COMPUTERIZED TRAVEL TIME STUDY FOR NORTHEASTERN ILLINOIS

This paper describes the first year of a 5-year research project to ascertain travel times on the strategic regional arterial (SRA) system. The system which totals 1340 miles and has been designated in the CATS 2010 Transportation System Development Plan to supplement the expressway system in handling regional high-volume, long-haul auto and commercial vehicle trips. The details are given of the study in which a 2-person observer crew used lap-top computers to record license plate data which was then subjected to analysis by a pair of custom written, in-house programs. The study aimed at establishing a data file that will assist and monitor how well or how badly the SRAs function. The data may serve to confirm or refute common assumptions about the traffic conditions. The study findings are listed.