FDOT District 3 ITS

Halff completed the design of a $24 million fiber-optic network and ITS project along Interstate 10 and Highway 231 in north Florida. Designed as the largest rural ITS deployment in the United States at the time of its construction, this project expanded the ITS communication network from the Pensacola Freeway Management System to the Tallahassee Freeway Management System.

The scope of work included the design and installation of 223 miles of fiber optic, 189 cameras, eight highway advisory radio (HAR) stations, three roadway weather information stations (RWIS), 40 travel time systems (TTS), 19 dynamic message signs (DMS) and 141 microwave vehicle detection systems (MVDS) sensor deployment. Halff also completed the design for the construction of a new Regional Transportation Management Center (RTMC) with a new video wall, and provided construction plans and construction project management for the project.

This system provides FDOT real-time traffic information throughout the project limits to effectively manage incident response. Vehicle detection systems were designed to send alerts to the RTMC when traffic flow dropped below a threshold. The decrease in flow indicates an incident, such as debris on the highway or traffic collisions, which can be verified by CCTV cameras prior to dispatching the appropriate agency to assist in mitigating the conflict. Dynamic message signs and highway advisory radio are used to alert drivers of public safety and travel advisory information.