Rijkswaterstaat traffic control centre
KIVI visits Rijkswaterstaat traffic control centre.
On 14 June 2017, members of the Royal Institute of Engineers visited Rijkswaterstaat's traffic control centre in Utrecht. This visit was organised by the Departments of Technical Physics and because it involves quite a bit of measurement technology, it was also of interest to the Department of Measurement, Control and Operation Technology.
There are five traffic centres in the Netherlands: Velsen, Rhoon, Wolfheze, Helmond and Utrecht. Naturally, the Utrecht traffic centre is concerned with traffic on national highways in that province. Traffic flows on the highways here are extra large. In the province of Utrecht, the centre of the Netherlands, North-South and East-West traffic flows intersect. Traffic moving in the North-South direction travels on the motorways: A2, A27 and A28. In the East-West direction, these are the A1 and A12 motorways. An umbrella traffic centre is also housed at the Utrecht traffic centre. This centre considers the road traffic situation throughout the Netherlands. It gets its data from the five centres mentioned above. The centres are staffed full-time.
From the traffic centre, traffic signals, traffic control installations, rush-hour lane signs and Dynamic Route Information Panels (DRIPs, text panels above the road) are controlled. Only the matrix signs, the signs above the motorway showing the desired speed, are controlled automatically. This is done via detectors (copper loops) located under the road surface. When a motor vehicle passes over the loop, the magnetic field within loop increases sharply (motor vehicles are made up of iron, after all, and this greatly amplifies the magnetic field) and the passing time is recorded. Traffic intensity is the number of vehicles passing over the detector per unit time. The capacity of the road is the maximum number of vehicles that can pass over the road. In case more vehicles arrive, congestion occurs. Cars are now unable to move on. This leads to dangerous situations. After all, there will be drivers who drive at maximum speed and fail to notice the traffic jam stationary cars in time. This can lead to severe collisions, so-called rear-end collisions. When traffic volume becomes high, an advisory speed will appear on the "upstream" matrix sign. Lights also start flashing on this sign. This increases the driver's attention level and the likelihood of noticing the next sign. Obviously, the function of this system is to reduce the risk of serious accidents. For other things, the control is done by the operating personnel. In this, the main issue is traffic flow. A separate point is tunnel safety, the flow is controlled in such a way that no traffic jam will occur in the tunnel.
What we learnt is that there is a lot of manual work going on and we desperately need the people at the control centre. On the way back home, I waved at the camera, but I don't think they saw that.
On behalf of the TF and MRB department, Gerard Thomas.
Description
KIVI's Departments of Technical Physics and Measurement, Control and Steering Technology hereby invite you to visit the traffic control centre in UTRECHT:
Traffic better regulated and with less environmental pollution by Rijkswaterstaat.
The roads under the management of Rijkswaterstaat are continuously monitored for traffic intensity with a view to regulating traffic flows, preventing or monitoring traffic jams, in particular preventing notorious rear-end collisions, monitoring environmental aspects and limiting economic damage. To this end, it uses cameras, induction loops in the asphalt for vehicle detection, matrix signs, metering lights at motorway entrances and the opening of rush-hour lanes, among others.
Traffic management covers all these aspects but also deals with the question of the need to build new roads or make better use of existing ones.
The field of measurement and control technology is an important discipline in traffic monitoring and regulation.
This visit offers the opportunity to view the impressive spectacle of the large screens that serve to visualise traffic intersections and highways online. During the tour, Rijkswaterstaat's working methods will be explained.
Maximum 25 participants.
Legitimation required
Location
Traffic Control Centre Rijkswaterstaat
Papendorpseweg 101 3528 BJ Utrecht
Organiser
Measuring, control and regulation technology
Technical Physics
Name and contact details for information
Elfride Dijkstra