Proposals to enhance electronic management of traffic flows on Dublin’s M50 and expand surveillance and control of the State’s motorways have been published by the State’s road builder, Transport Infrastructure Ireland.
The body already gathers data from sensors on roads, which monitor a range of factors, from road conditions to vehicle numbers and speeds of vehicles. These are matched with overhead cameras, which provide “real time” information to a control centre at Dublin Port.
In the centre, operators are able to predict travel times and congestion and send messages to drivers through overhead electronic messages.
Typical messages would include drive times but have also included information about missing persons and vehicles.
While the M50 is the State’s most developed road for what the authority calls intelligent transport systems, such facilities are currently being deployed across the entire motorway network.
Control centre
Transport Infrastructure Ireland has advertised for suppliers to pre-qualify for a tender to expand the control centre in Dublin Port to handle the extra volume of control.
The centre operates 24 hours a day, 365 days an year, and the tender documents make it clear the 270sq m extension and all its equipment will have to be provided while keeping the existing system going. Interested firms have been invited to pre-qualify for the tender, which is to be awarded in May 2018.
The advertisement said two other contracts were also being progressed. The first of these provides for further “traffic flow optimisation” on the M50 and will be delivered in two contracts, the civil engineering works and the technology required for the process.
The second contract provides for the replacement of existing active traffic management system. The replacement will form the core part of the network management system.
