SatNav is bad news for local authorities, a senior Ordnance Survey told members of the ITS UK’s Urban Interest Group.
OS product manager, Gavin Jackman, told the group that councils faced rising bills for maintaining minor roads used by navigation-equipped HGV, and that haulage operators needed new-generation devices with freight-intelligent attributes to overcome reliance on car-based data.
Mr Jackman said the OS was currently developing its own freight map of primary freight routes, pulling together existing local authority freight plans from around the country, although these were not necessarily compatible and data standards varied. By the end of 2007, the OS planned to log key characteristics of every UK road bridge, but he explained the quality of environmental route information was too sporadic for early release. He added that the OS was working with Cambridge and West Sussex county councils to gain improved data, and planned to log freight access zones and corridors.
Faber Maunsell’s Geoff Clarke called for new ITS tools which give enriched HGV route information on shareable bus/taxi lanes and delivery restrictions. Dynamic traffic guidance would enable en route rescheduling of problematic drops. Information could also include details of delivery methods, such as secure urban locker boxes for Internet shopping. Some housebuilders are now incorporating these in new developments.
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