DEVELOPMENT OF FLORIDA'S ITS PLANNING GUIDELINES

Much of the early interest in and deployment of intelligent transportation systems (ITS) has been stimulated by federal funding, rather than through a systematic planning process at the local or state level. Development of ITS has not always been clearly connected to a transportation problem or need, or well integrated with the range of other existing transportation strategies and programs. As a result, there has been a general lack of understanding regarding the benefits of connecting ITS to the transportation planning process. Due to recent initiatives at the Federal level and within the Florida Department of Transportation, the mainstreaming of ITS into the transportation planning process is occurring. The purpose of the ITS Planning Guidelines is to provide general direction to local and state planners for why, when, and how to consider ITS; even what ITS applications to consider. The ITS Planning Guidelines treat ITS as an integral element in all aspects of the transportation planning process. Specifically, these guidelines address the following planning issues: Incorporation of ITS into the Transportation Planning Process, Consistency with the National ITS Architecture, Role of ITS in Congestion Management Systems, Role of ITS in Corridor Studies, Concurrency Management Impacts on ITS Planning, Role of ITS in Sustainable Transportation and Economic Growth, and Comparing ITS with Non-ITS Improvements.