A mobile applications developer from Columbus, Ohio, has released a new product that allows traffic engineers to perform on-the-spot speed studies using their smartphone or tablet.
App developer John MacAdam, which trades under the ‘Apps by John’ brand, has introduced a new mobile app called Speed Study for Traffic Engineers. The app is available for devices using the Apple operating system (iOS) and allows traffic engineers to perform spot speed studies, which can then be used to determine the speed distribution of a traffic stream at a specific location. Using the device’s camera, the app quickly calculates 85% speed (85th percentile) and the 10mph pace (containing the largest number of observed vehicles). A results report can be exported and emailed as a PDF.
For simple data collection, the Speed Study for Traffic Engineers app allows the user to:
Choose the cardinal/non-cardinal direction (eg. northbound/southbound);
Collect speeds in 1mph increments for cars or trucks/busses;
Tap to increment a specific count;
Tap and hold to decrement a specific count.
Once sufficient speed data has been collected, the user can finish the study to see results. The report page calculates the following information:
85% speed in the cardinal direction;
85% speed in the non-cardinal direction;
Number of vehicles in each direction;
The 10mph pace in the cardinal direction;
The 10mph pace in the non-cardinal direction.
The speed study results can be exported to a PDF file, and the report can be emailed directly from the app. The new app is now available on the Apple App Store.
MacAdam has also developed the ‘ODOT Location Finder’ app, which allows the user to find their current location on the Ohio road network using the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) classification system: County, Route, and Section (county log point or state mile marker). The location information can be exported via email. The app was first implemented by ODOT District 11 as a web service, and developed into a mobile app by the ODOT Office of Traffic.
