TMS Quick Help Guide

Transcription

1 TMS Quick Help Guide

2 Table of Contents 1.0 Introduction Search Types TCDS Search TSMS Search Map Interactions TCDS Map TSMS Map Reports TCDS Reports TSMS Reports Administration Page TCDS Admin Page TSMS Admin Page New Locations New TCDS Locations New TSMS Locations 23 Technical Support Contact: 3815 Plaza Dr. Ann Arbor, MI (734) Fax (734) Ben Chen William J. Tomiko Adrian Forbes bc@ms2soft.com wjt@ms2soft.com aforbes@ms2soft.com i

3 Table of Figures Figure 1: Flowcharts of TSMS and TCDS Processes 2 Figure 2: TCDS Main Search Page 3 Figure 3: TCDS Search Results Page 4 Figure 4: TSMS Main Search Page 5 Figure 5: TSMS Search Results Page 5 Figure 6: Map View of Located Count 6 Figure 7: Count Details View 7 Figure 8: Street View Feature 7 Figure 9: TSMS Search Results Page and Map View 8 Figure 10: Select by Polygon Feature 9 Figure 11: Geocode Search Map Feature 9 Figure 12: Latest Volume Report 10 Figure 13: TSMS Intersection Data Page Header 11 Figure 14: TSMS Report List 11 Figure 15: Turning Movement Count Data View 12 Figure 16: Peak Hour Range Selection 13 Figure 17: Top of Peak Hour Data Page 13 Figure 18: Example Synchro Model Data Importing 14 Figure 19: Header of TMS Webpage 15 Figure 20: Abbreviated View of TCDS Admin Page 15 Figure 21: PRN File Upload Window 15 Figure 22: Unassigned Volume Count Window 16 Figure 23: Search Page for TCDS Count Assignment 17 Figure 24: Location Data for TCDS Count 17 Figure 25: TSMS Admin Page 18 Figure 26: Example Basic Template 19 Figure 27: Unassigned Counts Window 19 Figure 28: Location Data for TMC Assignment 20 ii

4 Figure 29: TMS Homepage 21 Figure 30: New TCDS Link Count Location 22 Figure 31: New TSMS Location Edit Window 23 Figure 32: New TSMS Location Record and Mapped Intersection 24 iii

5 1.0 Introduction This guide is for users who are beginners to the system. This guide will provide you with the tools to use the common tasks performed and what to do when engaging with this system. If you have further questions feel free to explore the online help guide, or the staff at MS2 will be happy to assist you. Any features not discussed in this guide are considered advanced features. Detailed instructions for these additional features may be found in the online help guide. Any time you see the icon to the left in this document, consult the online help guide for further details on the topic and additional related topics. The Traffic Count Database System (TCDS) is a powerful tool for the traffic engineer or planner; you can directly download data from a traffic counter; historic data can be imported into the system using a simple process; all traffic count data can be searched directly in the database, or from the Google map. Graphs, lists, and reports can be viewed, printed or exported to a desktop. The Traffic Signal Management System (TSMS) can be used in conjunction with TCDS, or exclusively to manage traffic data associated with a unique location. TSMS gives you the option of uploading TMC data directly from your TMC counter; calculating relevant statistics associated with an intersection; viewing photos, sketches, and traffic simulations of the intersection; search for locations from the database or by using the Google map. This guide will introduce you to the most common tasks performed, including: Searching for existing counts Interacting with the map to obtain detailed count information Creating reports of count details Adding new counts Creating new count locations Each task will be explained first for TCDS then for TSMS. This guide presents a generic agency for each example and should only be used as a demonstration of a limited selection of TMS capabilities. Your modules may have varying abilities specific to your needs. Let s start at the beginning. Go to the main page and Login. The homepage for the agency referenced in this help guide is located at The left side of the page will look like Figure 2. This page will always be the starting point no matter what you wish to do. The Home button will bring you back to the main search page of the module you are in. Take note that this is not the browser Home button, but rather the TCDS or TSMS Home button. Should you want to add new locations or counts, search existing counts, edit existing counts or delete existing counts, generate reports or view graphs, you start at this page. Following this introduction are flowcharts of the TCDS and TSMS processes. 1

6 TCDS Process Flowchart Collect Traffic Counts Does Location Exist in TCDS? No Create New Locations in TCDS Yes No Upload Traffic Count Data Is Data Acceptable? Yes Assign Traffic Count Data to Correct Location Search Database View Map View Count Details Create and View, Export or Print Reports Collect TMC Data TSMS Process Flowchart No Assign TMC to Location Is Data Acceptable? Yes Search Map Location Exists in TSMS? Yes Upload TMC Data View TMC No Create New Location Calculate Peak Hours Export to Synchro Create and View, Export or Print Reports Figure 1: Flowcharts of TSMS and TCDS Processes 2

7 2.0 Search Types You can search broadly or narrowly using the numerous fields. Typically, a search is only conducted on one or two fields at a time. a b f c h d e Common Search Fields: County Community Location ID Located On Count Date Volume Let s start with a broad search under TCDS. 2.1 TCDS Search 1. Go to the TCDS home page 2. Select a County (a) and Community (b) from the drop down menu. The demo version only has one choice: Wayne County and Detroit community. Remember you must choose a County before you can choose a Community 3. Click Search. When you search with these criteria, you should have 10 results. See Figure 3. If you want to change your search fields, simply click on the Home button at the top of the TCDS page (Note: Do not use the browser Home button). This will bring you back to the main search page. g You can include more fields to narrow your search, or reset all fields to start a new search (g). Figure 2: TCDS Main Search Page 3

8 Use the Location ID field (h) to find locations with similar ID s. For example, if you know your count is a westbound count, enter _WB and select Ends With in the Location ID field. If you want a specific road name in your search, type the beginning of the road name in the Located On (c) field (See i Figure 2). A list of possible matches will appear below the field. You can then select the exact road you desire from this list. Use Howard Street as an example; As soon as you type in the letter h, the list will appear below and you can select Howard. j All entries with Howard as the On road will be displayed. The same principle applies to crossroads or routes. You do not need to search an on road to search for crossroads. It is recommended not to check the Exact Match box unless you are certain of the exact spelling of the entry in the desired record. Figure 3: TCDS Search Results Page Another typical search criterion is count date. Often you will want to narrow a search to a certain year or certain month range. You may enter this in the Count Date (d) fields. Use Volume Year (e) to search an entire year without specifying month and day. Only one date is necessary to generate a result. You may also search locations with a specific average daily volume. For example, the Volume (f) field may be used to find all locations that have 1000 vehicles daily. From the Search Results Page (Figure 3) you can Locate a count on the map (i) and show all directions of a location, All DIRs (j). The online help guide goes into further detail including how to save a search. 4

9 2.2 TSMS Search TSMS, like TCDS, can be searched by; County, Community, Location ID (Int ID in TSMS), and Road name, in addition to Synchro Zone and TMC Date Range (Figure 4). a b c You will usually only search by Int ID (a), Road Name (b), and TMC Date Range (c). Under most circumstances the ID# in TCDS is not related to the ID# in TSMS or TCLS, therefore; you must keep this in mind when searching in different modules As an example, search for all counts in Meridian Twp (community). In this demo version, Ingham is the only County. You will have 10 records that match this criterion. Figure 4: TSMS Main Search Page You can page through all found records using the arrows at the top of the page (Figure 5). d Use the Locate (d) button on the left side at the top of the page to display an intersection on the map. Intersections will be displayed as a blue pin and surrounding locations as red pins. Depending on the agency, the Signal and Sign Inventory may be used. This is a complete inventory of the signal hardware used including case signs and pedestrian hardware. Authorized users may edit these fields. Section 3.0 will explain how to display the search results on the mapand how to interact with the map. Figure 5: TSMS Search Results Page 5

10 3.0 Map Interactions Google maps are a familiar feature to many users. The user can: Pan Zoom Switch from road view to satellite view View count locations on the map Pull up count details from map Change marker type shown This map allows easy location of current count stations/locations, and links the map points to the data entries on the left side of the screen. Depending on the tab you have selected, different data points will show up. First zoom to the center of the map. Pins are placed on the map at all count locations and intersections. The map will display a limited number of pins at one time. If you are having difficulty viewing pins, you may need to zoom in. As you zoom in you should see several pins on the map. Latest 2-way Volume Count 3.1 TCDS Map Figure 6: Map View of Located Count Move the mouse cursor over the pin and the Location ID will appear. Click on the pin and more information will appear. The direction of the count and most recent AADT volume, or count volume will be listed (Figure 6). If there is more than one count or multiple directions, each will be listed. 6

11 The most recent 2-way count volume is displayed above the pin at all times. When the direction and volume window appears, a link to View Detail is also displayed. If you click on this link, the left side of the window will go directly to the information for this location, see Figure 6. If there is a Volume count available at this location you can view the count details by clicking the next to the count you wish to view. Figure 7 is an example of the count details that would be shown. This is another area where you can edit, delete, or unassign the count. The online user guide will give you further instruction on using these tools. You may also locate a count listing from the left side of the screen. Search using the desired criterion, then click Locate button to display a count location on the map side of the screen. Surrounding count locations may be shown, but the located count will be distinguished by a blue pin, while others will have red pins. Street View is a recent feature introduced by Google. It provides street level views of roads, buildings, and infrastructure features. This feature is not available in all areas. Click on the camera to display blue areas that indicate the feature is available (Figure 8). Click on a blue lined street to display the street view Figure 7: Count Details View window in the lower right corner. Click on the camera icon, now with a red slash through it, to turn off the Street View feature. This feature is also available within the TSMS module. Select by polygon is a feature that enables the user to select markers from the map and display the results (See Figure 10). Figure 8: Street View Feature 7

12 3.2 TSMS Map Map capabilities for TSMS are identical to TCDS. You can search for locations directly from the map. To display the intersection data on the left side, click on the point and View Detail link. Figure 9 shows each item obtained from the map. Figure 9: TSMS Search Results Page and Map View Intersections will be shown as signal heads on the map. Move the mouse cursor over the point and the Int ID# will appear. If you click on an intersection, a bubble will appear displaying the Int ID#, Road and Cross Road names, and a link to View Detail. If you click on this link it will pull up the location information on the left side of the screen. You can toggle the markers for each module through the Tools Menu. The drop down menu within the Tools menu is only associated with PCDS markers. You may also print the map and clear located markers through this menu. The Legend menu, found next to the Tools menu on the map, is the key to the icons used on the map. Select by polygon acts as a search mechanism directly on the map (See Figure 10). Everything within the green area is selected. The user can select several markers at one time and after closing the polygon, the results are pulled up on the left side of the window. This feature is available for both TCDS and TSMS. Street View is a recent feature introduced by Google. It provides street level views of roads, buildings, and infrastructure 8

13 features (See Figure 8). This feature is not available in all areas. Click on the camera to display blue areas that indicate the feature is available. Figure 10: Select by Polygon Feature The Geocode map feature was added to provide the user with a way to search the map directly. You do not have to go back to the search page to find a street, city, or place of interest. Type in your location and click the Geocode button (Figure 11). For best results, include the city and state when searching for an intersection. Figure 11: Geocode Search Map Feature 9

14 4.0 Reports You may want to take the data in TCDS or TSMS and use it in another application, or insert it into a presentation or report. MS2 has developed an easy process of extracting information in a clean and organized format. All reports will use the results from the last search you performed, regardless of the module. 4.1 TCDS Reports Reports may be generated for Locations, Volume, Class, Gap, Speed, and Latest Count. After conducting a search of the desired fields, you may create several reports to organize your search results and allow for easy management of data and information for field technicians. If you pulled the count information directly from the map you can still generate a report, but it will only be for the individual location. Following the search example of Wayne County and Detroit Community, 10 results are found. If you want to have a list of the latest count at all 10 locations, simply click on Latest Count at the top of the page and the following report will be generated (Figure 12). This report can also be opened in Excel in addition to Location reports. Note this will display the Latest Volume counts only, not the latest AADT. Figure 12: Latest Volume Report All reports will be opened in a separate browser window. You can print the report from here or open in Excel for insertion into a project report, or presentation. Remember the report will only include information found in the search. If you wish to include a larger scope of locations you must conduct a new search with different criteria. 10

15 4.2 TSMS Reports Reports are created in TSMS following a different procedure. For example, if you search for all TMC collected in the city of Detroit and would like to create a report of all locations that fit this category; click on New Report button (See Figure 13). b Figure 13: TSMS Intersection Data Page Header a You have to choose the fields you want to include in the report. After making your selections, click Display Report to view the new report. Figure 14 is an example report of counts in Detroit. Each column header is a field chosen from the report list. This report can be viewed in Excel or printed directly from the web. You also have the option of printing the TMC for an intersection from the web. Of the five results from the previous search only two have TMC done. You can view the turning movement counts for one of the intersections by clicking the TMC button (b) at the top of the page (See Fig. 13). Figure 14: TSMS Report List 11

16 Figure 15 is the TMC for one intersection. From here you can view the data in a printable report format (a), or export it to Excel (b). You are given the option of what information you want to include: cars, e trucks, cars and d a trucks, or cars and trucks combined. If the intersection had multiple counts, you choose which one you want to display (c). b c The peak hour for the intersection can also be calculated, or, if part of a larger group of intersections, for the corridor (d). Click the Back button (e) to return to the previous page. You can export the peak hour TMC to upload to Synchro. From the Turning Movement Count Data page, choose the type of calculation you want. If you are studying the individual intersection, click the Intersection radio button. Click the Corridor radio button if you are studying a corridor of multiple intersections. Figure 15: Turning Movement Count Data View The next step is identical for intersection and corridor peak hour calculations. Next you will be asked to define the hours to be used for each peak hour. Figure 16 is an example of this page. You must choose a time period that exists in the turning movement count, and it must encompass at least one full hour. If you do not follow these guidelines, you will be 12

17 given an error message explaining what information is missing. You are welcome to choose any range of hours for any peak hour calculation; in other words, you can select 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM for the AM peak hour range. Initial values for each peak period are set at 7:00 to 9:00 AM; 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM; and 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM. Figure 16: Peak Hour Range Selection As long as the turning movement count contains data in this time range, the peak hour can be calculated. Click Continue to move to the calculated Peak Hour Data page. Click the Back button to return to the Turning Movement Count Data page without calculating peak hours. From the Peak Hour Data page you can download a file of each calculated peak hour (Figure 17). Typically this is used to import data into Synchro, a traffic modeling program. A link will appear for every peak hour that has been calculated. If Midday and PM peak hours were not calculated, there will not be a link to download the files. The following steps will explain how to download a peak hour data file and import it to a Synchro file. Figure 17: Top of Peak Hour Data Page These instructions assume version 6 (build 614) of Synchro. If your model is different, consult Synchro s help guide for alternate instruction. Depending on the type of traffic 13

18 model you are creating, you may calculate the peak hour for intersection or corridor. Either one will have the same result. The instructions for importing to Synchro are identical for each peak hour. Figure 18: Example Synchro Model Data Importing 1. Save the.csv file to your computer and open a traffic model in Synchro. 2. In Synchro, Go to Data Access under Transfer menu. Remember intersection ID#s must be the same in Synchro and TSMS for this process to work. 3. Go to the Lane tab. See Figure Browse for the file you saved in step 1. Take care that the Include Volume Related data box is checked. 5. Choose the scope of the data you are importing. And Read the data. A new window will pop-up confirming the import. Look at this window to ensure the process was successful. Consult the Synchro Help Guide for further explanation of the Data import process. 14

19 5.0 Administration Page The Admin page is home base when you are adding, assigning, or managing any module in TMS. Authorized users may add new counts through the Admin page (Figure 19). You may return to the Admin homepage at any time to import more counts, import different data types, or manage all of your unassigned counts (volume, class, speed, & gap). Use to upload new counts, view unassigned counts, & advanced features Figure 19: Header of TMS Webpage Note: Admin page will open in a separate window. 5.1 TCDS Admin Page Ensure the TCDS tab is selected (See Figure 20). Several file type options are available to the user. This guide will cover one type, but the process translates to all other types. Let s look at PRNs. You have the option of uploading a single file or multiple files. Upload multiple files. Figure 20: Abbreviated View of TCDS Admin Page 1. Click on Multiple Files link under PRN category 2. Drag all PRN files into this window (Figure 21) 3. Click Upload then Continue. This will bring you to the Unassigned Counts page 4. If the location ids are already in the system, you can auto-assign the counts or manually assign them If you do not wish to assign the counts immediately, you can leave them unassigned and return to the Unassigned Counts at a later time. To go back at a Figure 21: PRN File Upload Window 15

20 later time to view them or assign them, simply return to the Admin page and View Unassigned (Figure 22). Auto assigning will use any existing Location ID s that match the corresponding file ids and automatically assign the count files. The Auto-Assign column must say Yes for Auto-Assign to work. If it says No in this column, as shown in Figure 22, note the superscript for each id# and refer to the footnotes for a description of the cause that prevents auto assignment. You may have to manually assign each count if auto assigning is unavailable. If you have several count files associated with a single location, you can use the Assign Checked option to assign all counts to one location simultaneously. Note that this option only works for counts at the same location. If you try to check multiple counts that are at different locations, you cannot use this feature. From this page, you may also view to verify the quality of a count, or delete one or all of the uploaded counts. If necessary, multiple counts may be merged or compared once uploaded. Consult the online help guide for a detailed description of each of these tasks. The Total column may also indicate a warning about the imported count data. An explanation of these warnings is located at the top of the page. Figure 22: Unassigned Volume Count Window 16

21 Manually assigning the counts allows you to use search fields for the correct intersection or choose the specific location directly on a Google map to assign the count. The map feature is optional and must be activated to use. 1. Click the icon to go to the Assign Data search page. 2. Choose the appropriate search fields and click Search (Figure 23). 3. Confirm the location or edit the information and click Assign Count(s) (Figure 24). Figure 23: Search Page for TCDS Count Assignment Figure 24: Location Data for TCDS Count You may use the Google map to locate a count. On the search page, you will click Show Google Map button at the bottom of the page. This will display a small Google map at the bottom of the search page. Click on the map where the count is located. The Location ID will be automatically entered in the search field. A bubble will appear listing the possible IDs for that location. If there are multiple directions at a location, you must choose the appropriate direction and click Use This ID link to fill in the correct Location ID. Continue with Step 2 and Step 3 to finish the assigning process. After the count file has been assigned, you will be forwarded back to the Unassigned Counts page (Figure 22). Continue this process until all counts have been assigned. 17

22 5.2 TSMS Admin Page The TSMS tab must be chosen on the Admin page to add counts to this module (See Figure 25). If you are using Petra, Lotus, or XLS data formats, you can click on the single file or multiple files link under the corresponding Data type. A template is available for download if you are unable to use the listed data types. The template, an Excel spreadsheet, will be downloaded to your computer, and you can proceed to add your data directly to it (See Figure 26). Save the Excel spreadsheet to your computer using your desired naming convention. You can now import this data to the TSMS system. Petra is a very common traffic data management program. Many agencies use it to download hand-held counters. You can export your PETRA file to a text file format and upload it to TSMS. 1. Open a count in Petra 2. Export as a.txt file and Save 3. Select All Groups and Comma Delimiter The.txt file can now be uploaded into TSMS. You can upload a single file or multiple files. This section will cover importing multiple files. Regardless of the file type you have, the uploading process is the same. Let s assume you used the available template. Figure 25: TSMS Admin Page 1. Click on the Multiple Files link under XLS. 2. A new window will appear where you can drag and drop all the files you want to upload. It will look similar to Figure After you have added all the files, click Upload. You will be brought back to the Admin home page. 4. From here you need to View Unassigned under Manage Imported Data to assign the counts. 5. From here you can view, delete or assign the counts. It is recommended to view the counts before assigning them to ensure the data is reasonable and accurate. 18

23 You must manually assign each count individually. If you do not wish to assign the counts immediately, you can return to the Admin page at a later time to do so, you just need to View Unassigned to view the counts and assign them. Figure 26: Example Basic Template To assign the counts: 1. Click on the icon (Figure 27) and search for the location you wish to assign the count. 2. Enter the count time intervals and counter initials. If you wish you can save these values as your default values (See Figure 28). 3. After you choose the location and count times, click Assign TMC. When you are confirming the location data and selecting the count times of a TMC, not the check box providing the option to create a copy of the count data and place it in TCDS as an unassigned volume count (Figure 28). Figure 27: Unassigned Counts Window This option will create volume counts for each approach of the TMC location. Each approach count consists of a 2-way count and directional counts, i.e. SB/NB or EB/WB. For a 4-way intersection you will have 12 new unassigned volume counts. You must go to the TCDS Admin unassigned counts area to assign these counts to the proper TCDS locations. Because the volume counts created are partial counts, you must manually assign each count. Proceed through all unassigned counts in the same manner. 19

24 If the location of a count is not present in the database, you can create the location. The process of creating new locations is covered in section 6.0. Figure 28: Location Data for TMC Assignment 20

25 6.0 New Locations Before you can assign the count data, you must first create a count location in the database and on the map (Figure 29). The steps in adding a new location are contingent on the module you are in. Default Selected Tab Online Help Guide Create New Count Location Figure 29: TMS Homepage 21

26 6.1 New TCDS Locations Let s first look at adding count locations to the TCDS module. 1. Go to the main TCDS homepage and click on the New SPOT or New LINK button. Figure 30 illustrates a new link location. 2. Select the location of the count on the map, not of the intersection. The pin, shown green, is repositionable or can be deleted by clicking Cancel or the pin. Zoom in completely for accurate placement 3. Fill out information for location. Community, Road Name (for link: On Road, From Road and To Road), & Direction are required information. Location ID# is automatically generated or can be manually entered (Figure 30) a. If you are creating a 2-way count, you can create associated directional counts simultaneously. Use the check boxes at the bottom of the location data edit window. Note the check boxes are only available when creating a 2-way count. 4. Click Submit after pin is located and information completed. Pin will turn red and user will be forwarded to complete list of intersections. Use Go to Loc to see new location record. Figure 30: New TCDS Link Count Location 22

27 6.2 New TSMS Locations After you have logged in and selected the TSMS tab, you can add a new intersection. 1. Click on the New Location button 2. Select the new location on the map, usually at an intersection. A green pin will be placed in the new location. You can reposition the pin or click it again to delete it. 3. Fill in the new location s information on the left side of the page. Int ID # will automatically be generated or manually overridden. Community and Road Name are required (Figure 31). 4. After you fill in all desired information, click Submit. The new location has been added and the green pin will disappear. The new intersection data will be on the left side of the screen. You can display the new location on the map by clicking the Locate button at the top of the screen. Figure 31: New TSMS Location Edit Window The located intersection will be shown as a signal head, highlighted in blue, on the map (See Figure 32). Move the mouse cursor over the point and the Int ID# will appear. If you click on the new point, a bubble will appear displaying the Int ID#, Road and Cross Road names, and a link to View Detail. If you click on this link it will pull up the location information on the left side of the screen (See Figure 32). This is useful if you are 23

28 searching for locations directly from the map. Refer to Section 1 for more on this topic. Now that you have the location entered into the system, you can assign counts to it. Figure 32: New TSMS Location Record and Mapped Intersection If you are unsatisfied with a location or information for it, you may edit it or delete it. These buttons will appear above each record. You must be an authorized user to perform either task. This is only an introduction to a few of the tasks you are capable of performing using the TCDS and TSMS interfaces. Consult the online help guide for detailed instruction on the complete list of tasks available, or contact MS2 and we will be happy to provide further support. 24