Stanisław Krawiec

The Influence of Telematics on the Utility Value of the Public Transportation

In the past two decades large changes in the structure of traffic flows were noted, in particular in the urbanised areas. The shift has been towards passenger cars, causing a significant drop of passenger volumes in public transportation. As the increasing congestions effects are noted, the above mentioned tendency must be reversed in the coming years. The pace of the changes depends on the perception of the public transportation in the society. A positive assessment of the usefulness of public transportation is related to its utility value which may be increased by the intensive implementation of telematic technologies.

Telematics and the transportation system's value

Abstract An approach from the economic science viewpoint is applied to the research on the influence of telematics development on the development of a transportation system. A qualitative instrument of such a research is the study of the creation, utilisation and perception of the value potential of a contemporary transportation system. For the purpose of such a research a transportation system being a subsystem of a socio-economic system may be treated as a set of quantitative and qualitative relationships of their elements, linking these elements into one functional entity. The study of the structures of such a system, i.e. the identification of the existing relationships and the definition of new relationships allows further discussion on possible effects of the implementation of telematic systems which could change–among others–the information availability of the transportation. The transformations of the transportation system resulting from the implementation of the information technologies cause the changes of the system perception by the environment. The current paper covers the topic of modelling of these transformations.

Role and Significance of Variable Message Signs in Traffic Management Systems

The article depicts the role of Variable Message Signs in traffic management systems. VMSs play a big role in improving the traffic safety, as they are an important source of information for the driver, thanks to their clarity and legibility. The fulfilment of formal and legal requirements regarding the VMS is an important aspect of their implementation. The article describes the principles of choosing and designing signs in regard to the traffic management projects, concepts and rules. The authors provided and compared examples of using those signs in Poland and in Austria.

The Significance of ITS Applications for the New Mobility Culture in the Cities

Negative influence of the transportation on urban environment is a real fact in the case of a number of cities. Its background is in the increase in urban density and in the mobility of the inhabitants primarily due to the growth in individual motoring. Also the analysis of the task and workload split in transportation confirms the domination of the road transportation. Other challenges due to the transportation activities are: permanent congestion, deteriorating quality of air in the cities and the growth in the number of accidents. All of the above require reflection and call for changes. The changed approach to mobility in the cities has been termed the new mobility culture. Important position on the way to sustainable mobility has been taken by the activities related to the applications of intelligent transportation systems. The identification of the related issues to be solved as well as the options and potential solutions in the context of the new mobility culture have been discussed in the present paper. New mobility culture is at the same time a way to a better and more environmentally friendly transportation in the cities. It allows a wide spectrum of actions.