Progressive Councils Utilize Traffic Data for Road Solutions

Councils across Australia are dealing with the COVID-19 induced fall in their cash reserves. Most councils have fallen short on their revenue targets for the year, owing to the pandemic restrictions. As a result, decreased revenues from fewer people movement, suspension of pay parking, rate capping, and late payment of rates (estimated at six per cent) have all impacted the two-top revenue-earning sources for most councils.

The economic fallout from COVID-19 has exacerbated pre-existing weaknesses in some council’s funding and approval processes, mismanagement of major projects and misuse of funding. Multiple councils are being placed under administration and/or facing budget blowouts.

How can we ensure fair governance and the appropriate road planning and transport and traffic projects are prioritised? Not every stakeholder, shop owner and ratepayer will agree with your decision, whether that be about what road is upgraded, which area needs lower speed limits, or where to install a parklet to help the local restaurants through post-COVID-19 recovery.

How can councils ensure any projects they back are sound investments and can deliver on the intended objectives? Road safety, active mobility, and local infrastructure upgrades are some of the primary projects undertaken by councils. What is the shift in process post-COVID-19 that can help avoid mismanagement, inform the funding prioritisation process, and bring transparency and understanding?

Doug Bradbrook, Senior Traffic Engineer at Mornington Peninsula Shire Council, knows all the risks involved and the challenges for getting roads and traffic right.  

“Our shire has one of the highest road trauma rates of any jurisdiction. We have a mix of main roads and 1,700 kilometres of arterial and local and country-style roads that vary in their quality and speed limits. Added to that is our 357 kilometres of mains roads owned by VicRoads where we bid for road upgrade funding and need a strong evidence base for action,” says Doug.   

 “We have a sound road improvement strategy which meets the accepted standard approach to road upgrades, maintenance, roundabout design and speeds. It is informed by our strategies, state government strategies, data and community feedback.”   

Cognisant of the multiple economic, financial and community pressures facing the council, Doug is always looking for more cost-effective ways of generating data insights. “We use a mixture of tube counters, cameras and Traffic Accident Commission (TAC) and real-time traffic data and are always looking to improve our evidence base to solve key pain points like summertime congestion in the southern peninsula.”   

“Traffic data is crucial for forward planning our maintenance program, enabling us to identify high volume roads which will require maintenance before others to keep them in good order and to know substandard roads to upgrade.” The Mornington Peninsula Shire Council’s Road Improvement Program outlines three key metrics that the council bases its decisions on:   

• Peak Hour Traffic Volume: the busiest hour for traffic on a day,    
• Degree of Saturation: the point where an unacceptable level of traffic congestion is occurring, and  
• Traffic Volumes: show where the highest demands are occurring on the road network. The capacity of roads is assessed to determine if enough traffic lanes are provided to meet demand. At intersections, the total traffic volume is assessed to check the suitability of the intersection treatment.    

But it is not only traffic volume, but the combination of vehicle counts and their speed that matter, “speed identifies risk and is also a key evaluation metric when we are analysing the impact of an upgrade or intersection treatment. Intersection treatments are crucial, and we use speed data to analyse where the treatments are working or need changing, and we are designing more cost-effective roundabouts to boost deployments,” says Doug.   

“COVID impacted us all, with some places having more intense traffic and parking patterns requiring up to date data and broad speed and volume data coverage to inform our identification of high-risk intersections and our phasing of projects under our road improvement planning. We are trialling new traffic data as a service platform to supplement our traditional methods and to expand coverage into side streets to understand where drivers come from and their profile.”   

 And it is not only the project management and project outcomes the council wants to get right, but it is about s delivering real benefits to the community. “In the future, we want to communicate the valuable insights to the community through more accessible formats and platforms that we hope will help the community with their trip planning and getting from point A to B safely and more efficiently, and data is at the core of this,” adds Doug.   

In 2020, some NSW councils who were forced to merge are now looking at rate rises to cover the $1.03 billion loss in budget revenues. And it is not just the smaller, amalgamated councils that are under stress. Recently, one of Australia’s largest council was in the grip of a financial crisis owing to budgetary mismanagement. The NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) views the local councils as the most exposed level of government, with the least oversight and has previously investigated many councils.  

This perfect storm has served to place a council’s decision-making process under even more scrutiny – by the media, community and anti-corruption authorities such as NSW ICAC. It also highlights the need for strategic planning, informed decision making that follows agreed processes and incorporates community input, meets industry standards and is built on a sound evidence base.   

And it is the community expectations that have placed the council under added pressure, especially with the growth in smart cities and regions, that has created closer relationships between people, place, technology and data. Roads are now part of ‘placemaking’, which is about serving the needs of all, from drivers and cyclists to pedestrians and shop owners.    

It’s a classic clash of cultures, with the traditional pace of government and road project delivery now at loggerheads with end-user expectations. Population growth and the increase in the use of cars post-COVID-19 are turning the spotlight back onto roads, parking and traffic, and on those who want alternatives to car travel and repurpose streets, bringing people together to connect.   

Having a data-centric approach will inform the criteria used for decision making and lower the risk of a project failing:   

• Any project that is validated using quality data and has the impact analysis in place can help reduce the risk involved for councils in backing it.   
• Also, prioritising projects based on the immediate benefits that can be derived or their impact on the community can be evaluated on an ongoing basis.   
• Having a single source of truth will help councils to move ahead confidently.   

As individuals, we all make decisions differently. Several studies have concluded that 90% of decisions are emotion-based, while others are, as author Daniel Kahneman, argues susceptible to bias. Both emotion and bias are at their most powerful when critical thinking and analytical skills are at their weakest, raising the need for project funding and approval decisions that:  

• Have followed the agreed process and been measured against agreed criteria,    
• Are informed by consultation, and a sound evidence base, and   
• Meet the required standards while delivering against current and future requirements.   

As organisations spending tax and ratepayer money, councils need to formalise and agree on the processes and criteria that are required when performing the art and science of analysis and the process of decision making and project approval.    

No matter the project, the best and most defensible decisions are made based on agreed criteria. Even better if those criteria are informed by the latest quantitative and qualitative data combined to inform the assessment process and recommend a priority list and action plan.    

• Criteria help shape up and funnel the recommendations to project boards for decision.    
• Criteria informed by data and community consultation shows clear planning and decision-making pathway that is more defensible, and
• Criteria bring structure into this often messy and biased process of allocating funding.   

To treat the risk of project failure, we need to be mindful of the three key reasons why a project may potentially fail and address them accordingly, namely:   

• Was the project a good idea?   
• Did the council pick the right provider and solution?   
• What planning, management and governance are used for the project?   

There are councils like the City of Greater Geelong and City of Casey who are embracing data as part of their smart city strategies and ensuring this data is publicly available for evaluations and discussions. Some councils are also engaging with different stakeholders and involving them in the decision-making process, setting the criteria, agreed on deliverables for projects etc. Some Victorian councils like Glen Eira City Council and the Moreland City Council have set up Strategic Transport Advisory Committees where they invite members of their local community to be part of an advisory group that:  

• Provides advice on implementing their Transport Strategy,  
• Facilitates understanding of transport needs emerging within the council,  
• Supports community engagement in transport issues and projects, and  
• Provides advice on policy issues and more,  

Initiatives like these make the need for a single source of truth necessary, and quality data becomes an important ally, providing each person with the same set of facts to base their decision on.  

New-age data-as-a-service solutions can inform critical thinking, agreed processes and criteria, and data-driven analysis to meet the economic pressures and community expectations while ensuring transparency in funding and project approvals.   

The question is, how ready are our councils to adopt these new ways of functioning and a more critical yet collaborative approach to sustainable development?