ntelligent Transport Systems (ITS) is a rapidly developing area of information technology that is set to dramatically improve the efficiency of all modes of transportation.

ISO’s Technical Committee, TC 204, for Intelligent Transport Systems, met in Australia last month to discuss the development and implementation of global ITS.

According to Standards Australia’s Chief Executive, Ross Wraight: “Intelligent transport systems are set to profoundly change the way we travel in Australia and around the world. This international forum, hosted by Standards Australia, provided an opportunity for Australia to influence the development of these new life changing systems.“

ITS is a general term used in a vast number of applications for information systems used in the transportation sector. Some areas of ITS include:

·            vehicle location, information and positioning systems

·            E-Tags

·            public information signage

·            integrated transport management for commuters and for freight

The information obtained from ITS can be used in many applications such as:

·            scheduling of traffic lights, depending on the volume of approaching traffic

·            improving traffic flow using electronic tolling (E-Tags)

·            scheduling journeys using several forms of public transport

·            automatic driving vehicles using sensors on the road and in the car

·            public transport information and control systems for ticketing and journey planning

It is also possible that vehicles on roads in Australia and throughout the world will be capable of travelling to a destination, without the assistance of a human driver.

Intelligent Transport Systems need to be interoperable. An E-Tag in Sydney should work everywhere in Sydney and in every other city or anywhere in between. With International standardization, commuters should be able to use their E-tags on any freeway in the world.

ITS World Congress

Australia is playing an active role in the rapidly advancing ITS technology. In addition to Standards development, Australia is associated with the international ITS community through ITS Australia.

The week before the ISO meeting in Queensland, ITS Australia hosted the ITS World Congress in Sydney. This congress was attended by 2500 international delegates, including road and transport authorities, car manufacturers and representatives from many other parts of the ITS industry.

According to Doug Quail of Austroads and Chairman of Standards Australia’s ITS Committee: ”The realisation of the full potential of this technology is closer than we think. The Japanese have already demonstrated cars equipped with systems that make collisions almost impossible and they claim to start testing these systems on a specially designed freeway within two years.”

Standards Australia has already developed a number of Standards in this area including AS 4588—1999 Automatic Fee Collection – Interface specification for clearing between operators and AS 4721—2000 Personal Privacy Practices for the Electronic Tolling Industry.

Adam Fitzhenry is a Projects Manager in Standards Australia’s Communications, IT and E-commerce division.

Tom Godfrey and Adam Fitzhenry

CER