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Border-Wide Assessment of Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) Technology—Current and Future Concepts

Final Report

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Background

Cross-border transportation is an important element of the nation’s transportation system. Adding transportation infrastructure at land border crossings is even more challenging than building transportation infrastructure elsewhere because of the international dimension and the different stakeholders that interact at an international border crossing. The use of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) and other technologies is one way in which capacity at ports of entry (POEs) can be increased and enhance and improve the coordination between stakeholders on both sides of the border.

The purpose of this effort was to conduct a border-wide assessment of the use of intelligent transportation systems (ITS) technologies and operational concepts at and near land border crossings between the U.S. and Mexico. The work focused on tolling, traffic management and operations, and safety.

Approach

In order to reach the objective, the initial task was to conduct a scanning assessment of ITS technologies with a primary focus on the U.S.-Mexico border, substituting ITS experience on the U.S.-Canada border when experience with equivalent technology on the U.S.-Mexico border does not yet exist.

Two workshops were organized during the project. The objective of the workshops was to further document the state-of-the-practice, stakeholders’ short- and long-term needs, and present and future technology solutions. In the initial workshop, the research team presented a summary and facilitated discussion of the ITS technologies that are being implemented at border regions.

During the second workshop, participants identified policy, legal, and institutional barriers to implementing ITS technologies along the United States’ northern and southern borders. ITS solution providers and technology vendors presented their experiences in the implementation of innovative ITS projects at the borders.

Scan Assessment Key Findings

The scan assessment was divided into several topics, and the key findings of each topic follow.

Border Operations

The border-crossing process for passenger and commercial vehicles at the U.S. northern and southern borders is complicated due to the number of stakeholders that participate in the process, involving two countries, private and public sectors, and all levels of government. The commercial vehicle crossing requires additional cargo inspection for trucks crossing into the United States, which adds a level of complexity.

There is a whole range of activities that take place at land border crossing, such as electronic filing of import and export declarations, agricultural inspections, drug interdiction, immigration check on the driver and passengers, vehicle safety checks, etc. All of these activities involve a certain level of technology and data systems; however, this study focuses only on the use of technology for traffic management.

The assessment shows that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the main stakeholder, at land border crossings, as it is required to perform security inspections on passenger and commercial vehicles. CBP has implemented several programs that use technology to aid in its mission. The trusted-traveler programs such as Free and Secure Trade (FAST) and Secure Electronic Network for Travelers Rapid Inspection (SENTRI) use RFID devices. FAST offers expedited clearance to carriers that have demonstrated supply chain security and that are enrolled in the Customs-Trade Partnership against Terrorism (C-TPAT). SENTRI provides expedited CBP processing for pre-approved, low-risk travelers at the U.S.-Mexico border (the U.S.-Canada version of SENTRI is called NEXUS).

The use of technology to improve international land border-crossing operations has increased in recent years. CBP and other federal and state agencies in the United States, Mexico and Canada as well as the private sector are implementing technologies to improve border-crossing operations. Coordination among these stakeholders is an important element in which ITS could play an important role.

Tolling at Land Border Crossings

Most of the tolls at the U.S. international ports of entry are collected at those crossings that have a bridge structure. At the U.S. southern border, 21 of the 46 border crossings collect tolls and are mostly located in the State of Texas. New crossings are being planned in all the border states, and due to funding restrictions, most likely these new facilities will be tolled. The majority of toll operations at land border crossings are using Automatic Vehicle Identification (AVI) technology such as radio frequency identification (RFID), proximity cards, and bar code technology. These systems are well established, reliable, and enforceable.

At existing international tolled crossings, the research did not find interoperability or enforcement agreements between U.S. and Mexican tolling agencies. These agreements are being discussed for planned land ports of entry to increase operational efficiency.

Toll rates at the U.S.-Canada crossing are coordinated bi-nationally; however, the scan indicated that there is no coordination of toll rates between U.S. and Mexican international bridge operators. Pricing schemes were not found along the U.S. northern and southern borders. The Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) conducted a study in 2007 about congestion pricing at international border crossings in El Paso and concluded that given the resource constraints of the agencies involved in managing the area’s border crossings, it is likely that the most feasible option will be the implementation of a variable pricing regime.

Toll operators at U.S. roadways and the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) Connected Vehicle program are exploring the use of the 5.9 GHz spectrum DSRC technology. However, the scan indicated that there are no concrete plans in the near future to implement 5.9 GHz DSRC technology at land ports of entry.

Traffic Management and Traveler Information

The scan revealed that sharing of real-time traffic management data and ITS usage between agencies from both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border has been limited, compared to U.S.-Canada counterparts. No bi-national Traffic Management Centers (TMCs) along the U.S.-Mexico border were identified, and communication between agencies is limited to methods such as radio and mobile phones. Traffic data-sharing information systems along the U.S.-Mexico border have not been developed due to funding constraints on the Mexican side of the border.

Regarding the sharing of ITS solutions, U.S.-Mexico border agencies have deployed those only to a very limited degree with the specific purpose of incident management around border crossings. Special events at and around border crossings (e.g., concerts, cultural and sporting events, major holydays) are planned ahead using ad-hoc meetings between bi-national agencies of all levels. Each agency lays out its subsequent roles according to its jurisdictions to assist traffic management during the event.

CBP and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) are currently measuring border crossing and wait times at land POEs. This information is shared via the Internet. The FHWA and other state agencies are in the process of implementing several ITS technologies to measure border and crossing times for commercial vehicles along the U.S. southern border. FHWA will release several documents that would benefit other agencies to deploy similar systems in the near future.

As far as passenger vehicle border crossing times, Bluetooth seems to be a viable technology for measuring travel times. This technology is being implemented along the U.S.-Canada border and has been recently tested at a U.S.-Mexico POE.

The use of technologies such as smart phones, radar traffic sensors, and vehicle waveform identification has shown improvements in collection of wait and crossing times.

The scan revealed that television and radio are the most common methods of disseminating border-crossing times at land ports of entry. Internet and mobile devices are gaining market share in this arena.

Archived Data Management

A centralized repository of archived data would significantly reduce data redundancy, reduce data collection and storage cost, and increase efficiency of data retrieval.

There is a need for highly granular border crossing data by state and local agencies. In addition, local agencies need information such as queue lengths, wait times, and crossing times. This information is normally obtained during a relatively short period of data collection at the border.

A major problem in data storage management is the reluctance to purge data due to fear of losing aggregated data. Maintaining only aggregated data in the core database will undoubtedly result in improved performance.

Emerging Technologies

The USDOT Connected Vehicle Program has been considered as a key building block for Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA’s) objective of significantly expanding the number of inspections that are conducted each year and the base of data on which to make performance-based enforcement decisions.

The Wireless Roadside Inspection (WRI) initiative involves emerging technologies used in the United States that have been tested with outstanding results for examining the condition of the vehicle and driver by assessing data collected by on-board systems.

The Connected Vehicle Program and the WRI have the potential to be implemented at international border crossings, as all commercial vehicles entering the United States need to be inspected, and drivers need to meet U.S. requirements.

Other emerging technologies that have implementation potential at the border crossings in the near future come from initiatives such as the Dynamic Mobility Applications (DMA) Program, Cross-Town Improvement Project (C-TIP), and the Commercial Vehicle Infrastructure Integration (CVII) initiative.

Inventory of ITS Projects on the U.S.-Mexico Border Regions

The scan analyzed several projects along the U.S.-Mexico border and identified the following:

Projects under Construction

  • Border crossing and wait time at the Bridge of the Americas, El Paso, Texas
  • Border crossing and wait time at the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge, Pharr, Texas
  • Border crossing and wait time at the Camino Colombia and World Trade Bridges, Laredo, Texas
  • Border Waits Assessment Project at the Mariposa POE in Nogales, Arizona
  • State Route 905/Otay Mesa POE, San Diego, California Region
  • ITS Pre-Deployment Strategy for SR-11 and the Otay Mesa East POE

Projects under Consideration

  • San Ysidro POE, San Diego Region
  • State-of-the-Art ITS at Border Crossings in the El Paso Region

ITS Projects under Development in Mexico

  • National Strategic Plan for Planning, Developing, and Implementing ITS in Mexico
  • Development Plan for Updating Processes, Standards, and ITS Protocols
  • Development of the Traveler Information System (INFOVIAJE)
  • Strategic Plan for the Modernization and Improvement of the Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) System

Workshop 1 Findings

One of the findings from the first workshop was that a key element for the successful implementation of ITS technologies is to identify policy, legal, and institutional barriers to implementation. Given that Federal, State, and local agencies from two countries as well as private-sector stakeholders operate at the border, it is difficult and time-consuming to overcome these non-technical barriers.

Another key finding from the workshop was the realization that it is crucial to understand stakeholder needs prior to the implementation of any technology.

Workshop 2 Findings

The second workshop included participants from the public and private sectors. On the public sector side, state and local officials presented their implementation experiences. Private sector stakeholders presented their experiences with technology implementation that facilitate transportation across borders.

Conclusions

Various stakeholders that operate at the land border-crossing environment are implementing ITS technologies. However, every stakeholder is trying to tackle its own needs, and there is little if any coordination among stakeholders to develop standards that could lead to an integrated, interoperable system capable of sharing resources and perhaps information. One example of this is the use of RFID transponders (i.e., “tags”). Currently CBP is utilizing tags on commercial vehicles that are separate from FAST tags, to manage user fees. The same type of tags is being used for tolling purposes at some commercial crossings on both sides of the border. Various states are using the same technology to expedite vehicle inspection at the border. However, lack of coordination leads to having vehicles with multiple RFID tags that are similar or identical.

There are examples of a coordinated bi-national effort like the project currently underway at the proposed Otay Mesa East crossing in California. The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is developing a bi-national ITS pre-deployment plan that will incorporate the use of ITS technologies in the San Diego/Tijuana region.

With regard to future technologies, the information gathered during this research leads to the conclusion that the implementations of vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) technologies that have bi-directional communication capability between the vehicles and the border-crossing systems have potential to improve border operations in the future. Most likely, in the next 10-15 years tolling systems will be “tag-free” leaning heavily on 5.8 GHZ DSRC. This will depend on the level of adoption by toll operators and vehicle manufacturers as the connected vehicle program evolves.

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