given directionally, and are link specific – thus the same for all classes of vehicles. (2)

It is imperative that when comparing and visualizing traffic-related data that some necessary attributes are included. The loaded network consists of the following traffic- related data that is used in ASSISTME: 1. Link traffic volumes for vehicle class, namely single occupancy vehicle (SOV), high occupancy vehicle (HOV2 & Taxi), high occupancy vehicle with three or more occupants (HOV3+), trucks, commercial vans, buses, and external trips. 2. Link travel times 3. Link free flow and congested speeds 4. Link volume-to-capacity ratio 5. Capacity of the link 6. Number of lanes on each link 7. Functional class of the roadway of which the link is a part of (freeway, interstate, arterial, local) 8. Nature of the area in which the link is located (urban, rural, etc.) 9. County in which the link is located

Subtask 3D. Develop a Unified Database

Capacity of the link is not available in the output (loaded network) of the BPM but it is present in the input (base) network to the BPM. Since the link capacity is necessary to analyze network properties such as shortest paths, this field has to be imported into the loaded network from the base network. The procedure to perform this task is presented in the user’s manual. The complete set of attributes present in the BPM output with their descriptions is presented in Table 4.

Table 4: Detailed Description of ASSISTME database created from BPM Output

Field Name Description Type Column Width FID N/A default SHAPE N/A default ID Link ID Numeric 10 LENGTH Link Length Numeric 16 DIR Direction of digitization Numeric 2 LID991111 NYMTC Link ID Numeric 10 NAME1 Name of the street Character 30 COUNTY County Index Numeric 4 FCLASS Feature Class of the roadway Numeric 4 DESIGN Numeric 2 MEDIAN Size of median Numeric 3 ACCESS Access Restricted Numeric 5 SIGNAL Signalized Numeric 5 DRIVEWAY Numeric 5 TURN Numeric 5 RAMPTYPE Type of Ramp Numeric 5 AUTOTOLL Toll on Automobiles Numeric 10 TRUKTOLL Toll on Trucks Numeric 10 TRUCK Numeric 4 SPECIAL Numeric 5 TOT_LANE Total Number of lanes in both directions Numeric 3 LANESAB Lanes in one direction Numeric 5 LANESBA Lanes in opposite direction Numeric 5 PARK Parking Numeric 5 RESTRICT Numeric 5 SPDMOD Numeric 5 CAPMOD Numeric 5 ZONE Closest zone Numeric 5 AREATYPE Type of area in which link is located Numeric 5 PLT Numeric 5 FREESPD Freeflow speed Numeric 5

Subtask 3D. Develop a Unified Database

LANECAP Capacity per lane Numeric 5 CAPACITYAB Capacity in one direction Numeric 6 CAPACITYBA Capacity in opposite direction Numeric 6 TIMEAB Freeflow travel time in one direction Numeric 15 TIMEBA Freeflow travel time in opposite Numeric 15 direction IMPEDAB Numeric 15 IMPEDBA Numeric 15 AUTOFIX Numeric 18 HOV2FIX Numeric 18 HOV3FIX Numeric 18 HOV4FIX Numeric 18 TAXIFIX Numeric 18 TRUCKFIX Numeric 18 COMMFIX Numeric 18 AB_BUS Bus volume in one direction Numeric 12 BA_BUS Bus volume in opposite direction Numeric 12 FROMNODE Node ID of starting node Numeric 10 TONODE Node ID of ending node Numeric 10 AB_FLOW Total volume in one direction Numeric 18 BA_FLOW Total volume in opposite direction Numeric 18 TOT_FLOW Total volume in both directions Numeric 18 AB_TIME Congested travel time in one direction Numeric 19 BA_TIME Congested travel time in opposite Numeric 19 direction MAX_TIME Maximum of congested travel time in Numeric 19 both directions AB_VOC Volume-Capacity ratio in one direction Numeric 19 BA_VOC Volume-Capacity ratio in opposite Numeric 19 direction AB_SPEED Congested Speed in one direction Numeric 19 BA_SPEED Congested Speed in opposite direction Numeric 19 AB_SOV Volume of SOV in one direction Numeric 19 BA_SOV Volume of SOV in opposite direction Numeric 19 AB_HOV_TX Volume of HOV + Taxi in one direction Numeric 19 BA_HOV_TX Volume of HOV + Taxi in opposite Numeric 19 direction AB_HOV3 Volume of HOV3+ in one direction Numeric 19 BA_HOV3 Volume of HOV3+ in opposite direction Numeric 19 AB_EXT Volume of externals in one direction Numeric 19 BA_EXT Volume of externals in opposite Numeric 19 direction AB_TRUCK Volume of Trucks in one direction Numeric 19 BA_TRUCK Volume of Trucks in opposite direction Numeric 19 AB_COMM Volume of Other Commercial vehicles Numeric 19

Subtask 3D. Develop a Unified Database

in one direction BA_COMM Volume of Other Commercial vehicles Numeric 19 in opposite direction ABBUS Volume of buses in one direction Numeric 18 BABUS Volume of buses in opposite direction Numeric 18

County Database

The County Database is useful in performing localized calculation in statistics and visualization (as shown in Table 5). This database is provided along with the software tool.

Table 5: County Database

Field Name Description Type COUNTYNAME Name of the County Character COUNTYID County Index Numeric

Development of the Origin-Destination Trip Database

The Best Practice Model is a complex travel demand forecasting model that contains many functions that work interdependently with feedback. The trip generation and trip distribution stages of traditional models are combined into a sophisticated Household Auto Journey generation model that utilizes micro-simulation components to generate journeys (otherwise known as tours) between origins and destinations. The journeys are then split and grouped by a Mode Destination Stop Choice model, but before they can be assigned to the highway network they must be split into individual trips and separated by time of day and location.(2)

The origin-destination matrix contains the total number of trips to be assigned by the model, between each origin zone and destination zone. In the BPM model, the origin- destination (OD) matrices are produced by the Time-of-Day processor, which takes journeys, splits them into trips, and assigns them to time periods of the day based on observed distributions. The BPM uses four time period assignments, AM Peak, Midday, PM Peak, and Night, thus four OD matrix files are produced for the assignment. (2)

Subtask 3D. Develop a Unified Database

“Each OD matrix file is subdivided into 6 matrices, one for each class of vehicle modeled” (2): 1. Single Occupancy Vehicles 2. High Occupancy Vehicles (2) & Taxis 3. High Occupancy Vehicles (3+) 4. External Vehicles entering the network 5. Trucks 6. Other Commercial Vehicles This enables TransCAD to use multi-class assignment, and for it to obtain more realistic assignments than other models. The total 24 matrices are also used in conjunction with the separate generalized-cost skim tables contained for each time period by class of vehicle. Each given OD matrix contains 16 million cells, since the model is designed with approximately 4,000 zones that can both generate and receive traffic. Once the OD matrices are created, highway assignment can be run. (2)

The origin-destination demand data, used as an input to the BPM, consists of the details shown in Table 6.

Table 6: Description of ASSISTME Origin-Destination Database

Field Name Description Type Origin ID of the Origin Zone Numeric Destination ID of the Destination Zone Numeric Demand for Demand for Single-Occupancy Vehicle between Numeric SOV O-D pair Demand for Demand for High Occupancy Vehicle (with Numeric HOV2 & Taxi occupancy = 2) and Taxi between O-D pair Demand for Demand for High Occupancy Vehicle (with Numeric HOV3+ occupancy more than 2) between O-D pair Demand for Demand for Vehicles from or to an external zone Numeric Externals Demand for Demand for Trucks between O-D pair Numeric Trucks Demand for Demand for Commercial Vans between O-D pair Numeric Other Commercials

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

SUBTASK 3E. DEVELOPMENT OF THE VISUALIZATION/ANALYSIS TOOL

Based on the findings of the previous tasks, a visualization and analysis tool that will be a proof of concept for a future large scale multi-agency transportation data management, maintenance, visualization and analysis tool is developed. A detailed description of the ASSISTME tool is presented in this section. The major functionalities available for ASSISTME are: 1. Visualization of data such as speed, vehicle miles traveled, and volume-over- capacity (V/C) ratio 2. Analysis of OD Demand between various zones in the network 3. Analysis of travel times and paths on a loaded network 4. Creation of Report and selective exporting of analyses

Data Visualization

The data visualization functionality is useful in the calculation of various macroscopic statistics and visualization of links in the network. Macroscopic statistics such as vehicle hours of delay, average delay, average volume-to-capacity ratio, etc. are useful in judging the performance of the links. The visualization option performs the representation of the links in question based on a color scheme, which is a function of speed or volume-to- capacity ratio.

The data visualization capability of ASSISTME is also useful in comparing various forecasts performed by the BPM as result of different policies measures and projects. This comparison can be performed at the network level with the calculation of network statistics specified earlier. Additionally the visualization gives a visual comparison of two networks based on speed or volume-to-capacity ratio. Figure 8 shows the comparison of two networks based on speed using ASSISTME.

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

Figure 8: Comparison of Networks based on Speed using ASSISTME The data visualization step involves showing the average speed and level of congestion in the network. The metrics used for this visualization are congested speed and volume-to- capacity ratio, respectively. Visualization – based on speed or volume-to-capacity ratio – can be performed for features using the following selection options: 1. Network-wide selection 2. Manual selection of features 3. Features within a county 4. Features within a route 5. Features within a roadway functional class

Data Visualization of Network-wide and Manually Selected Features

Network-wide selection performs the calculation of statistics and visualization for the complete network. Selection can also be manual for single or multiple links using the built-in “Select Features” tool. Data Fields used in network-wide and manual selection are shown in Table 7.

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

Table 7: Database created from BPM Output used in Network-wide and Manual Analysis

Field Name Description Function of the Field LENGTH Link Length Vehicle Miles Traveled FROMNODE Node ID of starting node TIMEAB Freeflow travel time in one direction Delay TIMEBA Freeflow travel time in opposite direction Delay TOT_FLOW Total volume in both directions Vehicle Miles Traveled, Delay AB_TIME Congested travel time in one direction Delay BA_TIME Congested travel time in opposite direction Delay AB_VOC Volume-Capacity ratio in one direction Visualization & Volume/Capacity BA_VOC Volume-Capacity ratio in opposite direction Visualization & Volume/Capacity AB_SPEED Congested Speed in one direction Visualization & Avg. Speed BA_SPEED Congested Speed in opposite direction Visualization & Avg. Speed AB_SOV Volume of SOV in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_SOV Volume of SOV in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_HOV_TX Volume of HOV + Taxi in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_HOV_TX Volume of HOV + Taxi in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_HOV3 Volume of HOV3+ in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_HOV3 Volume of HOV3+ in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_EXT Volume of externals in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_EXT Volume of externals in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_TRUCK Volume of Trucks in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_TRUCK Volume of Trucks in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_COMM Volume of Other Commercial vehicles in one Person Miles Traveled direction BA_COMM Volume of Other Commercial vehicles in opposite Person Miles Traveled direction ABBUS Volume of buses in one direction Person Miles Traveled BABUS Volume of buses in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled

Data Visualization of Features within a County

Data visualization can also be performed for individual links within a county. This option is useful in analyzing the effect of a policy measure over a county level. The same set of

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool statistics is calculated and visualization performed. As compared to the other options, the user must select the county in which the analysis is to be performed from a drop-down menu. Data Fields used for visualization of features within a county are shown in Table 8 and Table 9.

Table 8: Database created from BPM Output used in County-wide Analysis

Field Name Description Function of the Field LENGTH Link Length Vehicle Miles Traveled COUNTY County Index Visualization & Statistics TIMEAB Freeflow travel time in one direction Delay TIMEBA Freeflow travel time in opposite direction Delay TOT_FLOW Total volume in both directions Vehicle Miles Traveled, Delay AB_TIME Congested travel time in one direction Delay BA_TIME Congested travel time in opposite direction Delay AB_VOC Volume-Capacity ratio in one direction Visualization & Volume/Capacity BA_VOC Volume-Capacity ratio in opposite direction Visualization & Volume/Capacity AB_SPEED Congested Speed in one direction Visualization & Avg. Speed BA_SPEED Congested Speed in opposite direction Visualization & Avg. Speed AB_SOV Volume of SOV in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_SOV Volume of SOV in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_HOV_TX Volume of HOV + Taxi in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_HOV_TX Volume of HOV + Taxi in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_HOV3 Volume of HOV3+ in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_HOV3 Volume of HOV3+ in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_EXT Volume of externals in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_EXT Volume of externals in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_TRUCK Volume of Trucks in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_TRUCK Volume of Trucks in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_COMM Volume of Other Commercial vehicles in one Person Miles Traveled direction BA_COMM Volume of Other Commercial vehicles in Person Miles Traveled opposite direction ABBUS Volume of buses in one direction Person Miles Traveled BABUS Volume of buses in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

Table 9: County Database

Field Name Description Function of the Field COUNTYNAME Name of the County Visualization & Statistics COUNTYID County Index Visualization & Statistics

Data Visualization of Features that constitute a Route

The data visualization over a route can be very useful in finding the policy implications for a specific route. This feature will also be useful in analyzing the performance of a particular route and compare it across various networks. The user is prompted to select the route over which the data visualization is to be performed.

The user can also perform this step for a selected set of county/counties through which the route passes. The user has to select the county/counties from a list. Data Fields used for visualization of features within a route are shown in Table 9 and Table 10.

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

Table 10: Database created from BPM Output used in Route-specific Analysis

Field Name Description Function of the Field LENGTH Link Length Vehicle Miles Traveled NAME1 Name of the street Visualization & Statistics COUNTY County Index Visualization & Statistics TIMEAB Freeflow travel time in one direction Delay TIMEBA Freeflow travel time in opposite direction Delay TOT_FLOW Total volume in both directions Vehicle Miles Traveled, Delay AB_TIME Congested travel time in one direction Delay BA_TIME Congested travel time in opposite direction Delay AB_VOC Volume-Capacity ratio in one direction Visualization & Volume/Capacity BA_VOC Volume-Capacity ratio in opposite direction Visualization & Volume/Capacity AB_SPEED Congested Speed in one direction Visualization & Avg. Speed BA_SPEED Congested Speed in opposite direction Visualization & Avg. Speed AB_SOV Volume of SOV in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_SOV Volume of SOV in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_HOV_TX Volume of HOV + Taxi in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_HOV_TX Volume of HOV + Taxi in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_HOV3 Volume of HOV3+ in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_HOV3 Volume of HOV3+ in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_EXT Volume of externals in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_EXT Volume of externals in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_TRUCK Volume of Trucks in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_TRUCK Volume of Trucks in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_COMM Volume of Other Commercial vehicles in one Person Miles Traveled direction BA_COMM Volume of Other Commercial vehicles in Person Miles Traveled opposite direction ABBUS Volume of buses in one direction Person Miles Traveled BABUS Volume of buses in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

Data Visualization of Features that constitute a Functional Class

Data visualization of links, which are classified under a functional class (FCLASS), can be performed for the following functional classes: 1. Interstate/Freeway 2. Arterial 3. Local/Collector Streets This analysis can be performed for links over all counties or within a set of counties. The user has to select the county/counties for which this analysis has to be performed. Data Fields used for visualization of features within a route are shown in Table 9 and Table 11.

Table 11: Database created from BPM Output used in Feature Class Analysis

Field Name Description Function of the Field LENGTH Link Length Vehicle Miles Traveled FCLASS Feature Class of the link Visualization & Statistics TIMEAB Freeflow travel time in one direction Delay TIMEBA Freeflow travel time in opposite direction Delay TOT_FLOW Total volume in both directions Vehicle Miles Traveled, Delay AB_TIME Congested travel time in one direction Delay BA_TIME Congested travel time in opposite direction Delay AB_VOC Volume-Capacity ratio in one direction Visualization & Volume/Capacity BA_VOC Volume-Capacity ratio in opposite direction Visualization & Volume/Capacity AB_SPEED Congested Speed in one direction Visualization & Avg. Speed BA_SPEED Congested Speed in opposite direction Visualization & Avg. Speed AB_SOV Volume of SOV in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_SOV Volume of SOV in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_HOV_TX Volume of HOV + Taxi in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_HOV_TX Volume of HOV + Taxi in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_HOV3 Volume of HOV3+ in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_HOV3 Volume of HOV3+ in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_EXT Volume of externals in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_EXT Volume of externals in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled AB_TRUCK Volume of Trucks in one direction Person Miles Traveled BA_TRUCK Volume of Trucks in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

AB_COMM Volume of Other Commercial vehicles in one Person Miles Traveled direction BA_COMM Volume of Other Commercial vehicles in Person Miles Traveled opposite direction ABBUS Volume of buses in one direction Person Miles Traveled BABUS Volume of buses in opposite direction Person Miles Traveled

The output at the end of the “Data Visualization” process using any of the above stated options is shown in Table 12.

Table 12: Output of the Data Visualization Process

Field Name Description Unit VMT Total Vehicle Miles Traveled Vehicle-miles Avg. Speed Average of Congested Speed over the section Miles/hr. V/C Average Volume-to-Capacity Ratio - PMT Total Person Miles Traveled Person-miles VHD Total Vehicle Hours of Delay Hours Avg. Delay Average Delay per vehicle Minutes/vehicle

Origin Destination-based Trip Analysis

The number of trips between various origin and destination zones is one of the necessary inputs to the traffic assignment step in the transportation planning process. The level of demand between various zones will be different based on the implementation of specific policies or simply due to yearly variations. These changes have to be juxtaposed on a network-level in order to find the changes in the network distribution of demand for various scenarios.

For the analysis of origin-destination trips between various zones, the OD trip matrix for the complete NYMTC region is used as an input. This matrix is also the input to the BPM. Using the ID of the zones the number of OD trips is obtained from the trip matrix. It is to be noted that this matrix is of the order of 4000 x 4000. So an external program prepared in C programming language is used to faster execution. The options provided for OD analysis are: 1. Time

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

a. Year for which the OD analysis has to be performed b. Time of the day (AM, PM, Midday, Night) 2. Mode of travel a. SOV, HOV2 & Taxi, HOV3+, Externals, Trucks, Other Commercials 3. Feature Selection a. Manually selected ODs b. ODs located within a county c. Inter-county trips

Each of the above must be selected by the user from the appropriate user interface.

The OD demand can be found out for the selected year, time and mode of travel can be displayed for manually selected OD pair(s). In a county-level analysis, the number of trips between origins and destination located within a county are shown. On a network- level analysis, the number of trips between origins and destinations located in different counties are displayed.

The databases in use for the OD trip analysis are shown in Table 9 and Table 13.

Table 13: OD Database

Field Name Description Origin ID of the Origin Zone Destination ID of the Destination Zone Demand for SOV Demand for Single-Occupancy Vehicle between O-D pair Demand for HOV2 Demand for High Occupancy Vehicle (with & Taxi occupancy = 2) and Taxi between O-D pair Demand for Demand for High Occupancy Vehicle (with HOV3+ occupancy more than 2) between O-D pair Demand for Demand for Vehicles from or to an external zone Externals Demand for Trucks Demand for Trucks between O-D pair Demand for Other Demand for Commercial Vans between O-D pair Commercials

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

The output of this process is displayed in a table and demand values for any two successively selected OD pairs can be compared in a smaller table. The output of this process can be exported into MS Excel for further calculations.

Analysis of Travel Times, Costs and Travel paths

Changes in trip distribution (either due to natural growth or due to implementation of various policies) result in variations in the travel times and/or travel paths. Forecasting these variations is the function of models such as the Best Practice Model. Monitoring these variations is essential in the context of transportation planning. ASSISTME can monitor these changes in travel times and paths in that it is can be used as a quick analysis tool. This module in ASSISTME does not perform the traffic assignment process but estimates the shortest path(s) and the corresponding travel time between the selected zones. It is to be noted that these paths are fairly accurate and close to the actual paths between the zones. (5) Therefore the output of BPM acts as an input for further analysis of the forecasting performed in the transportation planning process. k-Shortest Path Algorithm The methodology used to find the shortest paths in this study is based on the algorithm proposed by Ozbay et al. (2005). (5) The algorithm used to find k-shortest paths from an origin to a particular destination in a directed acyclic transportation network (i.e., links on the transportation are all directed, and no link cannot be used more than once in the shortest path) is mainly based on iterative application of modified version of Dijkstra’s algorithm. The basic idea in Dijkstra’s algorithm is to find the shortest path from one origin to all destinations. However, in our case, the main focus is to find O-D specific shortest paths. Thus, to reduce the complexity of the algorithm, Dijkstra’s approach is modified such that it terminates as soon as a path from the selected origin to the specified destination is found. As soon as the shortest path between the particular O-D pair is found, the network is modified by randomly deleting two links from the shortest path while keeping the network connected. The modified Dijkstra’s algorithm is then reapplied to the modified network to find the next candidate path. The iteration continues until a user-defined number of paths have been found, or no more paths that satisfy the required constraints can be found.

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

“The main advantage of the proposed method is that it finds the constrained shortest paths directly, instead of selecting the paths from a large set of overall paths. In addition, it allows for defining a path choice set on the basis of objective constraints such as limitation of travel time, minimum required disjoint links, and limitation on total number of links. The main idea of the multiple-path approach is to find the set of a predefined number of feasible paths that are attractive to the travelers between the selected O-D pair.” (5)

From the perspective of the whole transportation system, the transportation process results in wide-ranging effects on the complete system. These effects can be represented as “costs” incurred by various entities of the system. ASSISTME can also be used to estimate some of these transportation costs, namely: 1. Vehicle Operating Cost 2. Congestion Cost 3. Accident Cost 4. Roadway Maintenance Cost 5. Air Pollution Cost 6. Noise Cost

The estimation procedure of these costs is based on a research study previously conducted by the team at Rutgers. (5) In a future version of ASSISTME, these cost functions should be re-calibrated using NYMTC specific data to improve their prediction accuracy.

Travel times, costs and travel paths are analyzed using the output of the BPM. Since the output contains travel times on each link, the possible paths between the chosen set of ODs can be calculated from the shortest path algorithm. This feature in ASSISTME can be used to find three possible paths, the corresponding travel time, and travel costs for the selected set of ODs. Various OD selection options provided under this functionality are: 1. Manually selected ODs 2. ODs located within a county

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

3. Inter-county trips 4. Network-wide OD selection

The databases in use for the OD trip analysis are shown in Table 9 and Table 14.

Table 14: Database created from BPM Output used in Analysis of Travel Time, Travel Costs, and Paths

Field Name Description ID Link ID LENGTH Link Length COUNTY County Index FCLASS Feature Class of the roadway LANESAB Lanes in one direction LANESBA Lanes in opposite direction CAPACITYAB Capacity in one direction CAPACITYBA Capacity in opposite direction TIMEAB Freeflow travel time in one direction TIMEBA Freeflow travel time in opposite direction FROMNODE Node ID of starting node TONODE Node ID of ending node AB_TIME Congested travel time in one direction BA_TIME Congested travel time in opposite direction AB_SPEED Congested Speed in one direction BA_SPEED Congested Speed in opposite direction

The calculation of travel times, costs, and travel paths can be performed for manually selected OD zones. This is facilitated by the built-in “Select Features” tool. The OD zones selection can be performed for zones located within a county by selecting the county from a drop-down list. The same process can be performed for trips between origin and destination zones located within different counties or on a network-wide level.

In each of the last three cases, since the number of possible origin and destination pairs is very huge, it is possible – through a time-consuming process – to perform the calculation for all the pairs. Hence, the user is prompted to enter a sample size for the number of OD pairs for which the analysis is intended to be performed. The OD pairs are randomly chosen from the complete set of possible OD pairs.

Subtask 3E. Development of the Visualization/Analysis Tool

In addition to the three functionalities described above, the output of visualization and analysis can be saved and stored in the form of Microsoft Excel worksheets. The set of operations performed each time can be stored in a session and the user can selectively save the output from those operations that are deemed as required.

Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation

SUBTASK 3F. MONITOR AND ASSESS IMPLEMENTATION

In this final subtask, major problems faced during the implementation of the developed plan are documented

The list of meetings and correspondence with the NYMTC staff in chronological order is shown below:

April 25, 2006 A Kick-off meeting was held with the project participants and the research team. The details of this meeting include determining the objectives and the overall structure of the software tools which are summarized in the beginning of this task report.

October 23, 2006 A work plan was prepared and submitted by the research team to NMYTC. This work plan constituted the basis of the work performed in this task.

Following this step, research team went ahead started the implementation of the prototype ASSISTME tool. Below, the timeline of the implementation efforts of the research team are listed.

December 17, 2007 Preliminary version of ASSISTME, ASSISTME v1.0, was installed on two computers at NYMTC office using the licenses available with Rutgers. It was suggested that NYMTC can obtain their own license of ArcGIS Engine runtime software installation without any additional cost if they have a license for ArcGIS Desktop.

January 28, 2008 Following a telephone conversation with Mr. Gerald Jonassen few issues were found with ASSISTME v1.0 when used with NYMTC’s ArcGIS Desktop license. Mr. Gerald Jonassen provided the Rutgers team with screenshots of error messages.

Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation

January 30, 2008 Various issues regarding obtaining the ESRI ArcGIS Engine runtime software and license were explained to Mr. Gerald Jonassen and Mr. Mohammad Rashid. They were informed of the requisite software tools and the procedure of obtaining them. An ArcGIS Engine runtime software installation can be obtained without any additional cost if the license for ArcGIS Desktop is available.

Mr. Gerald Jonassen and Mr. Mohammad Rashid were in contact with the Albany Office of NYMTC to obtain the ArcGIS Engine runtime software installation and license.

June 26, 2008 ASSISTME v2.0 was installed on six computers at NYMTC. A presentation of the functionalities and capabilities of ASSISTME was given to the NYMTC staff. A list of additional features to be incorporated in ASSISTME was given by the NYMTC staff to the Rutgers group (please see Table 15). The necessary DVDs and documentation was mailed to Mr. Mohammad Rashid in the subsequent week.

Table 15: Additional Features requested by NYMTC Additional Features requested by NYMTC 1. County-to-county trip table 2. Average Trip lengths 3. Assigned flow for each time period 4. Sub-county trip tables 5. Shortest path between zones 6. Travel times to and from zones 7. GIS representation of highway network attributes 8. Average Congested Speed 9. VMT 10. Person Miles 11. Level of service 12. Vehicle hours of delay 13. Select-link analysis by ID 14. Centerline miles 15. Total line miles 16. VMT growth rate 17. Mode share by any combination of travel purpose 18. Demographic data 19. Household Auto Journey (HAJ) outputs

Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation

20. OD journeys by travel purpose 21. Transit on board loadings 22. Transit trips by modes, individual routes 23. GIS representation of zonal attributes, transit routes

July 2, 2008 Updated list of additions/changes was prepared and sent by email to Mr. Mohammad Rashid. Following is the list: • Average congested speed by country by three functional class categories (5) • VMT (NYC, each county & entire region) by three functional class categories (6) • Person miles of travel by highway (NYC, each county & entire region) (7) • Level of service by county for three functional categories (8) • Vehicle hour of travel by county (17) • Vehicle hours of delay by county (18) • Customized unit cost parameters for cost estimation as suggested by the attendees in the meeting.

August 8, 2008 Issues with ASSISTME and changes need to be made for certain functionalities in ASSISTME was listed and sent by email to the Rutgers group by Mr. Mohammad Rashid. The following is the list of all the additions/changes requested after the preliminary use of ASSISTME (this list will be called NYMTC list for further reference):

1. Additions/changes in Documentation a. Based on the contract, we are still waiting on the Subtask 3a (technical memorandum), Subtask 3b (unified database) and Subtask 3d (final report). b. Update user documentation to reflect screen shot of new adjustments. For example, when clicking link info “selection method” is not active as shown in figure 7 from user documentation.

Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation

c. Documentation should be more detailed and clear on procedure to create new network shape files. For example, if we need to visualize information for 2035. d. Page 5 “Creation of New Network Shape Files”, “loaded networks” is not a familiar term, please specify the directory and name for the files being used. e. The input for demand analysis is not described clear enough, please specify the directory and name for the files being used, and what format is required for this application.

2. General Additions/changes a. We need to be able to open the attribute table, and when specific links are selected in the maps, they should be highlighted in the table as well. b. We need some regular symbology function to develop or modify the thematic maps. c. In “Current Map Viewer”, would it be possible to have a “both” option, so operations done on one map would be automatically performed to another map as well, such as select links, etc. d. Hide centroids until the map is being zoomed in to a certain degree, so the points wouldn’t be all over the screen. e. Show Street names when it is zoomed in to a certain degree, or give the user the option to display the street names. f. Clicking Main>Exit, creates an unhandled exception programming error. (Screen Shot- Figure 1 ) g. Clicking X (Close button) after loading a network does not terminate application processes from Windows XP. It is still viewable in the task manager Processes section as AssistMe.exe

3. Additions/changes in Data Visualization a. Link Info i. display information in table format instead of map tip

Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation

ii. display more information such as functional class, capacity, volume, etc iii. display speed, V/C, etc, to the hundredth decimal place iv. display information for multiple links instead of just one link b. Selection Method i. in Select Features toolbar, would it be possible to give more selection method, such as a round selection window instead of square, or define air buffer from a certain point by radius. ii. Select County shows data for all NYMTC region. iii. Select Route shows data for all NYMTC region. c. Speed Visualization and V/C visualization, use All Value as default instead of a blank field. d. When the selection is done, and the Calculate button is hit, we need to automatically zoom in to the selected area and highlight the selection set. e. Clear Visualization should also clear the “data summary”. f. When using Data visualization>Speed Visualization>Select Link from Map – the network wide properties are still active. g. Pg. 24 – when using manual selection to calculate speed visualization for Speed:[45-60], it gives you the calculated visualization for all speeds of the selected region. h. Add “Avg Delay” to the Data Summary. i. We need also “flow visualization” other than Speed and V/C.

4. Additions/changes in Demand a. Change “Demand” tab to “OD Trips” b. When multiple years are checked, program crashes, gives Unhandled Exception Error (Screen Shot-Figure 2 ) c. When only “SOV” is checked, program crashes, gives Unhandled Exception Error (Screen Shot-Figure 3 ) d. Export to Excel gives Unhandled Exception Error (Screen Shot- Figure 4 ) e. Manual Selection, only one TAZ is highlighted

Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation

f. The OD pairs need to better highlighted when click on the margin of the output table, because the whole county is highlighted the same way, maybe change it to another color. g. We need to calculate total from the output table, such as the total trips originated from or headed to zone 1. h. Demand analysis would need the TAZ layer, and showing the TAZ ID i. We need to be able to maximize the window size of the output table, and put the “close” button to the upper-right corner of the table

5. Additions/changes in Analysis a. Manual Selection i. After defining a “Destination” Point, the origin point clears away from the visualization. It should stay to avoid confusion. ii. Need option to clear visualization if you want to do different origin/destination points b. Network Wide i. Path_MC.exe problem when clicking “Run Analysis” (Screen Shot- Figure 5 ) c. Sample Size, what does it mean, what’s the purpose for this? d. How was Op. Cost, CG. Cost, Ac. Cost, Ap. Cost, Ns. Cost, and Mn. Cost Calculated? What are they?

6. Project > Project History >Create Report a. Unhandled Exception occurs in application after clicking “Create Report” i. “Could not load file or assembly “Microsoft.Interop.Excel” (Screen Shot- Figure 6 ) b. We need the option to save or open a previous project.

October 20, 2008 All the issues specified above are addressed and the latest version of ASSISTME was uploaded at a Rutgers ftp site. The following files were uploaded:

Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation

1. Updated ASSISTME program 2. Updated ASSISTME user manual 3. Installation instructions for updating the previous version of ASSISTME and installation of a new version of ASSISTME Table 16 shows the list of all the features available in ASSISTME, additions/changes made and features that are not relevant to ASSISTME.

Table 16: ASSISTME Updates Features added to Details Listed Feature Comments ASSISTME v1.1 # Average Congested Speed By county, 8 from Table region, 15 functional class, freeway VMT “ 9 from Table 15 Person Miles “ 10 from Table 15 Level of service “ 11 from Table 15 Vehicle hours of delay “ 12 from Table Average Delay to data 15 summary Attribute table for identified Using the 2 a from link Identify Tool NYMTC list provided by ArcGIS Link Info as table using 3 a (i,ii,iii,iv) identify tool from NYMTC list More info about the links All attributes 3 a (i,ii,iii,iv) from the from NYMTC attribute table list are shown Information for multiple 3 a (i,ii,iii,iv) links from NYMTC list Hide Centroids until a 2 d (i,ii,iii,iv) certain zoom extent from NYMTC list Showing street names based 2 e from on zoom extent NYMTC list Issues/bugs with 2 g, 3 b, 3 c, 3 ASSISTME v1.0 e, 3 f, 3 g, 3 h,

Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation

4 a, 6 a from NYMTC list Revision of the User Manual 2 f, 4 b, 4 c, 4 d, 5 b, 5 c, 5 d from NYMTC list

Features available in Details Comments ASSISTME v1.0 County-to-county trip table 1 from Table 15 Average Trip lengths Trip lengths, 2 from Table travel times 15 between zones are shown in the shortest- path tool Assigned flow for each time 3 from Table period 15 Sub-county trip tables 4 from Table 15 Shortest path between zones 5 from Table 15 Travel times to and from Travel times 6 from Table zones between zones 15 are calculated and shown in the shortest- path tool GIS representation of 7 from Table highway network attributes 15 Transfer of selection Can be 2 c from between maps performed NYMTC list using the “Selection Transfer” button

Features not relevant/not Listed Feature # Comments implemented to ASSISTME Select-link analysis by ID 13 from Table 15 Since the link IDs range from 1-190,000 this feature will be lot more tedious to use Centerline miles 14 from Table 15

Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation

Total line miles 15 from Table 15 VMT growth rate 16 from Table 15 Mode share by any 17 from Table 15 combination of travel purpose Demographic data 18 from Table 15 HAJ outputs 19 from Table 15 OD journeys by travel 20 from Table 15 purpose Transit on board loadings 21 from Table 15 Transit trips by modes, 22 from Table 15 individual routes GIS representation of zonal 23 from Table 15 attributes, transit routes Symbology function to 2 b from NYMTC list edit/modify thematic maps Automatic zoom to features 3 d from NYMTC list when feature is selected from list Flow visualization 3 i from NYMTC list Calculations in OD trip Table can be exported to output table MS Excel and various calculations can be performed. Demand Analysis using 4 h from NYMTC list TAZ layer is not available. TAZ IDs Each centriod in the nodes layer represents the centriod of the TAZ Save or open previous 6 b from NYMTC list The projects are one-time projects sessions into which the results are saved as excel sheets. Reloading the session involves performing the analyses from the previous session automatically, which involves lot more effort.

October 22, 2008 Issues regarding a new installation of ASSISTME and updating an already existing installation of ASSISTME are clarified with Mr. Gerald Jonassen.

November 14, 2008

Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation

Meeting and Demonstration of ASSISTME at NYMTC New York City office.

January 7, 2009 Some issues observed by Mr. Mohammad Rashid communicated via email are shown in Table 17.

January 21 2009 and February 10, 2009 Comments and suggestions made by Rutgers team to the issues suggested by Mr. Mohammad Rashid are listed in Table 17.

Table 17 Issues Observed by NYMTC Staff and Comments, Suggestions and Fixes by Rutgers Team Issue reported by Comment Resolution/Suggestion Mr.Rashid 1. when we Export The list of OD is huge and Select a smaller set of OD’s report for demand loading them into Excel or please wait till the loading analysis in Excel 2007, takes a long time. The report is completed. we cannot close the can be closed only after all Report for demand the rows have been loaded. analysis table. Every time compute frozen and need to restart. 2. when we try to do Destination was not selected When the destination is path Analysis, error properly selected please make sure message says could not • the destination ID (in case find a part of path of a single destination) or • a “+” in case of multiple destinations is shown in the text box adjacent to the “Define Destination” button. 3. From complete The new shape files have to The new shape files have to shapes folder we cannot be copied into be copied into open 2002AM network, “C:\AssistMe\Shapes” from “C:\AssistMe\Shapes” from Microsoft .NET “C:\AssistMe\Complete “C:\AssistMe\Complete framework error we got. Shapes” Shapes” 4. Manual selection Multiple OD’s got selected: Bug fixed. Please download of shortest path analysis, Bug the latest version we can select O-D in the map but we cannot define destination ID in the tab for that region

Subtask 3F. Monitor and Assess Implementation

Run Analysis Tab is inactive. But previous version of ASSIST-ME we don't have that problem

March 17, 2009 Conference Call with NYMTC Staff (Dr. Ali Mosheni and Mr. Mohammad Rashid)

March 24, 2009 Final Report has been updated by addressing ASSISTME as a software application and not as a prototype. Also, ASSISTME is made compatible with ArcGIS 9.3 and will be made available to NYMTC staff soon.

References

REFERENCES

1. Schaller Consulting, “Traffic Information in NYC: What We Know, What We Need to Know”, Prepared for Transportation Alternatives, January 2007 2. Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc., “Transportation Models and Data Initiative General Final Report: New York Best Practice Model (NYBPM)”, Prepared for NYMTC, 2005. 3. Longley, P., Goodchild, M.F., Maguire, D.J., and Rhind, D.W., "Geographic Information Systems and Science", John Wiley and Sons, 2005 4. http://esri.com/company/about/facts.html , accessed 10/27/2008. 5. Ozbay, K., Yanmaz-Tuzel, O., Bartin, B., Mudigonda, S., and Berechman, J., “Cost of Transporting People in New Jersey – Phase 2”, Technical Report No. FHWA/NJ-2007-003, May 2007 6. Rutgers University Intelligent Transportation Systems Laboratory, “Interactive Lane Closure Application for Work-Zone Planning – User Manual”, Prepared for New Jersey Turnpike Authority. 7. SICS Consultants, LLC, "Innovations in Internet GIS", www.ecosystemvalue.org/PRESENTATIONS/Innovations%20in%20Internet%20 GIS-01272006.ppt 8. Ozbay, K., Doshi, H., Mudigonda, S., Boile, M., Bongiovanni, T., and Shah, J., “Evaluation of Adaptive Control Strategies for NJ Highways”, Technical Report, New Jersey Department of Transportation, FHWA 2000-010 9. Ozbay, K., Noyan, N. and Mudigonda, S., “A GIS-based Tool for Detour Plans for Traffic Incident Management Operations”, presented at 13th Mid Atlantic URISA Regional GIS Conference, March 16, 2006 10. Caliper Corporation, “TransCAD Version 4.5 User’s Guide”, 2005. 11. http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?siteID=123112&id=2995619 accessed 12. Boile, M., and Ozbay, K., “The Future of Transportation Modeling”, Technical Report No. FHWA-NJ-2005-016, March 2005. 13. http://www.caliper.com/tcovu.htm , accessed 11/11/2008 14. http://esri.com/software/arcgis/about/gis_for_me.html , accessed 11/11/2008

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

APPENDIX – ASSISTME USER’S MANUAL

Introduction

This manual intends to make the user familiar with the ASSIST-ME (Advanced Software for State-wide Integrated Sustainable Transportation System Monitoring and Evaluation) software. ASSIST-ME is a GIS-based application.

There are three major functionalities provided by ASSIST-ME:

Data Visualization Demand Visualization Shortest-Path Analysis

Data Visualization Features provided in the data visualization analysis: 1. Visualization of different speeds and volume-to-capacity (VOC) ratios levels on thematic maps. 2. Comparison of speed and VOC levels in the system between different networks 3. Visualization of speed and VOC over: a. A selected county b. A selected route c. A specific functional class 4. Summary of vehicle miles traveled (VMT), average speed and average VOC for: a. A selected county b. A selected freeway from the freeway list c. A selected freeway passing through a selected county/counties d. A selected functional class e. A manually selected link

Demand Visualization Features provided in the demand visualization analysis: 1. Visualization of demand based on: a. Manually selected origin-destination (O-D) pairs b. Between various O-Ds within a selected county c. Between all O-Ds within a selected origin and destination counties 2. Comparison of demand for various years and time period combinations

Shortest-path Analysis Features provided in the shortest path analysis are: 1. Generation of shortest-path sets between various combinations of O-D pairs such as: a. Manual selection of single or multiple O-Ds b. Random selection of O-Ds within a county c. Random selection of O-Ds between two counties d. Random selection of O-Ds within the complete network 59

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

2. Comparison of paths in the system between different networks

General 1. Concurrent display of multiple thematic maps useful for comparison of different loaded networks. 2. Creation of report based on various analyses performed and selectively chosen by the user 3. Ability to save individual outputs from each analysis

Software Requirements 1. Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 or higher 2. ArcGIS 9.2 Desktop 3. ArcGIS 9.2 Engine Runtime 4. ArcGIS 9.2 Desktop Service Packs 1-5 (can be downloaded from ESRI) 5. ArcGIS 9.2 Engine Service Packs 1 (can be downloaded from ESRI) 6. Microsoft Office 2007 Hardware Requirements 1. Computer with Pentium IV processor or higher 2. Microsoft Windows XP Professional Operating System

Network / Input file Requirements

Demo Network Shapes Files and Complete Network Shapes Files The users are provided with demo network shape files that can be used until they are familiar with the ASSIST-ME application. These files have been included in “C:\AssistMe\Demo Shapes” directory. The original i.e. complete network shape files are included in “C:\AssistMe\Complete Shapes” directory. The user must replace the shape files in the “C:\AssistMe\Shapes” directory depending on which networks they want to work with.

Important Note: The Demo shapes represent a portion of the complete NYMTC network. So, all the features might not work with these shapes files. Similarly, the Demo OD Files are OD Trip files only for 2002 AM period and 2002 Mid-day period. Selecting the other period when using the demo OD files will result in errors. In order to use all the OD files please use the Complete OD Trip files

Creation of New Network Shape Files All the network files that are used for analysis using this tool are based on the output of the Best Practice Model (BPM). This output, which consists of forecasted traffic flows, travel times, etc., is called a loaded network . The loaded network from the BPM includes all the necessary data except the capacity of the links. Capacity information has to be obtained from the base network, i.e. the input network for the BPM. Hence the base network and the loaded network have to be merged and the fields that occur for the second time have to be removed.

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

Once the user runs the BPM network for any new scenario and obtains the loaded network, ASSIST-ME can use the output of the BPM runs, i.e. the loaded network, and provide the user with various network related information as listed above.

In order to merge the loaded network and base network, the users should use the following procedure: 1. Open the base (unloaded) network in TransCAD a. Select File>Open. b. Change “Files of Type” to Geographic File (*.cdf; *.dbd) c. Go to C:\0_BPM1\2_Alts\(Scenario ID)\0_Input\1_HNet\AM d. Open the AM Period Highway Network, AM.dbd or AM_bus.dbd . 2. Also open the database table of the loaded network in TransCAD a. Reselect File>Open b. Change “Files of Type” to dBASE file (*.dbf) c. Go to C:\0_BPM1\2_Alts\2002D\1_Out\4_HNet d. Open the AM Period Highway Assignment Output, ASSN_AM.dbf or ASSN_AM_BUS.dbf 3. Merge the database table with the unloaded network a. Select Dataview > Join

b. In the “Joining from” section choose NetworkLinks for “Table” and ID for “Field” c. In the “to” section choose ASSN_AM or ASSN_AM_BUS for “Table” and ID for “Field”

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

d. Click OK 4. Export the merged network as an ESRI shape file a. Select Tools>Export

b. Choose All Features for “Export” and ESRI Shape for “To”

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

c. Click OK and choose a save location 5. Repeat for MD, PM, and NT period networks (as desired)

6. There are some fields that are the same in the database table of the loaded network as in the unloaded network. Since the loaded network is merged into the unloaded network, the fields corresponding to the loaded network are located to the right of the fields corresponding to the unloaded network in the merged network. Hence, the fields that are repeated in the fields corresponding to the loaded network should be removed. This can be performed by the following steps: a. Open ArcMap (ArcGIS Desktop) b. Right-click on the “Layers” option located on the left side of the ArcMap window and select “Add Data”

c. Select the shape file of the loaded network

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

d. Right-click on the shape file and click on “Open Attribute Table”

e. Right-click on the top of the field column that should be removed and select “Delete”

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

7. The list of all the fields is shown in Table 1. The sequence in which the fields occur should the same as shown. The width of the fields should also be the same as shown. The width can be adjusted by opening the dbf file in the exported shape file in Microsoft Excel. Right-click on each of the column and select “Column Width”. Enter the appropriate width from Table 18

Table 18: Field Names and Column Widths in the Network Shape File Field Name Column Width FID default SHAPE default ID 10 LENGTH 16 DIR 2 LID991111 10 NAME1 30 COUNTY 4 FCLASS 4 DESIGN 2 MEDIAN 3 ACCESS 5 SIGNAL 5 DRIVEWAY 5 TURN 5 RAMPTYPE 5 AUTOTOLL 10 TRUKTOLL 10 TRUCK 4 SPECIAL 5

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

TOT_LANE 3 LANESAB 5 LANESBA 5 PARK 5 RESTRICT 5 SPDMOD 5 CAPMOD 5 ZONE 5 AREATYPE 5 PLT 5 FREESPD 5 LANECAP 5 CAPACITYAB 6 CAPACITYBA 6 TIMEAB 15 TIMEBA 15 IMPEDAB 15 IMPEDBA 15 AUTOFIX 18 HOV2FIX 18 HOV3FIX 18 HOV4FIX 18 TAXIFIX 18 TRUCKFIX 18 COMMFIX 18 AB_BUS 12 BA_BUS 12 FROMNODE 10 TONODE 10 AB_FLOW 18 BA_FLOW 18 TOT_FLOW 18 AB_TIME 19 BA_TIME 19 MAX_TIME 19 AB_VOC 19 BA_VOC 19 AB_SPEED 19 BA_SPEED 19 AB_SOV 19 BA_SOV 19 AB_HOV_TX 19 BA_HOV_TX 19 AB_HOV3 19 BA_HOV3 19 AB_EXT 19 BA_EXT 19 AB_TRUCK 19

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

BA_TRUCK 19 AB_COMM 19 BA_COMM 19 ABBUS 18 BABUS 18

Creation of New OD Trip Files The input for the OD trip analysis is the network-wide origin-destination demand file. This can be obtained from BPM in the form of a text file for each time period. Note that the demand file obtained from the BPM should be in the form of a list with each row consisting of the following: 1. Origin 2. Destination 3. Demand for SOV 4. Demand for HOV2 & Taxi 5. Demand for HOV3+ 6. Demand for Externals 7. Demand for Trucks 8. Demand for Other Commercials

The procedure to extract the OD trip demand matrix from BPM is listed as follows.

Exporting BPM O-D Matrices in TransCAD (after a completed scenario run): 1. Start Transcad 2. Select File>Open. 3. Change “Files of Type” to matrix (*.mtx) 4. Go to C:\0_BPM1\2_Alts\(Scenario ID)\1_Out\3_PAP 5. Open the AM Period Highway Matrix, highway_am.mtx. 6. Select Matrix>Export

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

7. Under “Export to a Table with One Record for Each”, Select Cell, with a field for each matrix 8. Under “Matrices to Include”, Click Select All Button 9. Click OK 10. In the “Save As” window change “Files of Type” to Comma-delimited Text (*.txt; *.csv) 11. Select a name, for example 2002AM Demands.txt , and click Save (This may take 10-20 minutes. Do not be alarmed if Transcad shows progress greater than 100%, or if it is shown as “Not Responding”) 12. A second file of the same name with a .dcc extension is also created in the same directory. This file is not useful for ASSIST-ME and may be discarded, however is required for Transcad to properly read the files. 13. Repeat for MD, PM, and NT matrices (as desired)

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

Initialization and Preliminaries

The program can be started by opening the executable, “AssistMe.exe” located in “C:\AssistMe\Exe” directory. The start screen is shown in Figure 9.

Figure 9: Start Window In order to analyze a particular loaded network, for instance a loaded network from the BPM, the corresponding set of shape files are necessary. These files, which include a minimum of three files namely, .shp, .dbf and .shx files, are to be included in the directory, “C:\AssistMe\Shapes”. The format and data in the shape files required for the analysis is described in the Network / Input file Requirements section. As it can be noticed from Figure 9, the program window has two map viewing windows. The controls for Map-Viewer 1 are available on the toolbar located on the top , named Map Viewer-1 ( ). Similarly, the controls for Map Viewer-2 are located on a toolbar named Map Viewer-2 located beside Map Viewer-1 ( ). In order to add a network to Map Viewer-1, click on the “Add Network” button. Then select the appropriate .dbf file from the “Select Network” window as shown in Figure 10.

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Figure 10: Select Network After the network is loaded, both the network layer and the nodes layer are visible (as shown in Figure 11). In the nodes layer, it is to be noted that only the nodes which are origins and destinations (i.e. with value of the ID field less than 5000) are prominently visible.

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Figure 11: Program Window after Network Addition

Controls After the network has been added to either of the map viewers, there are a set of controls using which the views can be changed.

View Controls The view controls are used to adjust the viewing area of the program window. In order to see only Map Viewer-1 (for instance in the case where the analysis is being performed only on a single network, or for the want of more clear view of a single map), click on the “Map Views” label on the top-most toolbar and select “Only Map Viewer-1” button

( ). The view changes as shown in Figure 12

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Figure 12: Map Views Menu

By selecting the “Horizontal Views” button ( ), the default vertical views of the two Map Viewers are switched to horizontal views, with Map Viewer-1 on the top and Map Viewer-2 at the bottom, as shown in Figure 13. This view can be switched back to the vertical view by selecting the “Vertical Views” button.

Figure 13: Map View - Horizontal Views

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The panel on the left side of the program window consisting of all the analysis features can also be hidden to give a bigger view of the map viewers (as shown in Figure 14).

This can be performed by clicking on the arrow “<” button ( ) located on the space separating the analysis panel from the Map Viewers. The analysis panel can be shown back by clicking on the arrow “>” button on the left side.

Figure 14: Full Map View - Hidden Panel

Map Controls In order to navigate and operate on the map in the Map Viewer, there are various controls: 1. Select features ( ) – This control is use to select any node(s) or link(s) from the map 2. Clear Selected features( ) – This feature is use to clear any selected features from the map 3. Pan ( ) – This tool is use to pan or move the map around under the same magnification (zoom) 4. Zoom In ( ) – This control is used to increase the magnification of the map i.e. zoom into the map 5. Zoom Out ( ) – This control is used to decrease the magnification of the map i.e. zoom out of the map 6. Full Extent ( ) – This tool is used to change the magnification of the map such that all the features in the map are visible in the same viewing window

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7. Identify ( ) – This tool is used to get the information about all the attributes for the features in the map.

The map controls for each Map Viewer are located above the corresponding Map Viewer.

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Description of ASSIST-ME Functionalities

The major functionalities of ASSIST-ME are:

1. Visualization of data such as speed, vehicle miles traveled, volume-over-capacity (V/C) ratio 2. Analysis of OD Trips between various zones in the network 3. Analysis of travel times on a loaded network 4. Report Generation and selective exporting of analyses

The functionality of each of these modules are explained in detail below.

Data Visualization Data visualization is the first functionality provided by ASSIST-ME. This functionality can be used to present the traffic-related data for the network in the geographical context. The three features that are used in the data visualization are: 1. Link Info 2. Speed Visualization in conjunction with data summary 3. V/C Visualization in conjunction with data summary The data visualization can be performed by clicking the “Data Visualization” button

( ) from the panel on the left of the Map Viewer. Each of these features is described below.

Link Info The Link Info feature is used to display the link characteristics such as the name of the freeway/highway/street, the county in which the link is located, the speed on the link and the V/C on the link. This feature can be accessed by checking the “Link Info” checkbox ( from the Data Visualization Panel, shown in Figure 15) and the selecting the appropriate link using the “Select Features” tool ( ).

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Figure 15 Data Visualization Panel

The visualization output is similar to that shown in Figure 16. In addition to the information presented in the Link Info option, all the attributes of one or more links can be viewed using the identify tool ( ) present among the map controls.

The identify button is present just above the map for Map Viewer-1 and just below the map for Map Viewer-2. After selecting a map to be displayed in either Map Viewer-1 or Map Viewer-2, select the identify tool. Click on the link(s) for which the identify tool is intended to be used. The display when the identify tool is used is shown in Figure 17. List of the selected link(s) is displayed on the left side of the table. On the right side all the attributes are displayed for each link separately. The attributes of each selected link can be viewed by clicking on the corresponding link from the list on the left side.

The link selected from the list is highlighted in the map as shown in Figure 17.

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Figure 16: Link Info Output

Figure 17: Identify Tool Output

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Speed Visualization Speed Visualization feature is used to visually represent the spatial variation in speed in the loaded network. This can be performed by checking the “Speed Visualization” checkbox ( ) from the panel (shown in Figure 15). The visualization of speed can be done for specific category of speed range or for all the ranges. The ranges of speed that are included in the analysis are: 0-15 mph, 15-30 mph, 30-45 mph and 45- more mph. Each or all of these ranges can be selected from the drop-down menu

( ) beside the “Speed Visualization” checkbox. The speed visualization can be performed for four types of selection methods, namely:

Network-wide This option is the default option and can be chosen by selecting the “Network-wide” option button ( ). This option displays the selected speed range (as shown in Figure 18) or all speed ranges (as shown in Figure 19) visually for the complete network. The procedure for executing Data Visualization based on network-wide selection: a. Select a specific speed range from the Speed Visualization drop-down menu. “Speed: All Values” is the default option in the drop-down menu. b. Click on the “Calculate” button located below the Selection Method interface, after selecting a speed range, to view the visualization in the map.

Figure 18: Speed Visualization - Selected Speed Range

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Figure 19: Speed Visualization - All Speed Ranges

A summary of various statistics is generated as another output of the Data Visualization as shown in Figure 20. This summary is calculated based on the area selected and the selection method chosen from the “Selection Method” menu, in this case it presents a network-wide summary. Enter the average bus occupancy in the textbox . This value is used in the calculation of Person Miles Traveled (PMT). The default value assumed is 20 persons.

Figure 20: Summary of Statistics The summary of statistics includes the following: 1. Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) 2. Average Speed 3. Average Volume-to-Capacity (V/C) Ratio 4. Person Miles Traveled (PMT) 5. Vehicle Hours of Delay (VHD)

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6. Average Delay

Important Note : The average delay shown in the summary is averaged over all the links. However, in reality delay is a statistic related to the trip (from an origin to a destination) rather than over a set of links. Hence, the average delay shown might not accurately represent the actual average delay.

Clear Visualization The data visualization performed on each Map Viewer can be cleared by: 1. Select the Map Viewer in which the visualization has to be cleared 2. Click the clear visualization button ( ).

Manual selection of specific links The manual selection of links from the map option is used to present the speed visualization and data summary for a selected region from the map. This can be performed by selecting “Select Links from Map” option button ( ) located on the Data Visualization Panel. The selection of a specific region can be performed by using the “Select Features” tool ( ) from the Map Viewer as shown in Figure 21.

Figure 21: Manual Selection of Links

The procedure for executing Data Visualization based on manual selection:

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a. Select a specific speed range from the Speed Visualization drop-down menu. “Speed: All Values” is the default option in the drop-down menu. b. Select the appropriate region from the map using the “Select Features” tool ( ) c. Click on the “Calculate” button ( ) located below the Selection Method interface, after selecting a speed range, to view the visualization in the map. The statistics summary is shown in Figure 20 and the speed visualization for the selected set of links is shown in Figure 22. The summary is calculated for the area selected in the map. Enter the average bus occupancy in the textbox . This value is used in the calculation of Person Miles Traveled (PMT). The default value assumed is 20 persons.

Figure 22: Speed Visualization for Selected Links

Selection of links within a county The speed visualization can be performed for the links located within a county by selecting the “Select County” option button ( ) from the Data Visualization

Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual panel. The county can be selected from the drop-down list of counties

located beside the “Select County” option button ( ). The procedure for executing Data Visualization based on county-wide selection: a. Select a specific speed range from the Speed Visualization drop-down menu. “Speed: All Values” is the default option in the drop-down menu. b. Select the appropriate county from the drop-down list of counties. c. Click on the “Calculate” button ( ) located below the Selection Method interface, after selecting a speed range, to view the visualization in the map. The statistics summary is similar to that shown in Figure 20 and the speed visualization for the selected set of links is shown in Figure 23. The summary is calculated for the county selected from the drop-down menu. Enter the average bus occupancy in the textbox . This value is used in the calculation of Person Miles Traveled (PMT). The default value assumed is 20 persons.

Figure 23: Speed Visualization - County

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Selection of links that constitute a particular freeway The speed visualization can be performed for the links that constitute a freeway 9 by selecting the “Select Route” option button ( ) from the Data Visualization panel. The route can be selected from the drop-down list of freeways

located beside the “Select Route” option button ( ). The procedure for executing Data Visualization for the route-based selection: a. Select a specific speed range from the Speed Visualization drop-down menu. “Speed: All Values” is the default option in the drop-down menu. b. Select the route from the drop-down menu of routes c. Select the appropriate the county or counties through which the route

passes from the checklist box ( ) located in the Data Visualization Panel. d. Click on the “Calculate” button ( ) located below the Selection Method interface, after selecting a speed range, to view the visualization in the map. The statistics summary is similar to that shown in Figure 20 and the speed visualization for the selected set of links is shown in Figure 24. The summary is calculated for the route selected from the drop-down menu and the list of county or counties selected from the list box. Enter the average bus occupancy in the textbox . This value is used in the calculation of Person Miles Traveled (PMT). The default value assumed is 20 persons.

9 Note: The list of routes was prepared based on the FCLASS field in the loaded network. Those links with the value of FCLASS field or 1 (rural interstate), 11 (urban interstate) or 12 (urban freeway) have been chosen 83

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Figure 24: Speed Visualization - Selected Route

Selection of links that constitute a specific functional class (FCLASS) The speed visualization can be performed for the links that constitute a specified functional class (FCLASS) by selecting the “Select Functional Class” option button ( ) from the Data Visualization panel. The FCLASS can be selected from the drop-down list located beside the “Select Functional Class” option button ( ).

The procedure for executing Data Visualization for a specified FCLASS: a. Select a specific speed range from the Speed Visualization drop- down menu. “Speed: All Values” is the default option in the drop- down menu.

b. Select the FCLASS from the drop-down menu c. Select the appropriate the county or counties within which the links under the specified FCLASS are located from the checklist box

( ) located in the Data Visualization Panel. d. Click on the “Calculate” button ( ) located below the Selection Method interface, after selecting a speed range, to view the visualization in the map.

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The statistics summary is similar to that shown in Figure 20 and the speed visualization for the selected set of links is shown in Figure 25. The summary is calculated for the specified FCLASS and the list of county or counties selected from the list box. Enter the average bus occupancy in the textbox . This value is used in the calculation of Person Miles Traveled (PMT). The default value assumed is 20 persons.

Figure 25: Speed Visualization - Selected Functional Class

V/C Visualization Visualization of volume-to-capacity ratio (V/C) feature is used to visually represent the spatial variation in the level of congestion in the loaded network. This can be performed by checking the “V/C Visualization” checkbox ( ) from the panel (shown in Figure 15). The visualization of V/C can be done for specific category of V/C range or for all the ranges. The ranges of V/C that are included in the analysis are: 0-0.25(A), 0.25-0.4(B), 0.4-0.66(C), 0.66-0.8(D), 0.8-1.0(E) and 1.0-more(F). Each of these ranges represents the V/C for level-of-service A-F for freeways. Each or all of these ranges can

be selected from the drop-down menu ( ) beside the “V/C Visualization” checkbox. The V/C visualization can be performed for four types of selection methods, namely:

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Network-wide This option is the default option and can be chosen by selecting the “Network-wide” option button ( ). This option displays the selected V/C range (as shown in Figure 26) or all V/C ranges (as shown in Figure 27) visually for the complete network. The procedure for executing Data Visualization based on network-wide selection: a. Select a specific V/C range from the V/C Visualization drop-down menu. “V/C: All Values” is the default option in the drop-down menu. b. Click on the “Calculate” button located below the Selection Method interface, after selecting a V/C range, to view the visualization in the map.

Figure 26: V/C Visualization - Selected V/C Range

Figure 27: V/C Visualization - All V/C Ranges

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The statistics summary is similar to that shown in Figure 20. These statistics are a network-wide summary. Enter the average bus occupancy in the textbox . This value is used in the calculation of Person Miles Traveled (PMT). The default value assumed is 20 persons.

Manual selection of specific links The manual selection of links from the map option is used to present the V/C visualization and data summary for a selected region from the map. This can be performed by selecting “Select Links from Map” option button ( ) located on the Data Visualization Panel. The selection of a specific region can be performed by using the “Select Features” tool ( ) from the Map Viewer as shown in Figure 21. The procedure for executing Data Visualization based on manual selection: a. Select a specific V/C range from the V/C Visualization drop-down menu. “V/C: All Values” is the default option in the drop-down menu. b. Select the appropriate region from the map using the “Select Features” tool ( ) c. Click on the “Calculate” button ( ) located below the Selection Method interface, after selecting a V/C range, to view the visualization in the map. The statistics summary is shown in Figure 20 and the V/C visualization for the selected set of links is shown in Figure 28. The summary is calculated for the area selected in the map. Enter the average bus occupancy in the textbox . This value is used in the calculation of Person Miles Traveled (PMT). The default value assumed is 20 persons.

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Figure 28: V/C Visualization for Selected Links

Selection of links within a county The V/C visualization can be performed for the links located within a county by selecting the “Select County” option button ( ) from the Data Visualization panel.

The county can be selected from the drop-down list of counties located beside the “Select County” option button ( ).

The procedure for executing Data Visualization based on county-wide selection: a. Select a specific V/C range from the V/C Visualization drop-down menu. “V/C: All Values” is the default option in the drop-down menu. b. Select the appropriate county from the drop-down list of counties. c. Click on the “Calculate” button ( ) located below the Selection Method interface, after selecting a V/C range, to view the visualization in the map. The statistics summary is similar to that shown in Figure 20 and the V/C visualization for the selected set of links is shown in Figure 29. The summary is calculated for the county selected from the drop-down menu. Enter the average bus occupancy in the textbox . This value is used in the calculation of Person Miles Traveled (PMT). The default value assumed is 20 persons.

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Figure 29: V/C Visualization - County

Selection of links that constitute a particular freeway The V/C visualization can be performed for the links that constitute a freeway by selecting the “Select Route” option button ( ) from the Data Visualization panel. The route can be selected from the drop-down list of freeways

located beside the “Select Route” option button ( ).

The procedure for executing Data Visualization for the route-based selection: a. Select a specific V/C range from the V/C Visualization drop-down menu. “V/C: All Values” is the default option in the drop-down menu. b. Select the route from the drop-down menu of routes c. Select the appropriate the county or counties through which the route

passes from the checklist box ( ) located in the Data Visualization Panel.

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d. Click on the “Calculate” button ( ) located below the Selection Method interface, after selecting a V/C range, to view the visualization in the map. The statistics summary is similar to that shown in Figure 20 and the V/C visualization for the selected set of links is shown in Figure 30. The summary is calculated for the route selected from the drop-down menu and the list of county or counties selected from the list box. Enter the average bus occupancy in the textbox . This value is used in the calculation of Person Miles Traveled (PMT). The default value assumed is 20 persons.

Figure 30: V/C Visualization - Selected Route

Selection of links that constitute a specific functional class (FCLASS) The V/C visualization can be performed for the links that constitute a specified functional class (FCLASS) by selecting the “Select Functional Class” option button ( ) from the Data Visualization panel. The FCLASS can be selected from the drop-down list located beside the “Select Functional Class” option button ( ).

The procedure for executing Data Visualization for a specified FCLASS: a. Select a specific V/C range from the V/C Visualization drop-down menu. “V/C: All Values” is the default option in the drop-down menu.

b. Select the FCLASS from the drop-down menu c. Select the appropriate the county or counties within which the links under the specified FCLASS are located from the checklist box

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( ) located in the Data Visualization Panel. d. Click on the “Calculate” button ( ) located below the Selection Method interface, after selecting a V/C range, to view the visualization in the map. The statistics summary is similar to that shown in Figure 20 and the V/C visualization for the selected set of links is shown in Figure 31. The summary is calculated for the specified FCLASS and the list of county or counties selected from the list box. Enter the average bus occupancy in the textbox . This value is used in the calculation of Person Miles Traveled (PMT). The default value assumed is 20 persons.

Figure 31: V/C Visualization - Selected Functional Class

Comparison of Two Networks In order to perform and compare the data visualization for two different networks, the two networks in question should be added to Map Viewer-1 and Map Viewer-2. The selection of links can be performed by any of the methods described above, Manual Selection, Links within a County or Links that constitute a freeway, in Map Viewer-1. To perform the same analysis in Map Viewer-2, the following procedure should be followed: 1. For the case of manual selection of links from the map, click the “Selection Transfer” button ( ), located beside the “Select Links from Map” option button ( )

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2. The feature to be visualized can be selection from the Data Visualization Panel. Speed visualization can be performed by checking the “Speed Visualization” checkbox ( ) and V/C visualization can be performed by checking the “V/C Visualization” checkbox ( ) from the panel (shown in Figure 15). 3. The visualization and data summary can be obtained for the selected region in Map Viewer-1 by clicking on the “Calculate” button ( ). 4. Choose the “Current Map Viewer” to be Map Viewer-2

5. Selection method for links has to be chosen. In the case of Network-wide, Selection of links within a county or Selection of links that constitute a freeway or Selection of links that constitute a specific FCLASS, the selection can be performed as described in the previous sections. 6. The feature to be visualized can be selection from the Data Visualization Panel. Speed visualization can be performed by checking the “Speed Visualization” checkbox ( ) and V/C visualization can be performed by checking the “V/C Visualization” checkbox ( ) from the panel (shown in Figure 15). 7. The visualization and summary of statistics can be obtained for the selected region in Map Viewer-2 by clicking on the “Calculate” button ( ). A sample of the output of comparison of visualizations for different maps is shown in Figure 32.

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Figure 32: Comparison of Speed Visualization for Different Networks

O-D Trip Analysis O-D trip analysis is used to represent the demands between various zones distributed throughout the network. This feature can be activated by clicking on the “OD Trips” button ( ). Various options can be chosen from the O-D Trips Panel (shown in Figure 33)

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Figure 33: OD Trips Panel The years for which the demand files are available are shown on the list on the left side of the frame named “Time” and the time periods of the day on the right side. The demand time periods are divide the day into four parts: AM, Mid-day, PM, Mid-night. The vehicle types or modes are divided into six types: Single Occupancy Vehicle (SOV), High Occupancy Vehicle with two occupants (HOV2+ & Taxi), High Occupancy Vehicle with three or more occupants (HOV3+), vehicle originating from external zones (External), Trucks and Other Commercials. Any year(s), time period(s) or mode can be chosen from the Demand Analysis Panel. The demand analysis can be performed for: 1. Manually selected set of zones 2. Origins and destinations located within a county 3. Origins located in a county and destinations located in a different county Each of these analysis methods can be selected from the “Select Analysis Method” drop-

down list ( ). The origin and destination counties can be chosen from the origin and destination county drop-down list as shown in Figure 34.

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Figure 34: OD Trip Analysis – County Selection The demand between various zones can be viewed by clicking on the “Calculate” button ( ) located at the bottom of the Demand Analysis Panel. The output is shown in the form of a list with origin zone and destination zone and the demand of each mode is the corresponding column. The report can be saved or printed. A sample of the output screen is shown in Figure 35.

Figure 35: OD Trip Analysis – Output Report The OD pair can be viewed in the map by clicking on the margin of the output table as shown in Figure 36.

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Figure 36: Highlighting of Selected OD pair

Comparison of OD Trip Output from Different Time Periods / Years The list of all possible year/time period combinations chosen is shown in the drop-down list ( ) located at the top of the output report. The list of demands for the selected year/time period combination can be viewed by selecting the appropriate combination from the list. The output of the selected year/time period combination can be viewed in the same table. In order to compare the demands for a selected origin and destination: 1. Click on the margin of the row for the corresponding origin and destination. The selected row can be viewed in the comparison table.

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2. Select the year/time period combination to which the demand for the above selected OD-pair is to be compared

3. The demand for the selected year/time period combination for the selected OD- pair is shown as the top-most row (which is also selected) in the table with the new demand.

4. Click on the margin of the row to add the demand for the second year/time period combination to the comparison table.

5. The demands for the selected OD-pair for the two time periods can be seen in the comparison table. This process can be continued for how many ever year/time period combinations, the demand two latest year/time period combinations can be seen in the comparison table.

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Analysis The travel times on a loaded network can be found between various origins and destinations (OD). These origins and destinations can be chosen manually or randomly from a given set of origins and/or destinations with a county. This module can be accessed by clicking on the “Analysis” button ( ) on the panel on the left side of the program window. After the analysis option is chosen, the other options in the Analysis Panel (as shown in Figure 37) are activated.

Figure 37: Analysis Panel

From the panel, the OD selection has to be chosen from the drop-down list “Select

Analysis Method” . Each of the selection methods is described below.

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Manual Selection In this method the OD’s are selected using the “Select Features” button ( ) from the map. After selecting the origin or origins, click on the “Define Origin” button ( ) on the Analysis panel. Similarly after selecting the destination(s) click on the “Define Destination” button ( ) on the Analysis panel. In case there are multiple origins and/or destinations selected, the sample size of the set of shortest paths to be calculated is to be entered in the “Sample Size” box ( ). Enter the Value-of-Time (VOT) in the “VOT” box ( ). This value is used in the calculations for estimating the cost of congestion in the network. The default value is $7.6/hour. Click the

“Analysis” ( ) button on the “Analysis” tab to start the calculation of shortest paths. After the calculation is completed, the progress of which is shown by the progress bar on the map, the output is similar to that shown in Figure 38. By clicking on the “REPORT” button, the results of the shortest path(s) can be visualized. Each path can be selected and visualized in the map by clicking on the row of the report generated or by choosing the path from the drop-down list as shown in Figure 38.

Figure 38: Single Path Visualization

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In order to visualize all the paths at the same time, the “Show All Paths” check box is to be checked (as shown in Figure 39).

Figure 39: Multiple Path Visualization The output in the report generated consists of the travel time of the paths, the VMT on the path and various costs involved in traveling along the path. This output can be saved or printed.

Intra-County Selection If the travel time analysis needs to be performed for OD’s within a single county, then the “Intra-county Analysis” option should be chosen. After the “Intra-county Analysis” option is selected from the “Select Analysis Method” drop-down list, the origin county

drop-down list is activated. The origin county ( ) should be selected from the list and the sample size (as described in the previous section) is to be entered in the “Sample Size” text box ( ). Enter the Value-of- Time (VOT) in the “VOT” box ( ). This value is used in the calculations for estimating the cost of congestion in the network. The default value is $7.6/hour. The

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“Analysis” button ( ) is clicked to start the calculation of shortest paths between the OD’s in the county chosen.

County-to-County Selection If the travel time analysis needs to be performed for origins located within a county and destinations located within another county, then the “County-to-County Analysis” option should be chosen. After the “County-to-County Analysis” option is selected from the “Select Analysis Method” drop-down list, the origin county and the destination county

drop-down lists are activated. The origin county ( ) should be selected from the list, the destination county

( ) should be selected from the list and the sample size (as described in the previous section) is to be entered in the “Sample Size” text box ( ). Enter the Value-of-Time (VOT) in the “VOT” box ( ). This value is used in the calculations for estimating the cost of congestion in the network. The default value is $7.6/hour. The “Analysis” button ( ) is clicked to start the calculation of shortest paths between the OD’s in the county chosen.

Network-wide Selection To determine the general / overall behavior of the network, the “Network-wide Selection” option should be selected. If the “Network-wide Selection” option is selected the sample size textbox is activated. The sample size is entered in the “Sample Size” textbox ( ). Enter the Value-of-Time (VOT) in the “VOT” box ( ). This value is used in the calculations for estimating the cost of congestion in the network. The default value is $7.6/hour. The “Analysis” button should be clicked

( ) to start the calculation of shortest paths between the OD’s in the network.

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In order to visualize the path(s) using the Intra-county, County-to-County or Network- wide selection, the “Report” button located in the right-top portion of the Map Viewer should be clicked. A table showing various parameters of each path is displayed. To visualize “Path 1”, the row corresponding to Path 1 should be selected as shown in Figure 40 by clicking on the column to the left of Path 1. In the report displayed, the following is the list of output shown for each path: 1. Volume 2. Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) 3. Travel Time (T. Time) 4. Total Operating Cost (OP. COST) 5. Total Congestion Cost (CG. COST) 6. Total Accident Cost (AC. COST) 7. Total Air Pollution Cost (AP. COST) 8. Total Noise Cost (NS. COST) 9. Total Maintenance Cost (MN. COST)

Figure 40: Visualization of Path from Report There are two types of costs calculated, namely, Total Costs and Average Costs for each set of paths. The cost type can be chosen from the “Select Cost Type” drop down list

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( ). The Total Cost and Average Cost for all the cost categories specified above are shown respectively in the table. This report can be saved to an Excel worksheet by clicking on “Export to Excel” button ( ) located on the toolbar on the top of the report.

Comparison of Two Networks In order to perform and compare the shortest-path analysis for two different networks, the two networks in question should be added to Map Viewer-1 and Map Viewer-2. The OD’s should be selected in Map Viewer-1 by using any of the four methods stated above.

The “Run Analysis” button ( ) is to be clicked to start the calculation of shortest-paths. To perform the same analysis in Map Viewer-2, the following procedure should be followed: 1. Choose the “Current Map Viewer” to be Map Viewer-2

2. Choose Analysis Method from the drop-down list “Select Analysis Method”

on the Map Viewer-2 toolbar at the bottom of the program window. 3. OD’s selected using manual selection can be transferred from Map Viewer-1 by double-clicking in the origin textbox . 4. OD’s selected by other methods i.e. Intra-county, County-to-County or Network- wide can be performed as described in the previous sections. An example of output screen can be seen in Figure 41.

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Figure 41: Comparison of Shortest-paths from Two Different Networks

Report Generation A report consisting of various analyses performed using ASSIST-ME software tool can be stored into a report in the form of a Microsoft Excel Worksheet. The list of analyses performed that the user wants to include in the report can be selectively chosen. Creation of a report begins by creating a project for the set of analyses. This step has to be performed before the analysis process begins. On the top-most tool bar in the program

window, the “Main” button ( ) should be clicked. The “Create Project” button should be clicked. The screen shifts to the “Project” tab where the session can be given a name as shown in Figure 42.

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Figure 42: Create Project Window The name of the project can be entered in the textbox named “PROJECT NAME”

( ). The necessary analyses using the procedures described in the previous sections can be performed. Various analyses performed are displayed in the “Project History” panel in the PROJECT tab as shown in Figure 43.

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Appendix – ASSISTME User’s Manual

Figure 43: Project History The necessary analyses to be saved should be checked. The “Create Report” button ( ) should be clicked in order to export the report to a Microsoft Excel Worksheet. This sheet can be saved wherever the user finds necessary. In order to reset or clear the set of analyses to be included in the report, the “Reset Project” button ( ) should be clicked.

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