In the 65-degree climate-controlled room, about 1,400 large reels of film dating back 24 years filled the photogrammetry office in Phoenix.

The film was developed and scanned to provide photogrammetry to document — via a topographic map with aerial images — the conditions in and around areas where ADOT was improving, building or repairing freeways from 1997 to 2015. Photogrammetry is the science of making precise measurements utilizing aerial photographs to make accurate maps and surveys.

Today, these film reels along with storage cabinetry and scanning equipment have a new home. They were moved from the 28th Street building to the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records for historic preservation.

Coordinating with the State Archives, the environmental cleanup of chemicals, facilities and moving companies was needed during the process. A new moving company was retained at the last minute and this ended up saving ADOT’s Roadway and Survey Section about $8,000.

“Well done on the move and saving $$. ADOT is now almost ready to put 28th Street into our scrapbook with other fond memories that we will leave in the rear view mirror,” said ADOT Director John Halikowski.

For many years, ADOT surveyors and engineers used photogrammetry to understand an area’s features and terrain before they began to plan freeway improvements.

An ADOT Blog article from 2012 explains how photogrammetry using aerial photos worked:

“The photos are taken with a 60-65 % overlap so photogrammetrists (with the help of computer software and special 3D glasses) can see a three dimensional view of the ground. From there, they use a specially designed computer mouse (also known as a stealth mouse) to collect all features and draw breaklines (three-dimensional lines used to collect points) that indicate where there’s a change in terrain elevation.”

When aerial photogrammetry was requested through the ADOT public record process, the photogrammetry unit provided a black and white print of a particular route and milepost. The Office of Attorney General and Arizona Department of Administration Risk Management staff regularly requested aerial photos for large liability claims. But records requests stopped about nine years ago because experts were using color satellite imagery.

“Because the ADOT aerial photogrammetry had historical value to the State of Arizona, transfer of the reels allows for greater access to the general public and preservation for future generations," said ADOT Records Manager Susan Olson. "I was contacted by Roadway Design to facilitate what ADOT should do with retiring the aerials and handled the transfer paperwork for the reels and details with the Arizona Library and Archives. Roadway Design Group facilitated the transfer logistics,” she added.

Since new technology emerged, ADOT no longer supports photogrammetry projects.

“Planes, pilots, digital cameras and aerial photographers are now supplied by consultants,” said Coxon, who works in the Infrastructure Delivery and Operations Division’s Roadway Engineer Survey Section. “Drones also are used by consultants and offer many benefits including less operating expenses.” 

The U.S. recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, and for anyone interested in technology one fact stood out: the average smart device we can hold in our hand today will perform instructions 120 million times faster than the computers on that spacecraft.

I raise this point because at the ADOT Motor Vehicle Division, our employees can sometimes feel like they’re using computer technology that’s from a bygone era. Well, that’s because they are.

The system used by our Customer Service Representatives works OK for its age, but it’s sorely in need of replacement, which is exactly what’s happening now. For several years, we have been preparing to roll out a new state-of-the art system that will greatly enhance our ability to serve customers more quickly and with greater efficiency.

The system will be in place near the end of 2019, but we’re already in the process of training our employees, which is a gargantuan task in its own right and has some short-term implications for our customers.

Because it’s most efficient to train employees from individual offices at one time, we’re closing locations for one week on a rolling statewide schedule. That means an office in one area of the state may be shut down, but there will be another MVD office or an Authorized Third Party provider within a reasonable distance that’s open and able to serve customers. In some areas, we will dispatch our new Mobile MVD office to pick up some of the slack. 

Despite the inconvenience these rolling closures may create for some, the end result will be an MVD that runs even more smoothly. For example, the time it takes to do business with MVD has dropped from a statewide average of almost an hour in 2015 to less than half an hour now. A lot of that success is due to the innovative ideas our employees come up with to make customer service better and the multiple online services available at ServiceArizona.com and AZMVDNow. 

I have indeed respect for the people of that time who were innovative enough to achieve the landing on the moon with technology that falls as far short of our expectations of technology today. Despite all that, the astronauts made it to the moon and back in 1969. MVD may not literally shoot for the moon, but if we can make so many great improvements to our service with outmoded computers, imagine what great things are on the way! 

 

By John Halikowski / ADOT Director

I’ve grown accustomed to your face ...

Sound familiar? It is a song from the Broadway musical “My Fair Lady.” The song could also represent ADOT’s efforts in the use of facial recognition software to fight identity theft in Arizona.

ADOT first implemented facial recognition technology in 2015 for use by our Motor Vehicle Division.  The technology allows our MVD personnel to look at a driver license photo and identify features on a person’s face. From there, the system can compare those features to every other photo in MVD’s database.

If there is a match in the system, there is now the potential problem of someone using another person’s identity to obtain a driver license or identification card. When that happens, MVD alerts ADOT’s Office of Inspector General to conduct an investigation. Our detectives, who have received FBI facial-recognition training, perform three levels of review to determine if identity theft has occurred. If the investigation proves fraudulent activity, law enforcement officials are notified and prosecution can take place.

I commend our employees at MVD and ADOT’s detectives for their efforts in protecting the people of Arizona. The use of facial recognition software is critical to our efforts to protect the identities of Arizona citizens and prevent fraud involving state-issued driver licenses and identified cards.

“I’ve Grown Accustomed to Your Face” should only be heard on stage, not here at ADOT.

 

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This post originally appeared on ADOT Director John Halikowski's 
LinkedIn page. He has led the agency since 2009.

 

 

 

By Ryan Harding / ADOT Communications

The transportation world is poised to rapidly change with the advent of autonomous vehicles and ride-sharing companies and an increased desire from the public for multimodal options. For agencies like ADOT, innovation is vital to serving future generations.

Luckily, we have the Arizona Council for Transportation Innovation, a product of the Federal Highway Administration’s Every Day Counts Initiative. Formed in 2012, the council supports innovative technologies and techniques to ensure smart, efficient investment in Arizona's highways and other transportation infrastructure.

The council is made up of officials from ADOT, the Federal Highway Administration and Maricopa and Pima counties, along with engineering professionals.

On Tuesday, Oct. 4, the council held its first all-day Innovation Exchange Campaign event in Tempe, bringing together transportation professionals and engineers from government organizations such as ADOT and from companies.

The photo above shows David Riley (left) and Andy Murray of ADOT’s Traffic Technology Group explaining a test involving the timing of ramp meters along State Route 51 in Phoenix. This test is aimed at seeing if adjusting meters can improve traffic flow.

Other booths featured innovations like the ability to produce high-quality digital mapping from a moving vehicle, methods to more efficiently and intelligently manage traffic flow, new synthetic materials to increase the lifespan of transportation infrastructure and even 3D printed recyclable vehicles.

“New innovations help make things smarter, faster and more cost-efficient,” said Karla Petty, Arizona division administrator for the Federal Highway Administration and co-chair of the Arizona Council for Transportation Innovation. “Innovation allows us to get more out of what we have.”

By John Halikowski / ADOT Director

Are we ready for the "Jetsons"-style mode of transportation? Not yet. But what we in the transportation world face is the evolving use of technology in developing connected and automated vehicles.

Technological advancements in connected and automated vehicles will have the greatest impact on highway transportation while connecting people to all modes of transportation. Gone are the days when a DOT laid down an asphalt roadway and called it a day. Tomorrow’s highway infrastructure will be a combination of wireless and fiber-optic corridors supporting optimized traffic flow and safety. The challenge moving forward is to ensure there is collaboration between state DOTs, private-sector companies and taxpayers in developing automated and connected vehicle technologies. DOTs cannot afford to develop supporting infrastructure that isn’t compatible with emerging technologies.

At ADOT, we reorganized to create a new division, Transportation Systems Management and Operations (TSMO), that optimizes infrastructure systems when it comes to connected and automated vehicles. ADOT is one of a few states that has created such a division. TSMO’s focus is on the performance of existing infrastructure and cross-jurisdictional improvements.

Technology can help increase capacity of the existing transportation system by reducing travel delays and reducing (or eliminating) secondary crashes, the significant factors in traffic capacity loss and congestion.

At ADOT, we stand ready to keep Arizona in the forefront in this new realm of transportation and all of the economic development opportunities that are coming. George, Jane, Judy and even Elroy Jetson would be amazed how far we’ve come in transportation.

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This post originally appeared on ADOT Director John Halikowski's LinkedIn page. He has led the agency since 2009.

 

 

Many drivers have noticed some new technology that’s been installed at three rest area locations.

No, they’re not speed enforcement cameras, in case that’s what you were wondering...

The technology is actually designed to help ADOT’s Enforcement and Compliance Division (ECD) conduct more efficient commercial vehicle safety inspections. Right now, the new technology is in place at the McGuireville (I-17 between Flagstaff and Camp Verde), Canoa Ranch (I-19 between Tucson and Nogales) and Sacaton (I-10 between Phoenix and Casa Grande) rest areas.

How the system works
It all starts with a standard advisory sign along the roadway placed about a mile and a half before the rest area entrance. That sign directs commercial motor vehicles to move into the right lane of travel. As the truck travels closer to the rest area, it’ll drive over a weigh-in-motion sensor embedded in the roadway to determine the approximate vehicle weight. Simultaneously, camera images of the vehicle are captured to check the status of the vehicle registration, U.S. Department of Transportation number, fuel tax assessment and carrier safety records.

If the system determines a commercial motor vehicle is in violation of weight requirements according to federal or state regulations, the driver is directed by roadside digital message signs to pull into the rest area. Then, inside a section of the rest area, ADOT’s ECD officers will conduct a more in-depth inspection of the commercial vehicle.

The new system has several advantages.

Because only non-compliant vehicles are directed by the message boards to stop for an inspection, it’s expected that this technology will help motor carrier companies save time and money. The new system will also help cut down on traffic congestion in the rest areas since fewer commercial motor vehicles are required to be inspected.

“Trucks that are overweight will do more damage to the pavement surface,” says ADOT Public Information Officer Harold Sanders in the video above. “We make sure that they are properly permitted and that they pay the appropriate user highway fees, which are used to do the maintenance and repair of the roadway surface.”