Transportation and Traffic Systems has been developing modelling software for transport planners for over 40 years. The software has been built from practical experience in the modelling of urban and rural land use/transportation systems. All of the programs have been developed and used because of real problems needing solutions.
The programs are being constantly updated as new techniques develop, or different problems emerge.
TRACKS
TRACKS_LITE
SWEEP
TRACKS has been designed as a planning tool to assist with analysis and decision making relating to such matters as
the location and intensity of land use activity
the location and capacity of the road system
the type of intersection which is appropriate in network terms.
The outputs from TRACKS provide the data from which intersection layout, road cross section design, and the details of signal phasing can be designed, and economic and environmental assessments undertaken.
TRACKS_LITE is a ‘cut-down’ version of TRACKS, designed to be used by traffic engineers not familiar with multi modal models. It is specifically designed as an adjunct to SIDRA, although the software will run a fully functional vehicle driver model, albeit with a limitation on the number of links and zones that can be used.
SWEEP is a stand-alone program to draw vehicle swept paths. It does not need an expensive drawing program.
TRACKS is a suite of some sixty programs which have been developed by Transportation and traffic Systems Ltd to assist the analysis and interpretation of land use and transport planning problems.
The urban planner and the transportation planner make use of models to rationalise a complex set of factors which are influencing a system, and to assist in assessing the response of that system to change. The TRACKS system has been developed in order to assist with this analysis in a way that is easy to use while providing useful results.
The three key components that are used in the disciplines of land use and transportation planning are:
the location and intensity of land uses
the transport system that links these activities
the behaviour of the people who use the system
TRACKS has been formulated to recognise the essential difference between a model and software. All parameters and data that make up a model are external to the software and can be changed by the user although standard default values are supplied, and may be used, if required. Only the techniques are program specific, but there are enough programs available, and options within those programs, for an appropriate choice of model to be made for any given situation.
This version of the suite TRACKS_LITE has been cut down to include only those programs needed for a conventional three step model. It has been developed specifically to support the link with SIDRA as a low-cost means of integrating the ability of TRACKS to forecast flows with the power of the intersection analysis capabilities of SIDRA. It also provides a way to ‘fill in’ missing counts needed for a SIDRA network using matrix estimation techniques available in TRACKS.
But it is not constrained to run with SIDRA. It is a fully featured three step model version (although limited in the number of zones) for under $5k.
Sweep is a stand alone windows based program that will draw the swept path of a vehicle without the need for an underlying Cad package. It enables the turning requirements of vehicles to be checked from specific designs such as roads, parking areas, loading docks, and petrol station forecourts:
· Design roads, parking areas, loading docks or drive-in facilities
· Check the turning requirements of vehicles on specific designs
· Draw and print swept paths on DXF files, digital photographs or scanned image backgrounds
· Create vehicle swept paths without the need for an expensive underlying Cad package
· Choose from an extensive library of vehicles or custom created vehicles
· Draw dynamic vehicle paths - forward and reverse
· Produce a 'Swept path' that can be printed or exported as a DXF
No third party software is required.
Plans imported from Dxf files, digital photographs or scanned images can be imported to create the background on which to draw the path.
Vehicles can be chosen from the extensive library included with the package, or new vehicles created using the editor. The registered version is required to access the library.
The chosen vehicle is driven around the plan, with the swept path drawn as the vehicle moves. Reversing and 'undo' features are available. Supports complex steering geometry, multiple axles and self-steered wheels.
The final swept path can be printed, plotted, or exported as a Dxf for input to a Cad package.
The software comes with a site licence, and can be installed on any number of computers within that site at the same time.