Project. Travel Virginia  completed

Principal investigator. Aaron Schroeder, Virginia Tech, 540-231-1544, aaron@ctr.vt.edu

External contact. James Robinson, VDOT, 1401 E. Broad St., Richmond, VA 23219, 804-786-6677

Project objective. To formulate a strategy for making available to Virginia travelers a full range of traveler services under the aegis of a single, unified ATIS.

Project abstract. Labeled "Travel Virginia", the ATIS would consist of a series of regional public/private partnerships supported by a central clearinghouse. Data on current traffic and travel conditions, together with information on related travel topics, would be drawn from a variety of different sources. It would be fed into the clearinghouse, where it would be verified and consolidated into a single, central statewide database. The resultant information would then be relayed to the individual partnerships for subsequent transmission to travelers in the field.

The entire network, including the clearinghouse and each regional partnership would be financially self-supporting. Revenues would be generated from seven sources, including subscriptions, transaction and usage fees, advertising, electronic commerce and governmental fees for service.

The network is an extension of the concepts underlying the "Travel Shenandoah" demonstration project, currently being led by a partnership of Virginia Tech and the Shenandoah Telephone Company (SHENTEL) under the sponsorship of VDOT and the Virginia Tourism Corporation (VTC).

Integrated within this project is a sub-project to develop such a resource for the stretch of I-81 running from southern Virginia to Harrisonburg. This is designated "I-81 north to Harrisonburg."

Tasks. During the first year there will be three tasks. 1) identification of future partners. 2) preparation of a data collection plan. 3) development of a business plan.

Milestones. Milestones have not yet been established.

Student involvement. At present no student involvement is planned.

Budget. A budget is available only for the first year, since the multi-year project has not yet been adequately scoped to permit a budget.

FY 2000, $50,000

Relationship to other research projects. Virginia Tech is currently managing a sister operation, Travel Shenandoah, for VDOT, in partnership with Shentel.

Technology transfer. This project will produce a business plan, which will be made available to participating parties. The business plan may be written up as an article for publication in professional journals.

Potential benefits. Easier, improved, and more informed travel by those traveling throughout Virginia is the expected benefit of this project.

TRB keyword. ITS