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Los Angeles Smart Traveler Kiosks -- Technical Assistance Brief #9, December 1994
Los Angeles Smart Traveler Kiosks
Technical Assistance Brief
Brief #9
December 1994
Seventy-eight bilingual, automated, multimedia kiosks were installed within the greater Los Angeles area of California as part of the Los Angeles Smart Traveler field operational test being carried out by the California Department of Transportation's (CalTrans) Advanced Public Transportation Systems Group. As a consequence of the Northridge earthquake, the Smart Traveler Kiosk element was expanded from a limited test to an extensive network of kiosks providing area travelers with information on transportation options. One of the principal objectives of the field operational test is to assess the effectiveness of this method of disseminating traveler information to influence travel behavior.
The Los Angeles Smart Traveler project is one of several in the CalTrans Smart Traveler Program. Other projects are located in the Sacramento, Yosemite National Park, San Francisco Bay, and San Bernadino/Riverside areas, and the northern California freeway corridor linking Reno/Carson City with the San Francisco Bay Area. (For a further description of some of these projects, see APTS Technical Assistance Brief 4.)
Kiosk Operations
The kiosks utilize a personal computer based system, which is connected via dedicated digital telephone lines to a telecommunications system established by CaliforniaÕs Health and Welfare Agency Data Center in Sacramento. This system accesses the rideshare, transit, and freeway conditions information residing in databases maintained by Commuter Transportation services, Inc., Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and CalTrans Transportation Management Center in Los Angeles.
The kiosks provide personalized transit itineraries including routes, fares, schedules, and origin-to-destination travel times; carpooling possibilities; real-time freeway conditions; and videos on various transportation topics such as 'driving tips' and 'effect on the environment.' The user interface is a touch-screen monitor. Freeway flow status is displayed on a map. The videos are stored on a laserdisc within the kiosk. All other information is displayed in textual form. Carpool match lists and transit information can be printed by the kiosk.
Kiosk Locations
Most of the kiosks have been placed at locations such as office complexes, shopping malls, and transportation centers. Sites were selected on the basis of density of foot traffic, hours of public availability, security, and willingness to participate. One-year participation agreements were signed by the operators of each site.
Early Findings
An assessment of the Los Angeles Smart Traveler operational test is being conducted by the University of Southern California (USC), assisted by Jacqueline Golob Associates. Although the final project evaluation report will not be completed until the Spring of 1995, a recently released preliminary report includes the following findings:
o Surveys indicated that users were very positive in their assessment of the kiosks
- 79% found the kiosks easy to use; only 5% found them difficult,
- 84% indicated that they would use the kiosks again, and
- 86% would encourage others to use them.
o The typical user is looking for information for future commute trips, rather than for immediate transportation information.
o In order of choice, the most frequent request was for the freeway conditions, followed by transit routes and schedules, videos, and carpool services.
o The most common suggestion for improvement was to increase the speed of kiosk operations.
o Observations indicate that the kiosks can service between 5 and 10 users per hour, depending upon the nature and complexity of the inquiries.
Project Status
CalTrans staff are already planning improvements to the computer software based on the preliminary USC report and other assessments of kiosk performance. The primary emphasis will be on improving the menu structure and providing an easier method for the traveler to enter trip origin/destination information.
The Los Angeles Smart Traveler project also includes an automated audiotext telephone rideshare matching component that allows individuals to use their touch-tone phone to quickly find regular or single-trip rideshare partners. Work is also underway on a personal computer software package which will provide access via modem to the same information provided by the kiosk.
For further information on the kiosks or other elements of the Los Angeles Smart Traveler project, contact Steve Fox at (213) 897-4108.
