Geographic Information Systems for Transportation

Abstract

Modern transportation is highly dependent on geospatial information, and the functionality based on the information is so intimately interwoven with our daily lives that its significance is often overlooked until it fails in some way. The use of geospatial information for transportation proceeds from traditional GIS for transport planning and administration of transport networks to the provision of location-based services (LBS) and new applications in intelligent transport systems (ITS), including systems for advanced driver assistance (ADAS) and autonomous driving. This chapter describes the concepts for the use of geospatial information in transportation, starting with the legal framework established by the European Commission to ensure the provision of geospatial information related to transport. The framework is based on European legislations that set out clear obligations for data owners providing information to the public. Furthermore, the chapter describes the theory of navigable digital transport network models, based on the graph theory, and gives examples of databases and services with geospatial information from transport authorities, open data sources and commercial map providers. Location referencing methods used for transportation and standards for information exchange are also described. The chapter concludes that the legislations and the datasets and standards available lay a foundation for the further use of geospatial information for transportation and that this use is expected to grow.