MONITORING PEDESTRIAN TRAFFIC CONTRACT TERM

Transcription

1 COUNCIL REPORT MONITORING PEDESTRIAN TRAFFIC CONTRACT TERM Agenda Item April 2007 Committee Finance and Governance Presenter Cr Shanahan Purpose 1. To seek approval to enter into a three year contract with a provider for the monitoring pedestrian traffic project and to proceed with the development of a subscription service for external customer access to the data collected. Recommendation 2. That Council approve: 3.1. the entering into a three year contract for the monitoring pedestrian traffic project via the Council s contract management system; and 3.2. the development of a subscription service to provide pedestrian data to external customers to recover the project cost to Council under the contract. Council Report Attachment: 1. Finance and Governance Committee, Agenda Item 5.6, 17 April 2007

2 Page 1 of 17 FINANCE AND GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE REPORT MONITORING PEDESTRIAN TRAFFIC CONTRACT TERM Agenda Item April 2007 Division Sustainability Presenter Austin Ley, Manager Melbourne City Research Purpose 1. To seek Council approval to enter into a three-year contract with a provider for the monitoring pedestrian traffic project and to proceed with the development of a subscription service for external customer access to the data collected. Recommendation from Management 2. That the Finance and Governance Committee recommend that Council: 2.1. approve the entering into of a three-year contract for the monitoring pedestrian traffic project via the Council s contract management system; and 2.2. approve the development of a subscription service to provide pedestrian data to external customers to recover the project cost to Council under the contract. Key Issues 3. The monitoring pedestrian traffic system is a unique and world first project which involves the installation and maintenance of pedestrian sensors in street walks located around the City. The project has been operating since January 2006 and provides real time 24 hour, 7 day-a-week pedestrian activity information from the existing seven sensors. 4. Currently the system is being provided to Council by a contractor who manages its installation, maintenance and reporting components via a yearly contract. The recommendations in this report would enable Council to: 4.1. canvas the market place to ensure it obtains the best value for its money; 4.2. have greater negotiating power on price through the use of the three-year contract; and 4.3. potentially recover the system costs via a subscription service. 5. The monitoring pedestrian traffic system allows continuous monitoring of pedestrian activity in specific City locations. Attachment 1 is the January Pedestrian Activity Report which highlights the latest key findings and analysis from this project.

3 Page 2 of This system provides information to: 6.1. assist Council in achieving the key (City Plan 2010) marketing and urban planning objectives to increase city visits and street-level activities; 6.2. meet the ongoing need across Council for quantitative, reliable and accurate information to assess the impact of key economic, social and cultural activities, including events and marketing campaigns; and 6.3. assist Council in its transport planning and emergency/crisis management. 7. Approval to enter into a three-year contract term for the monitoring pedestrian traffic project will provide the following benefits to Council: 7.1. enable Council to take advantage of cost savings in the order of 6.5% pa; 7.2. risk mitigation; 7.3. contract certainty for project continuity and future expansion of the project; 7.4. time-series analysis of the data; 7.5. cost recovery (via subscription service model); 7.6. establishment of an alternative revenue stream; and 7.7. the demonstration of a world first product and service. 8. A three-year term will reduce costs to Council, and allow the project to be expanded through partnership development and sponsorship whilst minimising the contractual risks. Current costs for the 12 month contract can be reduced in the order of 6.5 per cent pa by going to a three year tender. 9. The current contract has a one year extension term available taking the contract out to June but it is proposed that the service contract undergo the tender process in the current financial year to allow for a three year term to be entered into by end June This would enable council to reduce the cost of this contract for the coming financial year. 10. In addition, it is proposed via the successful tenderer, to include the establishment of a web portal subscription service which would sell the pedestrian data to external customers as part of the contract. The main objective will be to recover the costs of this project with the potential to generate independent revenue to council only limited by the take-up rate of the subscription service. 11. The process for developing this service would be via an agreement with the successful tenderer whereby the web portal used to deliver the pedestrian data to Council would be further utilised for the purpose of selling monthly subscriptions to external customers. 12. The contractor would deal with all customers, payments, invoicing as well as the promotion and selling of the service. The proposal would be for the Council to receive the income and the contractor to take a negotiated management fee. Further expansion of the system would increase its potential revenue generation. 2

4 Page 3 of Key external relationships developed through this project will be enhanced with organisations such as VicUrban & Federation Square. VicUrban has committed funds to this project and collaborated on the installation of 5 sensors in the Docklands area. Time Frame 14. The Tender process will begin in April Tender evaluation will occur in May Following the tender evaluation process a council committee report will be submitted for approval in the June 2007 cycle as per Council contract management guidelines. Relation to Council Policy 17. This project relates directly to a range of council policies such as: connected & accessible city, innovative & vital business city, inclusive & engaging city, well managed & leading organisation; and financially responsible corporation. 18. It links to the Council Plan is through the key service outputs of: measuring and reporting on our performance against individual plans, corporate objectives, industry best practices and relevant external frameworks and researching and reporting on the condition of the city; and using information technology and communication systems to optimise service delivery, engage the community and promote innovation. 19. Key strategies which are supported by this project are: Marketing Strategy: ; Transport Strategy: 2020: Moving People and Freight; and Tourism Strategy (in development) Governme nt Relations 20. VicUrban is already a partner in this project. 21. Federation Square is a partner in this project. 22. Other State government organisations will be approached in the coming year for involvement in this project, once the new contract terms are arranged with the successful tenderer. By having a threeyear term Council will be able to negotiate more successfully with potential partners or sponsors and gain further support for the expansion of this system across the City. Further expansion of the system would increase its potential revenue generation. 3

5 Page 4 of 17 Finance 23. Council funding requirements for the coming financial year will form part of the 2007/8 budget bid. It is anticipated that the primary project funding will be by Council. 24. Opportunities for additional sponsorships will be explored with a range of external partners. 25. The subscription service has the potential to recover the cost of this contract to Council and generate further revenue dependant on the take-up rate of the subscriptions. 26. Approval to enter into a three-year contract with a provider for the pedestrian monitoring traffic project is being sought on the basis that the increased term will enable Council to negotiate a reduction in cost, as well as allowing Council to continue to expand the project and minimise the contractual risks. Legal 27. Legal advice has been given in relation to the monitoring pedestrian traffic project and will continue to be provided as required. Sustainability 28. This is a collaborative project with external organisations. It is a project that has filled a need which has existed within Council for over 10 years. It uses high end technology solutions to replace manual surveys and to provide more accurate, reliable and consistent data than other survey forms. It has low environmental impact and allows Council to provide a customer service via the internet with no additional use of existing Council resources in time or staff or technology. In addition, the system offers the potential to recover Council expenditure and generate revenue. Background 29. The monitoring pedestrian traffic project is a unique and world first project which involves the installation and maintenance of pedestrian sensors in street walks located around the City. The project has been operating since January 2006 and provides real time 24 hour, 7 day-a-week pedestrian activity information from the existing seven sensors. 30. The project is about to expand with the addition of 5 sensors in Docklands as a result of collaboration with VicUrban. There has been widespread support and interest in this project and it is anticipated that more sensors will be added over time as new partnerships are developed. 31. Since it began operation the project has attracted interest from London and Canadian transport agencies as well as from capital cities across Australia. 32. This system provides valuable information on the city for business and community groups as well as for Council s urban design & planning, retail development, event and promotion management, pedestrian safety, traffic flow through the city and emergency/crisis management. The system tracks the pedestrian activity at set locations over time. It is used to monitor the effects of changes in the population and land use in the city as well as the impact of marketing campaigns and major events on the number of visitors to the city. 4

6 Page 5 of This project was initiated to determine: the number of movements which occur across the CBD by foot compared to any other mode of transport; the economic, social and cultural impact of pedestrian traffic; the number pedestrians passing a specific location, 24 hours per day, seven days a week; and how events change pedestrian movements. 34. The project has been developed within Council over ten years and has undergone several reincarnations. Previously pedestrian surveys were conducted on key streets within the City of Melbourne. Prior to 1998, the pedestrian surveys were conducted manually including: the Swanston Street Pedestrian Surveys between 1993 and 1997, the Elizabeth Street Pedestrian Survey in 1997, and the Bourke St Pedestrian Survey in Additionally, in 1997 surveys were also conducted on the pedestrian bridges crossing the Yarra River. 35. Since 1998, a number of other technology alternatives have been investigated and trialled. The first attempt was the Pedestrian Information & Management System (PIMS) between This approach involved using infra-red beam counters in the retail core area as well as in the City s parks and gardens. After a major review in 2002 these counters were discontinued due to their inaccuracy and unreliability. 36. The City of Melbourne has had a corporate need for this type of information since the early 1990 s. This current project has been in development for four years since 2002 when the (PIMS) project was suspended. In early 2003, new sensor technology was trialled. The trial ran for 6 months and was completed in March The trial included system installation, data output, auditing, maintenance, quality control, cost scenarios and recommendations for improvements. The results from this pilot study showed that an accuracy of >90% could be achieved using sensor technology. 37. The high numbers of pedestrians on the city s streets requires devices such as the 3D stereo vision sensors in order to achieve the accuracy levels of >90 per cent. The key advantage of using 3D stereo vision sensors over other traditional methods of pedestrian monitoring is the ability to provide time series and 24/7 data which is accurate and accessible at a lower (estimated at 1/3) cost, than manual surveys. The data is transferred to a web based reporting system which is accessible from any computer via the internet using a security code. This makes real-time data available very accessible. Attachment: 1. January Pedestrian Activity Report 5

7 Page 6 of 17 Attachment 1 Agenda Item 5.6 Finance and Governance Committee 17 April 2007 Melbourne City Research Pedestrian Activity Report January 2007 Monitoring Pedestrian Traffic Project

8 Page 7 of 17 January 2007 Pedestrian Activity Report Contents 1. Key Findings Monthly Trends Public Holidays & Events Hourly Trends Site Trends 9 Acknowledgements This research report was written by Karina Bader, Senior Research Analyst, Melbourne City Research. 2 / 10 COM_SERVICE_PROD-# v2- Melbourne City Research APR07_FGC_MONITORING_PEDESTRIAN_TRAFFIC_CONTRACT_TERM_ATT_1.DOC

9 Page 8 of 17 January 2007 Pedestrian Activity Report 1. Key Findings Over 75 million pedestrian counts have been recorded in total from 10 January 2006 to 31st January 2007 from the 6 different monitoring stations across the Melbourne CBD Monthly Trends January 2007 average daily pedestrian activity declined by 14% from December 2006 bringing activity back to November 2006 levels for the first month of Pedestrian activity compared to January 2006 was 24% higher although the 2006 figures do not cover a complete month of activity due to the timing of the initiation of this project. Therefore this figure must be taken with some caution. The site at Federation Square has been counting since the 9 th March and is not included in these totals. Table 1: Average Daily Count and Change by Month (6 sites). Av p day Av p day change % change Year Month January * 173, ,997 40, February 172,627 March 208,670 April 200,709 May 193,325 June 176,989 July 170,551 August 173,937 September 188,498 October 197,368 November 217,311 December 247,912 Total 194,075 * January 2006 counting from the 10th Figure 1: Average Daily Count and Change by Month (6 sites). Count 250,000 Average Daily Count by Month by Year (6 Sites) 200, , , ,000 - January February March April May June July Month August September October November December Melbourne City Research COM_SERVICE_PROD-# v2-3 / 10 APR07_FGC_MONITORING_PEDESTRIAN_TRAFFIC_CONTRACT_TERM_ATT_1.DOC

10 Page 9 of 17 January 2007 Pedestrian Activity Report January activity declined every day of the week except for Monday compared to December. The biggest decline was on Sunday at 20% while Monday increased by 2% most likely due to the New Years Eve celebration spilling over into the early hours of New Years day. The highest average daily figure for the month was on Friday at 243,106 while Sunday recorded the lowest av. daily activity at 180,526. Table 2: Average Daily Count by Month & Day of the week (6 sites) Day Jan-06 Feb-06 Mar-06 Apr-06 May-06 Jun-06 Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06 Oct-06 Nov-06 Dec-06 Jan-07 Change % Change Mon 178, , , , , , , , , , , , ,481 4, Tue 166, , , , , , , , , , , , ,145-44, Wed 193, , , , , , , , , , , , ,713-41, Thu 165, , , , , , , , , , , , ,988-37, Fri 196, , , , , , , , , , , , ,106-37, Sat 164, , , , , , , , , , , , ,182-36, Sun 148, , , , , , , , , , , , ,526-45, Total 173, , , , , , , , , , , , ,997-33, January counts from the 10th not a full month of counts, Federation Sq Site excluded from the comparison. All days recorded higher av. daily pedestrian activity compared to January 2006 but again I would exercise caution in this assessment due to the reduced data which was available for the month in Figure 2: Average Daily Count by Day of the week by Month (6 sites) Average Daily Trend by Day in January (6 Sites) 250,000 Counts 200, , ,000 Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Day January 07 hourly average figures come in near the top of the range compared to all months, although it is lower than both November and December 06. Worker peaks were still present indicating some worker activity in the city during the month although the 8am & 1pm peaks are not as pronounced as other months reflecting weaker than usual activity. The mid afternoon (2-4pm) activity was high possibly reflecting shopping and event related activity. 4 / 10 COM_SERVICE_PROD-# v2- Melbourne City Research APR07_FGC_MONITORING_PEDESTRIAN_TRAFFIC_CONTRACT_TERM_ATT_1.DOC

11 Page 10 of 17 January 2007 Pedestrian Activity Report Figure 3: Av. Hourly Count by Month Average Hourly Counts by Month (6 sites) February March April May June July August September October November December January All months generally record the highest levels of activity on Fridays and the lowest activity on Sundays (except public holidays). January 07 followed this broad pattern with the New Years day holiday being very high for a typical Monday and Thursday night before Australia Day being high due to celebrations. The highest activity for the month occurred in the second week on Friday the 12 th with 256,000 counts. Figure 4: Total Daily Count by Month (6 Sites) Counts Total Daily Pedestrian Counts by Month (6 sites) Jan-06 Feb-06 Mar Apr-06 May-06 Jun-06 Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06 Oct-06 Nov-06 Dec-06 Jan Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Day of the Week Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Melbourne City Research Melbourne City Research COM_SERVICE_PROD-# v2-5 / 10 APR07_FGC_MONITORING_PEDESTRIAN_TRAFFIC_CONTRACT_TERM_ATT_1.DOC

12 Page 11 of 17 January 2007 Pedestrian Activity Report 1.2. Public Holidays & Events Public holidays tend to have very low activity in the City when compared with the overall average daily activity coming in below 170,000 counts on average compared to the usual count of ~200,000. The only time this does not occur is when there is a major event held on the public holiday, such as Moomba or Anzac parades. In January 07 the New Years Eve and Australia day celebrations resulted in high numbers for a public holiday with 219,999 & counts respectively. Figure 5: Total Hourly Count Public Holidays (6 Sites) Total Hourly Count for Public Holidays (6 Sites) New Years Day Aust. Day Labour Day Good Friday Easter Saturday Easter Monday Anzac Day Queens Birthday Melb. Cup Christmas Boxing Day The key event for January was the Aust. Tennis Open, New Years Eve & the Aust. Day celebrations along the Yarra. The charts below compare Monday & Friday activity for January. New Years Day peaked at 1am & 2pm while Australia Day peaked at 3pm & at 9pm Figure 6: Total Hourly Count for Mondays in January 2007 Total Hourly Count for Mondays in January 2007 (6 Sites) New Years Day 8-Jan 15-Jan 22-Jan 29-Jan / 10 COM_SERVICE_PROD-# v2- Melbourne City Research APR07_FGC_MONITORING_PEDESTRIAN_TRAFFIC_CONTRACT_TERM_ATT_1.DOC

13 Page 12 of 17 January 2007 Pedestrian Activity Report Figure 7: Total Hourly Count for Fridays in January 2007 Total Hourly Count for Fridays in January 2007 (6 Sites) Jan 12-Jan 19-Jan Aust. Day Summary of major events and holidays in Melbourne: Month Public School Major Events Holidays Holidays January New Year Aust. Day 21/12-31/1 Australian Tennis Open, Aust. Day celebrations Australian Tennis Open, Aust. Day celebrations, NY Day February Sustainable Living festival, Chinese New Year, Melb. Int. Music festival, March April May June July Labour Day Easter, Anszac Day Queens B day 10/3-27/3 Grand Prix (30/3-3/4), Commonwealth Games (15/3-26/3) Grand Prix, Comedy festival Comedy festival, AFL, World Cup Soccer AFL, State of Origin Rugby, World Cup Soccer AFL, Rugby football, Melb. International Film Festival August September 15/9-2/10 AFL & Rugby football finals, The Royal Melbourne Show (21/9-1/10), Spring Fashion Week (6-12/9) October Spring Racing Carnival (5/10-23/11), Melb International Arts Festival (12-28/10), Melb Fringe Festival (27/9-15/10) November December Melbourne Cup Xmas Day, Boxing Day 22/12-31/1 Make poverty history concert (U2), G20 conference, Christmas launch of Myer windows & tree at City Square, Kylie & Robbie Williams Concerts, Boxing Day cricket & sales, NYE International Motor show, Fashion Festival, Moomba, Grand Prix, Melb. Food & Wine Festival, FINA Championships, Melb. Int. Flower & garden Show Melbourne City Research COM_SERVICE_PROD-# v2-7 / 10 APR07_FGC_MONITORING_PEDESTRIAN_TRAFFIC_CONTRACT_TERM_ATT_1.DOC

14 Page 13 of 17 January 2007 Pedestrian Activity Report 1.3. Hourly Trends Week days in January 07 continued to follow previous trends with worker related peaks at 8am; 1pm & 5pm although at a less pronounced level. Weekends showed a bell shaped curve of activity peaking between 3 & 4pm. Friday shows higher levels of activity than all other days between 6pm and 11pm with Saturday evening matching the Friday night activity around 11pm. Early morning activity (1-4am) is highest on Monday due to the New Years Eve celebrations followed by Saturday and Sunday mornings. Figure 8: Av. Hourly Count by Day in January 07 (6 Sites) Average Hourly Counts by Day in January (6 Sites) Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday January increased its hourly average count between 12am 1am & 4-5am. All other time slots declined in activity from December. The greatest decreases occurred between 6pm and 10pm possibly reflecting reduced leisure and evening activity which was high in December due to Christmas shopping. Table 3: Average hourly count by month & change (6 Sites) Time Feb-06 Mar-06 Apr-06 May-06 Jun-06 Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06 Oct-06 Nov-06 Dec-06 Jan-07 Change % Change Total / 10 COM_SERVICE_PROD-# v2- Melbourne City Research APR07_FGC_MONITORING_PEDESTRIAN_TRAFFIC_CONTRACT_TERM_ATT_1.DOC

15 Page 14 of 17 January 2007 Pedestrian Activity Report 1.4. Site Trends Swanston St South continues to record the highest levels of activity with an average daily count of 55,509 a 14% decrease from December. Swanston St North came in at second place with 35,690 counts or a 5% decrease. The Yarra Flinders St site ranked third with 33,355 a decrease of 8.3%. Federation Square experienced a 8% increase reflecting the New Years Eve & Australia Day celebrations on the Yarra. Table 4: Average daily counts by site by month Month Jan-06 Feb-06 Mar-06 Apr-06 May-06 Jun-06 Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06 Oct-06 Nov-06 Dec-06 Jan-07 Change % Change Av Swanston St Sth 44,028 44,205 50,937 63,680 60,609 57,624 56,691 58,207 56,306 55,206 60,291 64,655 55,509-9, Av Yarra Flinders St Station 21,639 23,970 31,306 34,182 33,503 32,112 31,538 31,026 31,781 35,673 35,981 36,381 33,355-3, Av Bourke St Mal Sth 24,240 24,919 29,687 25,144 24,210 24,552 23,885 26,724 26,601 26,736 29,164 35,948 27,531-8, Av Princess Bridge 34,097 34,744 42,370 26,841 22,743 20,598 21,835 23,503 22,735 25,146 28,423 29,771 29, Av Bourke St Mal Nth 29,793 28,252 32,844 29,697 30,861 18,711 18,969 15,174 20,848 23,666 26,491 43,720 32,196-11, Av Swanston St Nth 19,802 16,536 21,526 21,165 21,399 23,391 17,634 19,304 30,226 30,942 36,961 37,436 35,690-1, Av Fed Sq 24,970 3,894 2,818 2,421 1,650 1,347 2,464 3,654 2,008 5,867 6, All sites showed declining activity in January compared to December except for federation square which grew by 8%. The Bourke St Mall sites showed the most pronounced declines in activity at 26 & 23%. Figure 9: Av. Daily Count by Month and Site Average Daily Count by Month by Site 60,000 40,000 20,000 Av Swanston St Sth Av Yarra Flinders St Station Av of Bourke St Mall Sth Av Princess Bridge Av Bourke St Mall Nth Av Swanston St Nth Av Fed Sq - January February March April May June July August September October November December January The Princes Bridge & Yarra Flinders St sites continued to show worker peaks at 8am & 5pm during January with most sites having a lunch time peak at 1pm. Swanston St Nth showed higher activity than its southern site between 1am & 6am with its main peak time for activity being at 5pm rather than 1pm. Compared to December Bourke St Mall saw lower evening activity between 5pm & 9pm. Melbourne City Research COM_SERVICE_PROD-# v2-9 / 10 APR07_FGC_MONITORING_PEDESTRIAN_TRAFFIC_CONTRACT_TERM_ATT_1.DOC

16 Page 15 of 17 Figure 10: Av. Hourly Count by Site in January Average Hourly Counts in January by Site January 2007 Pedestrian Activity Report 5,000 2,500 Av Yarra Flinder St Station Av Fed Sq Av Bourke St Sth Av Bourke St Nth Av Princess Bridge Av Swanston St Sth Av Swanston St Nth Figure 11: Av. Hourly Count by Site in December Average Hourly Counts in December by Site 6,000 4,000 2,000 Av Princess Bridge Av Yarra Flinder St Station Av Bourke St M Nth Av Bourke St M Sth Av Fed Sq Av Swanston St Nth Av Swanston St Sth (includes all days: Mon-Sun) 10 / 10 COM_SERVICE_PROD-# v2- Melbourne City Research APR07_FGC_MONITORING_PEDESTRIAN_TRAFFIC_CONTRACT_TERM_ATT_1.DOC

17 Page 16 of 17 Agenda Item 5.6 Finance and Governance Committee 17 April FINANCE ATTACHMENT MONITORING PEDESTRIAN TRAFFIC CONTRACT TERM Funding is being sought for 2007/08 and will be subject to the 2007/08 budget process. Financial impacts will be subject to a separate report following the completion of the tender process. Joe Groher Manager Financial Services

18 Page 17 of 17 Agenda Item 5.6 Finance and Governance Committee 17 April LEGAL ATTACHMENT MONITORING PEDESTRIAN TRAFFIC CONTRACT TERM Legal advice has been given in relation to the monitoring pedestrian traffic project and will continue to be provided as required. The recommendation made in the report is within the objectives and role of Council. Section 3C(2)(a) of the Local Government Act 1989 ( Act ) sets out that in seeking to achieve the best outcomes for the local community having regard to the long term and cumulative effects of decisions, a Council must have regard to the following facilitating objective, among others: to promote the social, economic and environmental viability and sustainability of the Municipal district. Also, section 3D(2)(c) of the Act provides that the role of a Council includes: maintaining the viability of the Council by ensuring that resources are managed in a responsible and accountable manner. It is noted a future report, including recommendations, will be presented to the Committee and Council on the results of the tender process. When Council intends to enter into a contract for the purchase of goods and services valued at $100,000 or more, section 186 of the Act imposes a duty on the Council by public notice either to invite tenders or to invite expressions of interest. Where a Council seeks expressions of interest, the Council must, when ready to enter into the contract, invite tenders from some or all of those who registered their interest in undertaking the contract. The Act does not require Council to accept the lowest tender. Kim Wood Manager Legal Services