Research Archive

Data Capture and Management (DCM) is the creation and expansion of access to high-quality, real-time, multimodal transportation data, captured from connected vehicles, mobile devices, and infrastructure. Data Capture and Management technologies collect real-time data from a variety of sources and modes and integrate the data across modes and sources or make it available for users to incorporate according to their needs.

The vision of the DCM program is to enhance current operational practices and transform future transportation-systems management and traveler information through the active acquisition of integrated multi-source data from vehicles, travelers, mobile devices, and fixed sensors, and the systematic provision of this data to researchers, application developers, and system operators.

The objectives of the DCM program are to:

  • Enable systematic data capture from connected vehicles (automobiles, transit, and trucks), mobile devices, and infrastructure)
  • Develop data environments that enable integration of high-quality data from multiple sources for transportation management and performance measurement.
  • Reduce costs of data management and eliminate technical and institutional barriers to the capture, management, and sharing of data.
  • Determine required infrastructure for transformative applications implementation, along with associated costs and benefits.

Applications that use real-time data have the potential to increase highway safety and operational efficiency nationwide while minimizing the impact on the environment, and enabling travelers to make better-informed travel decisions. Real-time data sets also have the potential to support a range of multimodal mobility applications. For example, real-time information on parking availability and transit schedules can enable smarter mode- choice decisions and yield time and fuel efficiencies for travelers. Updated freight-movement data helps commercial freight operators to optimize operations.