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U.S. Department of Transportation Launches CO-PILOT Cost Estimation Tool

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) is pleased to announce the launch of CO-PILOT, the Cost Overview for Planning Ideas and Logical Organization Tool.

CO-PILOT is a high-level cost estimation planning tool designed to facilitate the development of cost estimates for the Connected Vehicle Pilot Deployments. Featuring an intuitive and user-friendly interface, CO-PILOT allows users to generate deployment cost estimates for 56 applications drawn from the following program areas:

  • Vehicle-to-Vehicle Safety
  • Vehicle-to-Infrastructure Safety
  • Mobility
  • Environment
  • Road Weather
  • Smart Roadside
  • Agency Data.

After selecting their desired application(s), users then input the estimated number of “building blocks” that their deployments will feature. These 16 building blocks encompass the system elements of each deployment, such as signalized intersections, transit vehicles, and freight terminals. CO-PILOT then allows users to assign relevant selected applications to each program building block.

CO-PILOT produces three valuable outputs. An Excel spreadsheet provides a line-item breakdown of deployment costs. A pie chart displays the percentages of costs associated with each deployment building block. Finally, a cost probability distribution graph displays the projected deployment costs. CO-PILOT also provides users with the flexibility to alter unit cost data to suit local needs, as well as to add additional cost elements.

CO-PILOT contains an informative Help section, and project personnel are available to address user questions or comments.

The USDOT encourages prospective pilot deployment proposers to investigate the capabilities of CO-PILOT. The tool is expected to provide users with the preliminary cost information and outputs to support the development of an accurate pilot deployment cost proposal.

To further support the launch of CO-PILOT, the USDOT will host a public webinar on January 7, 2015. The webinar will feature an interactive overview of CO-PILOT and a question-and-answer session with USDOT project personnel. Check back soon for webinar registration information.