Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Finland Tracks Traffic Congestion Using Cell Phone Signals

From: Marcel <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 25 Mar 2003 18:51:07 -0500

Finland Tracks Traffic Congestion Using Cell Phone Signals

An experiment to use cell phone signals to track where traffic congestion is occurring has
been deemed successful by Finland's Technical Research Center.  The Finnish Road
Administration and mobile phone firm Radiolinja tracked information about the number of
GSM cell phones passing between certain measuring points to deliver to a Web site
real-time information about traffic congestion, and the speed of traffic flow. Not only
would drivers get information about where congestion is occurring, they could also receive
information on how long it would take to travel through an area. To avoid raising privacy
concerns, a random number is linked to a phone as it travels through the system. The road
administration said it has no way to link the random number to a particular cell phone.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DJO Finnish Cell-Phone Project Plots Traffic
Congestion

March 24, 2003 3:05pm

HELSINKI (AP)--A project by Finnish researchers to monitor traffic by following GSM mobile
phone users and use the travel patterns to help others avoid traffic jams and congestion
proved it could be implemented on a national scale, researchers say.
The test was so successful that the
government's Technical Research Center, or
VTT, urged the government to do more
development and research.

VTT looked at ways to track mobile phones in
people's cars and, in turn, take that data to
use in issuing travel advisories, let commuters
know where traffic was bad by transmitting it
for use on television and radio broadcasts.
They even looked at monitoring GSM signals
to locate stolen cars.

Developed as a joint pilot project of the Finnish
Road Administration and a mobile phone
operator, Radiolinja, the system tracks
information about the number of GSM cellular
phones that have passed between measuring
points, located about 5 kilometers apart. The
data was displayed on a Web site that offers real-time information on traffic congestion
and the speed of traffic flow and estimated travel times.
"You can plan your driving and avoid the worst rush hour, decide on alternate routes,
predict when you'll arrive at work and when to heat up the sauna," the road administration
said.
Traditional traffic measurements work by simply counting the number of vehicles that pass
a given spot on the road, typically using a camera or sensors embedded in the road or on a
nearby pole.
By using cellular phones, the system can monitor how long it takes for cars to travel a
stretch of road in real time and provide it instantaneously.
But the system isn't immune from errors.
"There will be errors, of course -if a bus goes by with 30 phones in it, the system will
register them all as individual vehicles. Or if somebody is picking berries in the woods,
it will show up as a stationary item," said Timo Karhumaki, the project's manager.
And if roads run parallel to each other, the system can't tell which one the car is on.
Thus far, the administration has developed a formula for calibrating the figures by first
watching the real amount of traffic and then comparing it to the data collected by GSM.
Then, they figure out a weighting factor to correct for the errors.
"It is actually fairly easy to correct," said Karhumaki. "But it is definitely a subject
for further research - how to correct the errors with even more precision."
In order for the system to provide reliable data, researchers say at least 5% of the cars
must have a mobile phone in them.
"In urban areas, where traffic volumes are great, the system will work reliably with fewer
cellular phone users," he said.
The research project ended last year, and the road administration is seeking more money to
continue it this year.
As with all records of cell phone usage, the project is not exempt from concerns about
privacy.
The country's data protection ombudsman examined the tracking after a cellular phone owner
refused to let statistics from his be used, out of fear of his privacy being invaded.
The road administration said the only information recorded is a random number linked to a
cellular phone, the distance traveled, and the time it took.
There is no method, even in theory, to later link the identifying number with a particular
mobile phone, Radiolinja said. The operator also denied the possibility of ever using an
individual's information in court, or providing it to the authorities.
"It's just not possible. Even we don't know it, and have no way of finding out afterward.
The numbers are overwritten, erased and reused," said Veli-Matti Kiviranta, who oversaw
the project for Radiolinja.
"The law lets us use anonymous data for statistics, and that's what we're doing," he said.

Despite the promised anonymity, VTT did say the system could be used for tracking stolen
cars.
Radiolinja offered for EUR1 million to supply the data for three years for Helsinki and
its surrounding suburbs. Helsinki, the capital, has a population of more than 1 million.
"We think it's cheap," Kiviranta said.
In comparison, the road administration estimates that setting up a single measurement
point that counts vehicles with traditional sensors costs about 100,000 euros each.
Although project managers at the road administration felt the service would be inexpensive
compared with older technology, they hope to convince other network operators to provide
offers for similar services to introduce competition.
"It would be very easy to cover the entire country," said Karhumaki. "It is so simple. It
requires no new investment, no new models of SIM cards, and requires no modification to
the cellular network."
Radiolinja, for now the only operator in Finland with the service, said it would expand
the network and start testing in other countries in Europe.
"We've made offers to Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland, Holland, and Germany," Kiviranta said.
"We're developing it still and are also trying to find ways to market the system in the
U.S."

Web sites: http://www.tiehallinto.fi/eindex.htm
http://www.radiolinja.fi
http://www.vtt.fi

http://hoovnews.hoovers.com/fp.asp?layout=query_displaynews&q=RADIOLINJA&so=&dc=&ro=&ed=&sd=&s=1&boldtext=RADIOLINJA&sym=&doc_id=NR20030324460.15_3ea000297a4fabfb

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