Traffic check by air

Press, 2 March 1982, Page 2

Traffic check by air

Two University of Canterbury students, Hung Bui and Chris Green (pictured) study aerial photographs of traffic movements as part of a summer experiment by the Christchurch City Council to determine how well the inner city’s area traffic control system is working. Some information on traffic counts and ? speeds — mainly in one-way streets — normally comes from measuring equipment at 32 sites. ■ ■ \' The students checked re-cently-taken aerial photographs through a stereoscope to determine the speeds at which vehicles are using the one-way street system, -

The photographs were I taken at one-second intervals i along a pre-set route, from a • light aircraft flying at 3500 ft. 1 Pairs of photographs ! slightly displaced in time • and distance are viewed to determine average speeds of 1 vehicles. Images under different traffic signal phases have been compared to measure the cost to drivers — through fuel consumption — of different signal settings. * “We are . tinkering with the system to see the gains and losses of a traffic strategy,” said Mr Brian Hasell, the staff engineer for traffic management and signals. “We will try to tie .this

information in with the routine data we get from intersections,” The aerial evaluation project has included Bealey Avenue and Fitzgerald Avenue.