Private Sector Data for Performance Management
Final Report

July 2011

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July 2011
FHWA-HOP-11-029

QUALITY ASSURANCE STATEMENT

The U.S. Department of Transportation provides high-quality information to serve Government, industry, and the public in a manner that promotes public understanding. Standards and policies are used to ensure and maximize the quality, objectivity, utility, and integrity of its information. U.S. DOT periodically reviews quality issues and adjusts its programs and processes to ensure continuous quality improvement.

Technical Report Documentation Page

1. Report No. FHWA-HOP-11-029		2. Government Accession No.	3. Recipient's Catalog No.
4. Title and Subtitle Private Sector Data for Performance Management – Final Report			5. Report Date July 2011
			6. Performing Organization Code
7. Author(s) Shawn Turner (TTI), Kaveh Farokhi Sadabadi (UMD), Ali Haghani (UMD), Masoud Hamedi (UMD), Robert Brydia (TTI), Simon Santiago (Nossaman), and Ed Kussy (Nossaman)			8. Performing Organization Report No.
9. Performing Organization Name and Address Battelle 505 King Avenue Columbus, OH 43201			10. Work Unit No. (TRAIS)
			11. Contract or Grant No. DTFH61-06-D-00007 – Task 600112-37
12. Sponsoring Agency Name and Address U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration 1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E. Washington, DC 20590			13. Type of Report and Period Covered
			14. Sponsoring Agency Code
15. Supplementary Notes Rich Taylor, COTM
16. Abstract This report examines and analyzes technical and institutional issues associated with the use of private sector travel time and speed data for public sector performance management. The primary data needs for congestion performance measures are outlined, and core data elements and various metadata are introduced as a way to ensure consistency among private sector data providers. The report examines issues associated with "blended" traffic data and concludes that what is most important is the accuracy of the end product (i.e., average travel times and speeds), which can be evaluated with several different quality assurance methods. The report also describes a process to integrate private sector travel time data with public agency traffic volume data for a more comprehensive performance reporting system. A state-of-the-practice review summarizes the products and services of several private sector data providers, and the review also includes the experience of several public agency consumers of this data. Overall guidance is provided on quality assurance methods, ranging from office-based statistical analysis to actual field validation with reidentification methods. The report concludes by summarizing key legal issues related to data licensing, data rights, privacy, and concerns about Open Records requests.
17. Key Words Private sector traffic data, travel time data, speed data, performance monitoring, quality assurance, data rights, data licensing		18. Distribution Statement No restrictions.
19. Security Classif. (of this report)	20. Security Classif. (of this page)	21. No. of Pages 34	22. Price

Form DOT F 1700.7 (8-72) Reproduction of completed page authorized

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• QUALITY ASSURANCE STATEMENT
• LIST OF TABLES
• LIST OF FIGURES
• LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
• CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
• CHAPTER 2. DATA REQUIREMENTS
  • Data Needs for Congestion Performance Measures
  • Core Data Elements, Metadata, and Consistency of Different Data Sources
    • Location Referencing
    • Core Data Elements
    • Metadata
    • Temporal Consistency
  • Issues Associated With "Blended" Traffic Data
    • Time or Location Blending
    • Source Blending
  • Integration of Travel Time and Traffic Volume Data
• CHAPTER 3. PRIVATE SECTOR DATA MARKETPLACE REVIEW
  • Private Sector Data Products and Services
    • Coverage
    • Map Matching
    • Data Available
    • Services Available
    • Data Sources
    • Aggregation Level
    • Data Quality and Accuracy
    • Pricing
  • Public Agency Consumers of Private Sector Data
    • Service Purchased
    • Data Purchase
    • Applications
    • Validation
    • Pricing
  • Summary
• CHAPTER 4. QUALITY ASSURANCE AND VALIDATION
  • Quality Assurance Methods
    • Office-Based Statistical Analysis of Data And Metadata
    • Compare To Other Trusted Public Sector Data Sources
    • Evaluate the Quality of Real-Time Data and Extrapolate to Historical Averages
  • Generalized Validation Guidance
• CHAPTER 5. LEGAL ISSUES
  • Data Licensing
    • Data Rights
    • Derivative Works
    • Licensing/Pricing Models
  • Open Records/Freedom of Information Act Issues
  • Privacy Issues

LIST OF TABLES

• Table 1. Summary of Mobility Measures and Data Requirements for National Performance Monitoring Activities
• Table 2. Summary of Private Sector Data Products and Services
• Table 3. Summary of Historical Data Consumer Survey Results
• Table 4. Known Bluetooth Traffic Monitoring System Manufacturer Features in the US Market

LIST OF FIGURES

• Figure 1. Schematic of Data Quality Extrapolation

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

AC

alternating current

ATRI

American Transportation Research Institute

DC

direct current

DOT

Department of Transportation

EPA

Environmental Protection Agency

FC

functional class

FHWA

Federal Highway Administration

FOIA

Freedom of Information Act

GIS

geographic information system

GPS

global positioning system

HPMS

Highway Performance Monitoring System

ITIP

Intelligent Transportation Infrastructure Program

ITS

Intelligent Transportation System

MPH

miles per hour

NTOC

National Transportation Operations Coalition

TMC

traffic message channel

TT

travel time

TTI

Texas Transportation Institute

USDOT

United States Department of Transportation

UTC

coordinated universal time

VMT

vehicle-miles traveled