Review of traveler information dissemination compliance: A case study

On November 8, 2010, final rule 23 CFR 511 mandated that States provide real-time traveler information to travelers along all interstates to help travelers make better travel decisions. This thesis measured the travel time information accuracy and checked the compliance of the Chicago Metropolitan area with this new Federal Rule. The scope of the study included all the interstates within the Chicago Metropolitan area of influence operated by the Illinois Department of Transportation. The travel time information was gathered from TravelMidwest.com and Google Maps for comparison. The study concluded that the Chicago Metropolitan area meets the minimum accuracy threshold of 85%. The analysis also suggests that the vast majority (85%) of the errors were less than +/-5minutes. Additional analysis found that the accuracy of the travel time information did not depend on the length of the segment. Moreover, the study revealed that there were certain interstates that need to expand their travel time information coverage to comply with the final rule. Overall, this thesis research suggests that IDOT is in compliance with the accuracy requirements of 23 CFR 511, but not the coverage aspects. This review has identified the expansions in the travel time system that are required to move towards compliance. Further, the data analysis has identified several opportunities for improving the accuracy of travel times along IDOT-operated interstate highways in the Chicago metropolitan area.