Turnpike's SunNav^sm Phase Two Project Provides New Joint Resources

At Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise (FTE), ITS is all about adding value to the customer’s travel experience in exchange for the paid toll. This added value comes in the form of safety, service, and convenience through quicker incident clearance and the developing traveler information systems. Over the last two years, FTE’s Traffic Operations Office has helped lead the FTE’s Five-Point Mainline Safety Program, which encompasses several key safety initiatives, including the use of technology to complement its aggressive Incident Management program.

By 2008, FTE plans to complete its fiber optic backbone along all 450 miles of the Turnpike System in order to provide more efficient communications for its ITS as well as for other business needs. The SunNav Phase Two Fiber Project, planned for final completion in April 2006, will extend the FTE’s fiber optic backbone along the Turnpike Mainline from Mile Post 75 in Boca Raton to Mile Post 155, just north of Ft. Pierce. This project also provides 85 pole-mounted closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras at approximate one-mile spacing for traffic monitoring, and integrates the FTE’s existing dynamic message signs (DMSs) and highway advisory radio (HAR) transmitters within these limits to fiber communications within the SunNav system.

As part of the Phase Two Fiber Project, the FTE’s Transportation Management Center (TMC) recently extended monitoring capabilities of its SunNav advanced traffic management systems and CCTV cameras to the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) Troop K Dispatch Center located in Lake Worth on the Turnpike. The network connection was initially made at the end of November 2005, by completing a fiber optic connection between the dispatch center and the FTE’s TMC in Pompano Beach.

A TMC workstation is set up running the SunNav TMC software, and two 40-inch high-definition LCD displays for video monitoring have been fixed above for CCTV viewing by all dispatch center personnel. Since 2003, the FTE TMC has provided staffing of FTE TMC team members in Lake Worth, working alongside FHP dispatchers in order to improve traffic incident communications between FHP and the TMC. In addition, these personnel assist in answering customer call box requests and *FHP phone calls. These FTE TMC dispatch operators will now be responsible for controlling the new workstation and displays.

FHP shift commanders at Troop K’s dispatch center, including the center’s Commander, Captain Ibrahim Egeli, now have access to the same information and video that is displayed on the video wall in the FTE’s TMC. This new addition to the FTE’s ITS infrastructure assists the FHP in detecting incidents and congestion, monitoring accident scenes, and providing real-time information for use in dispatching FHP, fire rescue/emergency management services, and wrecker services. It has been welcomed by dispatchers and supervisors as they have realized the value of the SunNav system. In fact, dispatch personnel were able to monitor a major motorcycle accident at Mile Post 16 on December 1, 2005, the very first day the system was operational, and have monitored many situations since.

The Phase Two project was scheduled to be completed in April, but the contractor worked with the FTE to complete the effort for this connection early to provide the connection before the busy 2005 holiday travel period. The Lake Worth Dispatch Center project was made possible with the coordination of many groups working together to provide a valuable tool in traffic management and public safety. It required assistance from many segments of the staff beyond the FTE’s ITS group, including FTE facilities staff, FHP communications staff, FHP management, and the Phase Two contractor, Miller Electric, who was flexible in contract work schedules in order to meet the FTE’s needs.

FHP Troop K and FTE Traffic Operations will continue to work together and expand upon these capabilities, as the dispatch center also serves as the location of one of the ITS master field switches and communications hubs for the SunNav system. A recently awarded construction project will provide an expansion to the FHP dispatch center, which includes a video wall and greater workstation/communications capabilities. Such advancements exemplify the leadership and cooperation that the FTE TMC and FHP collectively exhibit to further the FTE’s programs towards rapid incident clearance and overall customer safety.

As part of a second related FTE ITS initiative, a pilot project for providing traffic-related information to the FTE’s customers at the Pompano Beach Service Plaza has just been completed. On Friday, January 27, the ITS group, through the assistance of the maintenance contractor, installed three flat-screen LCD monitors inside the service plaza in a high-traffic location, between Starbucks and the gift shop. Two 24-inch monitors display live-streaming video images of nearby traffic conditions (typically from Milepost 73 near Glades Road and Milepost 56 near I-595). TMC Team Members control which roadway cameras are displayed on the monitors, thus guaranteeing that only appropriate images are being shown to the public. A third 42-inch monitor, in the center of the other two, displays information advising motorists of traffic incidents and promotes the FTE’s Web site as well as 511 travel information services. These three monitors serve as a pilot installation to assist the Traffic Operations office in making design decisions for an upcoming project that will install similar Public Information Displays (PIDs) in each of the remaining seven FTE service plazas. During possible emergency events, such as hurricane evacuations, these displays provide a visual and audio source to give urgent information to FTE customers in addition to other information tools such as DMS, HAR, and 511 services.

This article was provided by John Easterling, Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise. For information, please contact Mr. Easterling at (954) 934-1292 or email to John.Easterling@dot.state.fl.us.

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District 4 Severe Incident Response Vehicle Program

The Severe Incident Response Vehicle (SIRV) program in District 4 began in Broward County as a 1-year pilot project. The pilot project began in January 2005 and concluded in January 2006. An independent evaluation of the pilot project is currently underway and a final report will be distributed shortly which will include an analysis of the project’s effectiveness, cost benefits, and recommendations for a permanent program. Because of the success of the pilot project, and the demand for a continuation of services, the project has been extended for another year until permanent funding can be obtained.

The concept of the SIRV program was born out of a desire to provide an FDOT presence at all major incidents occurring on the freeways in District 4. Until the arrival of SIRV, the only time FDOT had a presence at these incidents was when FDOT Maintenance was called out—if there was damage to the infrastructure. This usually occurred late in the event after the initial clearance of the incident had already taken place. FDOT was not usually considered part of the Incident Command or even represented in the Unified Command System.

The SIRV Operators are now called out to all Level 2 and Level 3 incidents. These are incidents involving lane closures with durations of 30 minutes to 2 hours for Level 2, and 2 hours or more or full road closures for Level 3. The SIRV itself serves as an incident command post when fire rescue has left the scene. The SIRV carries six portable radios that are given to each responding agency’s commander, providing a common channel for communications among responders. The SIRV Operator facilitates the quick clearance of blocked lanes by acting as liaison between other responding agencies and FDOT resources, such as Maintenance, Asset Management, and Road Rangers. The SIRV is dispatched from the Broward SMART Sunguide Transportation Management Center 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Other SIRV responsibilities include documenting response and clearance times, actively participating in Traffic Incident Management Team meetings, conducting post-incident analysis meetings, conducting Road Rangers vehicle inspections and quality of service audits, and attending public outreach events. All of these SIRV Operator activities require that this position be staffed by emergency response-qualified personnel.

Standard Operating Guidelines (SOGs) were developed for the SIRV Operator position. Persons interviewed for this position were retired law enforcement or fire rescue personnel with emergency response experience. SIRV Operators are trained and qualified in Incident Management and Command, Unified Command System, NIMS (National Incident Management System), Advanced Maintenance of Traffic, Emergency Vehicle Operation, and First Responder.

The vehicle is a Ford F350 dual-wheel, covered utility body truck, equipped with two telescoping high-intensity floodlights on the front of the truck and two fixed-mounted high-intensity floodlights on the rear of the vehicle. The vehicle is equipped with a computer docking station for the operator to use a laptop computer for data input during incidents.

In addition to this equipment and the previously mentioned radio equipment, the truck also carries 100 traffic cones, two Fold & Go advance warning signs, turbo flares and standard flares, oil dry, portland cement, cold asphalt patch, hazmat spill mitigation pads, vehicle fluid spill mitigation chemicals, bottled water, radio repeater system, digital camera, and much more.

The ultimate goal of the SIRV program is to assist all responding agencies in safely reopening the roadways as quickly as possible to meet the state of Florida’s Open Roads Policy 90 minute goal.

This article was provided by Gaetano Francese, FDOT District 4 SIRV Program Manager. For information, please contact Mr. Francese at (954) 777-4366 or email to Gaetano.Francese@dot.state.fl.us.

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TERL Adds New Dimension—Evaluation, Approval of ITS Devices

With the rate of ITS deployment accelerating and new technologies emerging across the industry, the FDOT Traffic Engineering Research Laboratory (TERL) was the logical choice to direct the research, evaluation, testing, and approval of the various ITS devices, hardware, and software used in Florida. Now that an extensive remodeling and renovation of the building is completed, the laboratory is poised to begin providing these important services.

Since first opening on Springhill Road in Tallahassee in 1997, TERL has been the facility in which traffic control signal devices proposed for deployment in Florida are evaluated. Devices are placed on the FDOT’s Approved Product List (APL) after meeting specifications and performance requirements. TERL’s expanded ITS and Communications Labs evaluates dynamic message signs, closed-circuit television camera systems, and vehicle detection equipment, along with the different network devices that interconnect them — device servers, Ethernet switches, fiber optic cable, video encoders and decoders, and communications systems.

A fully functional small-scale transportation management center (TMC) lab equipped with the SunGuideSM software, hardware, network, and communications system, similar to what FDOT District TMC are using, is also installed in the TERL. In this environment, TERL will research, test, and simulate an actual TMC operation in which the various video, data, and communications systems function with SunGuide software and provide change management tests with the full range of traffic management capabilities.

The new ITS Lab will enable the TERL staff to evaluate ITS software and hardware, verifying that the necessary network communications links are active and compatible with the SunGuide software. This upfront testing will improve the software, hardware, and network quality, along with the operational effectiveness of ITS devices with communications system. It also allows TERL to be a platform for ensuring that new devices comply with FDOT’s ITS equipment specifications and that the devices are capable of meeting all user requirements.

Ultimately, the new ITS Lab will reduce problems encountered before ITS devices are deployed. A major cause of hardware and software failure in the field is the unpredictability of the real-world environment. While not every variable can be reproduced in the ITS Lab, the TERL test area and TMC can help demonstrate the ITS products’ functions and compatibilities with other devices in the lab’s network. Through this effort, FDOT is confident that the success rate of actual ITS projects will be improved.

As with traffic control devices, after being evaluated by TERL, the ITS equipment meeting FDOT specifications will be placed on the APL. Being placed on the APL indicates to the Districts, expressway authorities, local governments, and others, that the equipment has passed FDOT’s evaluations; the vendors’ quality assurance plans have been accepted; and the devices have been proven to be compatible with the SunGuide software in the TMC environment.

Another aspect of the TERL expansion is the Communications Lab. This facility will enable TERL staff to test the SunGuide software’s center to center (C2C) communications requirements and the various communications technologies that facilitate these functions. C2C capability allows data and video sharing among the state’s TMCs and is essential for transferring control from between regional TMCs in an emergency. For this reason, Florida’s statewide microwave system (SMS) has been upgraded to support video and data sharing between TMCs. Because various communications infrastructures and C2C functions are an integral part of Florida’s ITS investment, the Communications Lab will also support the testing, management, and maintenance of SMS devices, and oversee SMS-related contractual services.

TERL also provides hardware, software, network, and communications resources for major statewide research projects that include Florida State University’s NTCIP, the University of Florida’s Statewide Central Data Warehouse, and the University of Central Florida’s Real-Time Route Diversion research projects.

This article was provided by Liang Hsia, FDOT Traffic Engineering and Operations Office. For more information, please contact Mr. Hsia at (850) 410-5615 or e-mail Liang.Hsia@dot.state.fl.us.

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Editorial Corner: ITS – Fact or Fiction

Are We Heading in the Right Direction
Sometimes I stop and wonder about a few things, like: why is it that we take for granted nature’s way to control how we live and work, such as snowstorms and hurricanes; but we cannot understand, nor accept, the difficulties associated with traffic and congestion? Is it because we feel we have no control over the one, but control over the other? Or is it ‘the unknown’ and its omnipotence that causes such awe that we just let it happen—and rather take the opposite approach on something that is more tangible and real?

With that out of the way, let’s talk about Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) and their ability to ‘control’ how we live and work. Because, if you think about it, ITS and all of traffic operations provide us information to make informed decisions in our daily travel. Incident management, real-time traffic information, weather conditions, etc. are just a few of the tools provided to the motoring public. There are some who say that we have just reached the tip of the iceberg with what we can do with technology to help move people and goods.

Is that true…or are we even heading in the right direction?

Now, I am not referencing what the Florida Department of Transportation is doing with ITS, but rather with the entire industry. What once was touted as another engineering method to add capacity to our already over-crowded transportation system, ITS has also been labeled as a tool for drivers to make informed decisions in their daily commute, or in our case, also for the thousands of visitors in our state each year.

Is either one correct? Or both?

Perhaps the model for the future of ITS is one that harnesses the latest technological advancements to the betterment of both our citizens and our visitors. It can be done through ‘smarter’ roadways, ‘smarter’ vehicles, or both. The role we play as transportation professionals is to assess what model works best based on the needs of the state, with the resources we have, and the ability to make it work.

Whatever the use, either by adding capacity or improving communications, I challenge each and every one of our ITS professionals to push the envelope, look beyond the norms, and make the most of what technology can do for us.

This editorial was provided by Kevin Thibault, FDOT. For more information, please contact Mr. Thibault at (850) 414-5220 or email Kevin.Thibault@dot.state.fl.us.

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Traffic Video Supports Emergency Operations

FDOT has developed an array of traffic video monitoring sites around the state. Projects are also underway, in the planning and design stages, to add further video monitoring sites. The regional transportation management centers (RTMCs) in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Orlando, and Jacksonville as well as other locations have made video feeds available to media outlets and traveler information providers in major markets throughout Florida. These video feeds have been used in daily operations for traffic monitoring and incident verification by FDOT. More recently, these video feeds have been disseminated by the media outlets and traveler information providers to enhance the information available to the public.

Recently, FDOT District 5 activated 25 video monitoring locations around the state as part of the Statewide Corridor Monitoring project to assist with managing evacuation routes. This project is part of the iFlorida model deployment initiative, a Federal Highway Administration grant, awarded to Florida in March 2003. The objective of this model deployment is to demonstrate how the security and reliability of the surface transportation system can be enhanced through the widespread availability of real-time information.

This project helps to fulfill many of the objectives of the iFlorida initiative, specifically as it relates to security and reliability of evacuation routes in Florida. Through this project, District 5 RTMC staff is able to monitor traffic conditions using traffic detectors (spot speed, volume, occupancy) and closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras which send data over FDOT’s statewide microwave system. Based on this real-time information, traffic management can make better evacuation decisions throughout Florida’s major evacuation routes.

It became apparent that this information would be of great value to the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) as well as other EOC partners. FDOT District 5, and the ITS Section of the Central Office, is working with the SEOC to make real-time video available as well as traffic data for better management of evacuations throughout the state. PB Farradyne, FDOT’s Telecommunications General Consultant, has been tasked with making this video available to the SEOC, the Transportation EOC in the Burns Building, the Traffic Engineering Research Lab (TERL), the District 3 EOC, and the District 2 offices.

Work is underway and the connection to the SEOC is in place. A Web-based front end has been established on SEOC computer equipment with maps to easily point and click for camera selection. SEOC staff is able to route this video to their video wall and to other workstations in the center as required. SEOC staff is investigating an upgrade to their connection to the statewide microwave system to enable simultaneous viewing of more video feeds. Connection to other EOC partners will be completed prior to the upcoming hurricane season. A variety of connectivity options are being explored to network these EOC partners. Leased services may be used for the Tallahassee connections, and local fiber may be deployed at the District 3 EOC.

Another interesting project element is the addition of approximately 16 video monitoring cameras at strategic locations, in addition to the Statewide Corridor Monitoring locations, to further support emergency operations. These video cameras will also be connected to the statewide microwave system and will be available for viewing in streaming form anywhere the Statewide Corridor Monitoring video is available.

SEOC staff, along with FDOT, are preparing grant applications for funding of the additional video monitoring sites. Should the grant be funded, FDOT will then proceed to construct the additional sites, add them to the iFlorida network, and transport the video over the statewide microwave system.

The next step is to exercise the video feeds at the SEOC and all the partner EOC locations. This video should be reviewed from all field locations at each EOC, and cooperative working relationships should be established between the FDOT Districts and the EOCs to support each other in times of crisis that may impact Florida this upcoming hurricane season.

This article was provided by Randy Pierce, FDOT Traffic Engineering and Operations Office. For more information, please contact Mr. Pierce at (850) 410-5608 or e-mail Randy.Pierce@dot.state.fl.us.

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We invite you to have some fun and complete the SunGuide Disseminator Word Challenge!
Unscramble the letters to complete the word for the clue found under the boxes.
Use the letters in the red circles to complete the final puzzle.
An answer guide follows the Announcements.

Enjoy and Good Luck!

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Contraflow Workshop—Bringing States Together

On February 14-15, 2006, FDOT, along with FHWA, AASHTO, and the I-95 Corridor Coalition, sponsored a workshop concentrating on contraflow operations used during evacuations. As the term implies, a “contraflow” is traffic movement against the normal direction. More specifically, it involves reversing portions of interstates and expressways so that all lanes head in one direction. This specialized evacuation procedure provides additional highway capacity to accommodate the high volume of traffic as coastal residents attempt to move inland prior to a hurricane’s landfall.

Florida has several existing contraflow plans that were produced in 2000, after over 2 million Florida residents evacuated Florida’s east coast due to Hurricane Floyd in 1999. Transportation and law enforcement officials began planning ways to better use limited-access highways around Florida for reverse-lane operations. The only problem is, when these routes were initially produced, little research and data existed on how they should be prepared and implemented.

With the recent increased hurricane activity, several states have developed and used contraflow routes during their hurricane evacuations. Lessons have been learned and plans have been revised due to exercises and real-life implementation. Our motivation for this workshop was a selfish one since we needed to learn what these states had learned through their implementation and how we might improve our plans and operations from their experiences.

The intent of this workshop was simple—bring the states together to discuss lessons learned and best practices used during contraflow evacuations. The presenting states were Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. All of these states have contraflow plans and the majority of them have implemented those plans in recent years. We also had presentations from FHWA, FEMA, Florida Highway Patrol, Florida’s Division of Emergency Management, and the University of Florida

While initial estimates were that we would have 100 attendees at the workshop, we ended up with approximately 195 attendees; with attendees from 15 other states—as far west as Washington and as far north as Vermont and New York. The workshop also drew attendees from all FDOT Districts, most of the FHP Troop Commanders, nine city and county Emergency Managers, and ten consulting firms.

At the conclusion of the first day, a small group gathered to critique what had been presented by the states and to bring together the lessons learned from all of the information that had been presented. A presentation was prepared of the “Do’s and Don’ts” that came from the first day’s presentations, and was presented by Lap Hoang, State Traffic Operations Engineer, at the end of the workshop.

Some of the Do’s and Don’ts are:

• DO
  • Have a traffic control plan
  • Have an outreach program (communicate, coordinate and educate) both with government (state to state, cross jurisdictions) and the public
  • Consider entry and exit locations
  • Use ITS to monitor the route
  • Provide assistance to stranded motorist
  • Provide detour routes for emergency vehicles
  • Address infrastructure improvements
• DON’T
  • Underestimate resource requirements (equipment and people)
  • Forget to pre-stage water, gas, restrooms
  • Be slow to react
  • Underestimate human behavior
  • Give the public unlimited choices
  • Use contraflow if you have a good evacuation route

Additionally, we are currently refining the workshop outcomes and will be providing all attendees with a workshop CD containing all of the proceedings, papers, and PowerPoint presentations. The CD will have integrated text, audio and video elements to deliver the PowerPoint presentations with speaker support using Macromedia Flash to deliver the content.

A DVD is also being created. The DVD will be a 20⁺/- minute recap developed from the workshop, which will be an overview of the entire proceedings.

By the time this workshop was completed it was the consensus of the group that this needed to be a yearly event and should be moved around from state to state. The next workshop will be hosted by the state of Louisiana in 2007 with the venue being New Orleans and in 2008 it will be hosted by the state of North Carolina.

You may view the presentations or hear the audio from the workshop at www.teachamerica.com.

This article was provided by Mike Akridge, FDOT Traffic Engineering and Operations Office. For more information, please contact Mr. Akridge at (850) 410-5607 or e-mail Michael.Akridge@dot.state.fl.us.

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The monitoring efforts worked right away — most SunPass lane maintenance needs were detected and resolved well before customers were impacted. However, the monitoring system needed to expand to cover more toll collection lanes. In addition, greater efficiency was required in responding to equipment maintenance requests. On November 1, 2005, this effort culminated with the opening of the new SunWatch Operations Center, dedicated to the monitoring of all toll lanes and the quick resolution of toll system maintenance needs throughout the state.

Today, the unified and efficient SunWatch team is located in a renovated space at the Florida’s Turnpike headquarters in Central Florida. This diverse team of seasoned toll system experts and innovative IT professionals work in collaboration to meet the goal of the center: the rapid detection and resolution of toll system maintenance needs.

The management team responsible for the SunWatch Operations Center’s success is not only keeping pace with the rapid evolution of the Turnpike’s toll collection systems, it is also positioning Florida’s Turnpike for the widespread deployment of open road tolling in the future.

State-of-the-art For Florida’s Toll Roads
The SunWatch Operations Center is the first of its kind in Florida – a 24-hour-a-day, seven-days-a- week, state-of-the-art command-and-control maintenance center specifically designed to manage toll collection systems. No small task, Florida’s Turnpike operates more than 750 toll collection lanes at more than 150 toll collection facilities located along nearly 600 miles of roadways and bridges from South Florida to the Florida Panhandle.

SunWatch has become an integral tool for managing this very large toll lane network of electronic and mechanical devices needed to ensure the proper collection of revenue and the smooth flow of traffic through toll lanes throughout the state. Keeping customers on the move, while providing superior customer service and transportation value, is the highest priority for Florida’s Turnpike.

The Toll Operations team staffs the SunWatch Operations Center to support the overall mission of Florida’s Turnpike: “to help meet the state’s growing transportation needs, ensuring value to customers, protecting investors and managing the Turnpike system in a business-like manner.”

The toll equipment technical maintenance team is composed of more than 100 highly trained members stationed across the state. As a centralized hub, the SunWatch Operations Center facilitates and assesses incoming critical incidents and responds to requests for service and repairs as quickly and efficiently as possible. Toll plaza personnel can contact a single toll-free number (1-877-Sun Desk) to report all maintenance and toll-equipment-related needs.

With multiple levels of technical support available within the SunWatch Operations Center, technical maintenance team members at field locations throughout the state now have expertise at the end of a phone line to help them troubleshoot repairs efficiently. The center processes more than 3,500 technical service requests each month, many of which are now resolved over the phone or by remote command to the toll equipment from the SunWatch Operations Center.

Through the use of Global Positioning System (GPS)-equipped vehicles, the center is able to locate available field resources for better deployment and consolidation statewide. This helps keep equipment functioning properly and lanes open for customer convenience and safety.

Looking Ahead
As Florida’s Turnpike employs more sophisticated technologies to bring greater efficiency and improved service to its customers in the future, more remote monitoring and control of equipment will be needed.

The SunWatch Operation Center’s high-tech video display wall allows for electronic experts with varying levels of expertise to work toward problem resolution concurrently with technical resources strategically distributed throughout the state. As traffic volumes continue to grow rapidly, the Florida’s Turnpike workforce will adapt to changes in work operations, including utilizing evening hours for routine maintenance. Having a centralized SunWatch Operations Center will help manage these new challenges better.

With a highly skilled and dedicated toll operations staff and an unwavering commitment to the overarching goal of delivering superior customer service to Florida travelers, Florida’s Turnpike’s SunWatch Operations Center will provide reliable and cost-efficient toll collection system monitoring and maintenance.

This article was provided by the SunWatch Development Team, comprised of Pat Maggio (Toll Systems Engineering Manager), Brett Massey (Deputy State TEM Manager), and Bill Wood (Engineering Specialist). For more information, please contact Mr. Massey at (407) 264-3929 or email Wayman.Massey@dot.state.fl.us.

For more information on ITS Florida, please check the ITS Florida Web site at www.itsflorida.org or contact Diana Carsey, Executive Director, at (727) 409-5415 or email CarseyD@verizon.net.

If you wish to contribute an article to the SunGuide Disseminator on behalf of ITS Florida, please contact Erika Ridlehoover at (813) 376-0036, or email Erika.Ridlehoover@transcore.com.

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FDOT Equipment Certification

The FDOT Traffic Engineering and Operations Office, through the Traffic Engineering Research Laboratory (TERL), is responsible for approving all traffic control signal devices. Approved devices are kept on the FDOT Approved Products List (APL), a listing of devices that may be relied upon as meeting FDOT specifications, standards, or other criteria.

The APL is a means for the FDOT to meet Florida Statute 316.0745, Uniform Signals and Devices, which states, “All official traffic control signals or official traffic control devices purchased and installed in this state by any public body or official shall conform with the manual and specifications published by the Department of Transportation pursuant to subsection (2).”

More information on the FDOT APL may be viewed at www.dot.state.fl.us.TrafficOperations/ TERL/APL.htm. Specific approved products in the FDOT APL may be searched at rite.eng.fsu.edu/iapl/page1.php.

For more information, please contact Carl Morse, FDOT Traffic Engineering and Operations Office, at (850) 410-5417 or email Carl.Morse@dot.state.fl.us.

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Announcements

Radian Receives Notice to Proceed
Radian Communications Services, 1198 Commerce Drive, Richardson, TX was issued a notice to proceed for the construction of a new self supporting radio tower located in District 6 named the North Dade Tower. On February 8, 2006, a preconstruction meeting was held introducing the FDOT District 6 personnel who will be involved with the tower project. Brad DeKnight of Radian was introduced as Radian’s field construction manager and Guy Gladson of the FDOT was introduced as the District 6 contact. Completion of the tower will provide enhanced radio coverage for the D6 North maintenance yard and replace the existing tower damaged by hurricane Wilma.

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FDOT Welcomes Ashis Sanyal
Ashis Sanyal recently joined PBS&J, becoming a part of the ITS General Consultant team in Tallahassee. Ashis received his BSEE from the Indian Institute of Technology, and later earned an MBA in Management Science from the University of Houston. He has years of experience in project management and systems engineering at Bell Labs and AT&T Communications in New Jersey. Later on he joined Lucent Technologies in Ohio as a manager in the international business sector. His duties in the Traffic Engineering and Operations Office will revolve around ITS device specifications, systems engineering, and project management. Please join us in welcoming Ashis onto our FDOT support team.

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ITS America 2006 Annual Meeting and Exposition
FDOT will once again team up with ITS Florida to exhibit at the ITS America 2006 Annual Meeting and Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 7-9, 2006.

A booth partnership was put together to feature Florida’s live center-to-center transportation management center demonstration. The booth partnership is comprised of FDOT Central Office’s ITS Program, FDOT District 4, FDOT District 6, Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise, the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority (MDX), ITS Florida, and TEAMFL.

Stop by to see the demonstration. FDOT will be at Booth 700.

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Word Challenge Answers

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