for Plan OR 140 Ice Detection Evaluation Problem ODOT has recently deployed an automatic ice detection and warning system on OR 140 near the Lake of the Woods pass. The ODOT Region 4 Traffic Manager and the District 11 office would benefit from an evaluation to determine the accuracy and effectiveness of the ice detection system. The potential to integrate the existing warning system into the larger regional ITS also needs to be examined. Proposed Integration Activity This task will include a quantitative assessment of the fidelity of the current ice detection and warning system. This integration activities will include a literature review, an evaluation of the current hardware and software, field studies to assess accuracy of ice detection, evaluation of the local warning system, evaluation of ITS system integration, particularly with the S. Oregon VMS, and reporting to ODOT. The Oregon Institute of Technology will lead this task under a subcontract to PSU. Benefits A validated ice warning system will provide ODOT with an assessment of the reliability of the current system in order to potentially deploy additional systems integrated in the S. Oregon VMS system and beyond. Work Plan The evaluation itself will consist of the following tasks. The culmination of the work will be documented in a final report which could validate and support the implementation of future ice warning systems. Task 1. Literature Review This task will involve a review of existing literature to assess relevant current practices by other agencies or research involving methodologies for setting up system thresholds for predicting or detecting icy conditions. The purpose of the review is to uncover any widely used or industry-accepted thresholds used for ice detection. The literature review will also investigate the integration of "local area ice detection" systems within larger, regional ITS. The results of the literature review will be used as a baseline assessment to the approach that is taken for the Butte Creek Ice Warning System. The results of the literature review may be useful in the final analysis where comparisons with similar warning systems may be constructive. Deliverable: Technical memorandum detailing the literature review findings. Duration: 2 months Task 2. Develop Data Collection Plan
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Plan for OR 140 Ice Detection Evaluation
The primary objective of this plan is to develop an approach for collecting the data that will be used in the evaluation. As the evaluation requires a multi-pronged data gathering effort, it will be to valuable create an organized approach for defining and coordinating the actual data collection. The plan will identify, at a minimum, the data to be collected; the tools used for the data gathering; the resources required; the approach to gathering the data; and the quantity of data required to ensure a statistically sound evaluation. The collection plan will map the approach back to the measures of effectiveness as further reassurance that the data are appropriate and sufficient enough to fulfill the evaluation. Deliverable: Technical memorandum outlining approach to collecting the data. Duration: 2 months Task 3. Data Collection, Evaluation and Analysis Once a plan has been formulated, any additional data collection techniques recommended in the plan can be put in place. A combination of manual and automatic data collection is anticipated. In all cases, a brief field trial period will be required to ensure that tools and methodology used for data collection are appropriate. While most of the evaluation will focus on the collection and analysis of quantitative data obtained from field devices and or direct field data collection, assessing the perceived usefulness of the system by maintenance staff and the impact on driver behavior can really only be ascertained through surveys. The development, administration and / or distribution of the surveys will be performed within this task. At the initial stages of the evaluation period, it may be beneficial to survey maintenance staff prior to prolonged use of the system ...