SmartWay Frequently Asked Questions
- What is ITS?
- What is TDOT SmartWay?
- How does SmartWay benefit me?
- What are the components of
SmartWay?
- How much does SmartWay cost?
- Why are the big message signs often blank?
- I drove past a blank message board and then got caught
in a big traffic jam because of a crash. Why wasn't the
message board working to tell me about the crash?
- Why don't you have travel times on the message boards?
- What are the hours for the TDOT SmartWay
system?
- How do TDOT SmartWay and the HELP trucks work
together?
- Will the TDOT SmartWay signs be used for Amber
Alert messages?
- Will the cameras on the highway be used to catch
speeders?
- Why are certain cameras or message boards not working?
- How often do the camera images refresh?
Q. What is ITS?
A. ITS stands for Intelligent Transportation Systems, a system
of advanced communications technologies designed to improve
transportation safety and mobility. Intelligent transportation
systems (ITS) encompass a broad range of wireless and wire line
communications-based information and electronics technologies.
When integrated into the transportation system’s infrastructure,
these technologies relieve congestion and improve safety.
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Q: What is TDOT SmartWay?
A. TDOT SmartWay is Tennessee’s intelligent transportation
system. It is designed to reduce traffic congestion by reducing
incident clearance time, increase safety by decreasing the
number of secondary accidents, and, working alongside our
incident management program(HELP), improving emergency response
to traffic situations. TDOT SmartWay uses cameras to monitor the
highways from Traffic Management Centers, sensors to gauge
traffic flow, large electronic message boards to send urgent
traffic notices to drivers along the highways and the Highway
Advisory Radio system. Nashville, Knoxville and Memphis have fully
integrated SmartWay systems. Early deployment of cameras occurred in Chattanooga in 2007 with a full system in place by 2010.
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Q. How does SmartWay benefit me?
A. The system offers many more benefits than just providing
camera views on the website, although that is one element that
is very popular with the public. In the first three months of
operation of Nashville’s SmartWay system, the department
experienced more than a half million hits on its cameras.
Typically, the system experiences a surge of hits during the
winter months when there is snow and ice on highways. Other
benefits include providing warning messages on dynamic message
signs to drivers approaching a crash or disabled vehicle. These
warnings allow traffic to divert to other routes while also
reducing the potential for secondary crashes caused by drivers
running into unanticipated backups.
Other benefits include:
- Providing live video to local television stations that
is used during their rush hour traffic reports
- Website access to current construction and incident
information.
- Shorter crash response time by emergency response
agencies including TDOT HELP trucks
- Using the system to assist in AMBER ALERTS
- Radio reports of current construction and incident
information available on the highway advisory radio (HAR)
system.
- Use of the system to complement Homeland Security
evacuation plans
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Q: What are the components of SmartWay?
TDOT SmartWay advanced information technologies take many
forms:
- Roadway Traffic Sensors to report traffic counts,
speed and travel time.
- Camera Video Surveillance to monitor congested
freeways and provide improved incident management
capabilities.
- Dynamic Message Signs to provide traffic
and construction information
to motorists, as well as provide information on Amber
Alerts.
- HELP Freeway Service Patrols to reduce congestion by
removing minor incidents in a timely fashion.
- Transportation Management
Centers
(TMC) which serve as a focal point for traffic
management operations and communications.
- Incident Management to detect, verify and respond to
incidents in an efficient manner and manage traffic
conditions around the incident site.
- Construction Information which is provided to
advise motorists traveling through
construction sites.
- TDOT Smartway Information System (TSIS) is a system
communicating data from TDOT SmartWay devices to a
central location and distributing that transportation
information to motorists and other interested parties
before and while making trips. Information is
distributed via TDOT’s Web site and through the media. TDOT also provides motorist information on Tennessee 511, a component of TDOT SmartWay.
- Information on Weather-Related Road Conditions, This feature allows TDOT to show
travelers where problems may exist on any state road due
to weather conditions such as snow, ice and flooding. A
simple click of the mouse will highlight any areas to be
avoided due to hazardous road conditions.
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Q. How much does SmartWay cost?
A. The yearly cost to operate an urban system is about
$1.3 million annually. In contrast to building a
roadway, deployment of TDOT SmartWay costs about
$500,000 per mile compared to $2.5 million per mile to
build a single lane of new roadway.
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Q. Why are the big message signs often blank?
A. The display of repetitive information could result in
drivers failing to read the signs even when important
information is given. For this reason, messages are not
displayed for recurring rush-hour congestion. The intent
of the message boards is to provide important traffic
information to highway travelers when unusual conditions
exist on the freeway. Typically, messages are used to
warn of abnormal delays due to incidents (i.e., crashes,
disabled vehicles, or construction activities). During
peak periods or rush hours, bottleneck locations and
durations of congestion are predictable, and thus,
expected by commuters.
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Q. I drove past a blank message board and then got
caught in a big traffic jam because of a crash. Why
wasn't the message board working to tell me about the
crash?
A. Crashes can happen at any time. Unfortunately, if a
crash happens after you pass a blank sign, you won’t
know about it until you see the slow traffic.
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Q. Why don't you have travel times on the message
boards?
A. Testing of travel times is currently underway. Once
testing is complete, travel time messages will be put up
on some of the message boards.
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Q. What are the hours for the TDOT SmartWay
system?
A. Camera images are always available on the TDOT website. However, system monitoring operations of TDOT SmartWay generally is from 5:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. weekdays and from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekends. The only TMC which currently operates 24/7 is the Knoxville TMC.
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Q. How do TDOT SmartWay and the HELP trucks work
together?
A. HELP is part of the SmartWay system, TDOT’s
Intelligent Transportation System. They work
hand-in-hand in the Transportation Management Center to
keep the highways open. HELP dispatchers and SmartWay
operators work together in verifying incidents,
dispatching HELP trucks and notifying motorists, local
police, and local media.
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Q. Will the TDOT SmartWay signs be used for Amber
Alert messages?
A. The effectiveness of using freeway message boards in
child abduction cases where the victim’s life is
believed to be at stake has been proven. TDOT and the
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) have developed a
formal Amber Alert procedure. When there is an Amber
Alert, there will be messages notifying motorists of
important information and direct motorists to call
1-800-TBI-KIDS for more detailed information.
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Q. Will the cameras on the highway be used to
catch speeders?
A. No. SmartWay is not a law enforcement tool. Instead,
it has been developed to provide quicker emergency
response and provide traffic information to the public.
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Q. Why are certain cameras or message boards not
working?
A. Routine maintenance must be performed on the cameras
and signs, and they must be off during this process.
There are also times that certain cameras or sign
information may be unavailable due to respect for the
privacy of those involved a traffic crash. Because these
devices are monitored by operators at the TMC, we are
quickly aware of when problems occur.
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Q. How often do the camera
images refresh?
A. The camera images are refreshed approximately every one to five minutes. Through a partnership with Trafficland, Inc. the Knoxville cameras are refreshed every 2 seconds. TDOT expects a similar partnership to be developed statewide.
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