Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) Planning and Professional Services

Click here to view excerpt from "State of the Art of Paratransit".

Paratransit is poised to make major improvements in its quality of service and to increase productivity and its overall usefulness to urban public transportation systems through better information technology and better vehicles. The speed at which these changes occur will depend on how quickly agencies can move toward integrated planning. This will require a shift to a paradigm that views paratransit as playing an essential role in transit systems by providing service to low-density markets. The paradigm shift will be encouraged by the current interest in smart growth, which is based, in part, on providing many alternatives to automobile travel.

Several information technologies are being integrated into or planned for paratransit service. EPV can help providers in many areas. Our industry experience makes us believe that intelligent transportation systems for paratransit providers will make possible many enhancements that can improve service and lower costs. EPV, through its in-depth studies, will help transportation providers address their specific issues as well as select and integrate a system to fit their current and future needs.

ITS Assessment

Concept of Operations / ITS Requirements

EPV and project partners developed an ITS Specification for the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). This specification provides the basis for developing customized ITS system requirements. Through on-site process observation and assessment, EPV will develop the framework and technical course for any ITS project. The framework, called the Concept of Operations (ConOps) will clearly convey a high-level design of the ITS system to be developed following the FHWA National ITS Architecture.

Procurement Process Assistance

RFP Development / Vendor Selection

Following the ITS System Engineering standards, EPV will review and validate requirements with stakeholders and present them in the IEEE Standard 830 These requirements will be used for the RFP (Request for Proposal) development. The RFP will dictate the vendor’s response and provide a consistent method for vendor selection. EPV will provide assistance in the RFP development to ensure all technical requirements are included and ensure Vendor compliance with requirements.

ITS Deployment Management

Project Management / Integration

Once a vendor has been selected, Project Management is a key role for a successful ITS system deployment. By providing vendor management and coordination, requirement verification and system validation, EPV will assure the successful deployment of an ITS system.