Harmonisation of location referencing for related data collection

Location referencing is one of the most important components in successfully conducting vehicle-based data collection. Without proper location referencing, users would have no way of discerning at what location the data was collected, severely limiting the use of the data. Currently road authorities around Australia and New Zealand have adopted their own linear location referencing systems designed specifically for their own road networks. There are advantages and disadvantages with the use of linear referencing systems; however, with vehicle-based surveys being common practice in road authorities and even in some local councils; a common referencing system needs to be developed. The report discusses some of the different linear referencing systems currently used by road authorities and the issues they have encountered with their use. The report also explores some of the current technology used for spatial referencing and provides recommendations on a harmonised location referencing system.