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2. The GLITS Project Overview

This section provides an overview description of the DTW Airport ITS Integration and RIMS projects.

2.1 Airport ITS Integration Project Description

As part of a multi-phased project that includes the deployment of ITS field devices and a TMC, the Airport ITS Integration project facilitates an integrated approach to manage on-field traffic and traffic traveling to and from the airport on the servicing freeways. In latter phases of the project, the airport TMC will interface with the MDOT regional TMC and MDOT-owned ITS devices. In its final configuration, the Airport TMC will be capable of serving as a backup location for the MDOT regional TMC. The overall project goal is to optimize traffic flow in and out of the airport to optimize airport landside traffic flow to terminals and short-term parking facilities to ensure efficient airport traffic patterns.

The DTW is expanding to accommodate current and future demand for air transportation. A new mid-field terminal opened in February 2002. With this 11,500-space parking structure located adjacent to the McNamara Terminal / Northwest World Gateway, the airport now has nearly 17,000 available on-airport parking spaces.7 This has significantly changed the landside traffic patterns, since operations for the airport's major air carrier (approximately 80 percent of the passengers) are now concentrated in a single, modern facility. This new facility, located about 1 mile from the old terminal, includes an integrated parking garage and passenger/baggage transfer area.

The old terminal will continue to serve the remaining air carriers with terminal facilities, curbside check-in, and a detached parking garage. The new facility will allow landside traffic to be distributed between the two terminal areas. Known as the North Terminal Redevelopment (NTR) project, a planned 26-gate terminal complex is being designed to replace the airport's older Berry and Smith terminal complex. In September, 2003, the Wayne County Airport Authority authorized the sale of up to $825 million in bonds to fund future airport expansion projects. The current authorized project is estimated to be a $418 million project.8

When complete, the new North Terminal complex will be used to accommodate DTW's airlines that are currently operating out of the aging L.C. Smith and Berry Terminals. The new terminal will also have a Federal Inspection Station (FIS) to accommodate international flights. A three- level Ground Transportation Center will be constructed adjacent to the blue deck to accommodate all commercial vehicle loading and unloading.9

Besides the change in traffic distribution between the two terminals, the Wayne County Airport Authority released building plans in August 2006 to add a second short-term covered parking structure (see Figure 2). This facility will impact landside traffic patterns due to the overall increase in short-term parking capacity. Figure 3 presents a map overview of the DTW area.

Graphic rendering of an aerial view of the DTW Metro Airport showing terminals and gates and identifying a future ground transportation center.
Source: Wayne County Airport Authority Metro Airport Website.10
Figure 2. DTW Metro Airport Overview.

Roadmap of the DTW Metro Airport area with outlines of terminals, runways, and roadways on the airport grounds. Map also contains labels identifying lodging, terminals, and parking.
Source: Wayne County Airport Authority Metro Airport Website.11
Figure 3. Map Overview of the DTW Metro Airport Area.

It is anticipated that as the new terminal reaches capacity, parking capacity in the terminal's associated garage may be exceeded and result in traffic diversion to the old parking garage. Using ITS devices to measure garage space availability, real-time parking information will be provided to drivers via on-field dynamic messaging signs (DMS). This information will enable drivers to make appropriate decisions with respect to passenger drop-off/pickup, baggage check-in/pickup, and short-term parking locations.

In addition to on-field changes to terminal and parking facilities, opening the new 6-mile long south access road, Rogell Drive, provided additional airport access from north and south points of entry from two different interstate highways (I-94 and I-275). The highway and surface transportation infrastructure serving the airport terminal and parking areas will be instrumented and managed via combined ITS, safety, security, and parking systems. The need to integrate these systems is critical to ensuring the safety and convenience of airport patrons and highway travelers.

The ITS solution was intended to provide tools designed to address and overcome potential multi-jurisdictional and institutional challenges. Airport patrons drive from all over southeast Michigan, and from as far away as Ontario, Canada, and northern Ohio. In addition, the traffic impacts associated with the airport are often experienced miles away on area freeways and arterial roads. Therefore, to effectively serve airport patrons and to manage traffic at the airport, the ITS solution will include interfaces with the MDOT Freeway Management System and with Wayne County Roads Division. These interfaces must be designed to reflect operational considerations, such as data exchange requirements, shared control (if any), and system security features.

It was expected that the deployed ITS solution should make the transition in and out of the airport environment efficient and safe, while providing information to support the most efficient on-airport routing decisions. The information systems should provide easily understood, intuitive messages for better communication with a wide range of airport patrons, from domestic to international travelers.

2.1.1 Detroit Metropolitan Airport ITS Integration Project - Specific Tasks

The Metro Airport project involves integration at multiple levels between numerous agencies within the Wayne County Airport Authority and with outside agencies. An initial list of participants includes: Metro Airport Roads, Metro Airport Police, Metro Airport Parking, Wayne County Roads Division, and eventually MDOT. The project area encompasses the entire on-field public use road system, all on-field parking facilities, and the passenger drop-off and pickup areas at both commercial terminals. The project's physical boundaries extend down the new South Access Road and the North Access Road to the Wayne County Airport Authority property lines. Information system boundaries will extend onto the I-94 and I-275 highways as airport traveler information is posted on MDOT-operated DMS.

Data will be shared among agencies involved in incident and congestion management on airport property and surrounding highways. It will be necessary to design interfaces between the Metro Airport South access road ITS system and the midfield terminal curbside traffic management and information system, to include the parking management system, the life safety systems on the south access road, and the Airport Police dispatch system.

Integrating the ITS solution with surrounding freeways will be accommodated through information sharing with MDOT traffic management systems serving the Interstate highways in the airport area. The incorporation of life safety systems and the Airport Police dispatch will be facilitated through ITS control systems in the Metro Airport Traffic Management Center. The integration plans regarding parking management and the midfield terminal will be developed during the ITS design project.

The system will include advance traffic management functions and traveler information capabilities. Equipment such as Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras, loop detectors, and over-dimensional vehicle detectors will be used to monitor traffic conditions and potential problems on the South Access Road. A TMC will be located in the Sheriff's Building to receive the data and video from the surveillance equipment. The TMC will be equipped with control systems to manage traffic signals, lane controls, portal signals at the tunnels, and other traffic management capabilities. Using DMS, Website enhancements, radio, and other highway advisory media systems, airport patrons will be notified regarding impending traffic conditions, parking availability, and other information, as warranted.

2.2 Road Infrastructure Management System Project Description

The RIMS project will integrate information currently gathered and stored in existing databases by various divisions within the Wayne County DPS into one seamless system. Using an interactive Web-based approach, information will be made available to DPS and the traveling public. This information pertains to road conditions, including snow and ice removal requirements and during the critical summer construction months (Pavement Management Application and a Vehicle-Automated Vehicle Location System [AVL]); construction project detours (a Permits and Plan Review Application); and the real-time location of moving DPS maintenance crews (a Maintenance Management System).

Various agencies in Wayne County, Michigan, are working together to establish an integrated GIS that can integrate nearly 400 currently independent Wayne County databases used for their operations into one data warehouse. This GIS is being funded with 100 percent County funds. As one of the most important aspects of Wayne County operations, the RIMS is a management system for planning, designing, building, operating and maintaining the County's roadway infrastructure. The RIMS is needed to improve the integration between these services. RIMS also will enable real-time maintenance vehicles dispatch, and ultimately will be capable of providing real-time transportation information on alternative travel routes and modes to travelers and the media, all accessible via the Internet.

The goals of RIMS are to utilize modern communications technologies to improve public safety and modernize transportation services within DPS and improve coordination between the DPS, MDOT, and local units of government within the County.

In a project update discussing 2006 technology projects, Wayne County Executive Robert A. Ficano's office released the following information about GIS-related database applications for address and demographic referencing information used in conjunction with the RIMS project.

Through a partnership with local, state, and regional government, Wayne County has combined its 1:1200 scale street centerline file with the powerful attributes of the Michigan Geographic Framework product. Through a conflation process the Wayne County Geographic Framework now includes two valuable referencing tools. The Census Bureau's TIGER files, including address and demographic referencing information, and a Linear Referencing System based on the Michigan Accident Location Index (MALI). The positional accuracy and the plethora of attributes support a variety of GIS-related applications for local, county, regional, state, and national projects.12

2.2.1 Wayne County RIMS Project - Specific Tasks

Specific operations included for this development phase include Traffic Signal Control, Freeway Management, Incident Management, and other ITS-supportable operations (including snow and ice removal). The project aims to demonstrate how all four of these operations can be integrated into a single management system by using the enhanced GIS capabilities. The intention is to demonstrate how state of the art GIS technology can be used to modernize DPS operations and enhance the performance of the region's inter-modal transportation systems.

During planning sessions, the DPS GIS Technical Committee (Committee) noted that many of the proposed applications were heavily dependent on the county-wide base map being prepared for the GIS Management Unit. The Committee proposed that this base map be used as the backbone for the future management subsystems identified within RIMS. The base map will consist of digital orthophotography images of the entire county, including road centerline planimetrics with a positional accuracy of +/- 1 foot on the ground. Figure 4 is a sample reference frame contained in the Michigan State Plane Coordinate System.

This reference system will place all regional transportation management agencies (Wayne County, MDOT, and the South Eastern Michigan Council of Governments [SEMCOG]) on an interoperable GIS platform. The common reference system will promote the use of a central data warehouse, which can be displayed accurately on one map and in one location whenever needed. This first map layer will be the foundation to which other applications will be added over a period of several years. The resulting environment is one where road managers act more proactively to maintain smooth traffic conditions and respond more quickly in dispatching work crews to repair problems and re-route traffic should an incident crisis arise.

One of the first uses of the common GIS platform will be Wayne County's sign and signal application. When fully developed, it will incorporate the location of all County-maintained signals, and incorporate remote control access for timing devices and ITS ground loop detectors, with the potential to incorporate CCTV in the future.

Aerial photograph of suburban neighborhood.
Source: Wayne County Orthophotography and Planimetric Web Page.13
Figure 4. Sample Orthophotography and Planimetric Reference Frame from RIMS Database.

Using these technologies may enable the Traffic Control Division staff to dynamically change traffic light timing sequences to actively manage diversion routes in response to incidents on highways and service drives. These systems will all be tied to the County base map and GIS allowing the Traffic Control Division staff to analyze the situation, run complete routing and "what if" scenarios before making adjustments to traffic control timing devices.

Once the sign and signal application is linked to the County base map, DPS engineers and management will have the ability to view traffic control signals and signs in relation to traffic incidents during freeway management reviews. Integrating these two systems will incorporate the new sign and signal application with the MALI projects already in use and under the direction of SEMCOG. In addition to relating accident information to the County base map, the County Roads Division is initiating a pavement management application using GIS aimed at monitoring and recording pavement conditions for all County-maintained roadways. These combined systems will greatly enhance DPS' planning and design resources.

A key feature of the RIMS is the ability to concurrently link and display roadway record information with real-time information transmitted from County Road Division vehicles during weather events. By linking the information gathered by the DPS vehicles in the AVL application with the GIS road network, routing and maintenance problems can be addressed and enable adjustments to be made almost immediately. In addition, this information will be made available via the Internet to local County governments, private business, and the general traveling public.

2.3 Project Deployment Schedules and Funding Resources

The following subsections provide a description of the project deployment schedules and funding for the Airport ITS Integration and RIMS projects. See section 4, History of Events, for a discussion of the events contributing to the deployment delays.

2.3.1 Airport ITS Integration Project Deployment Schedule and Funding Resources

Plans, specifications, and estimates for deploying the Airport ITS Integration project were scheduled for bid issuance by summer 2003. Given Wayne County's 3-month bid and award process, this would allow system implementation to begin in fall 2003 with an anticipated completion date in mid-2004. However, due to a series of events as described in section 4, History of Events, there were delays in the funding and deployment of the project. The deployment is currently anticipated to occur in the summer of 2007.

To date, funding for the Airport ITS Integration project is being derived from portions of four ITS Earmarks (FY 2001 through FY 2004) totaling $4,637,046 from the following Federal resources:

The FY 2001 and FY 2002 funds have been authorized. The FY 2003 and FY 2004 have not yet been authorized.

2.3.2 RIMS Project Deployment Schedules and Funding Resources

The RIMS project was originally planned to be phased in over an 18-month period beginning in the spring of 2003. However, due to the events described in section 4, History of Events, the funding and deployment of the project was delayed. The anticipated completion of the project is now projected to be in early 2009. The project consists of 23 individual steps involving system deployments, testing, enhancements, and integration. As each application is fully integrated with the RMIS, the information will be brought online and become accessible via the Internet to internal users, external agencies, and the public.

To date, following are the funding breakdowns for the RIMS project based on Earmark resources and by fiscal year amounts:

The FY 2000 through FY 2002 funds have been authorized; FY 2003 Section 330 funds have not.



7 North Terminal Project information last accessed from the Metro Airport Website on November 28, 2006: <http://www.metroairport.com/project/>.

8 Ibid.

9 Ibid.

10 Aerial view of an artist's rendering of the completed North Terminal, subject to change as the design matures and is finalized. Information last accessed from the Metro Airport Website on November 28, 2006: <http://www.metroairport.com/project/DesignRendering.asp>.

11 DTW Metro Airport Overview Map last accessed from the Metro Airport Website on November 28, 2006: <http://www.metroairport.com/pdf/maps/metro_area_map.pdf>.

12 Excerpted from the Wayne County Website, DOT GIS Geographic Information System, last accessed on November 29, 2006: <http://www.waynecounty.com/gis/projects.htm#road>.

13 Sample orthophotography and planimetric reference frame extracted from the Wayne County Website, last accessed on November 29, 2006: <http://www.waynecounty.com/gis/projects.htm>.

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