Data Collection & Traffic Counts

MVPC collects data throughout the region in support of various transportation and transit-related projects. Important transportation planning data collection uses include the calculation of crash rates, use in intersection and corridor studies, validation for the Statewide Travel Demand Model, and various requests from member communities. The information MVPC collects is used to help quantify the importance of municipal and MVMPO investments in the regional transportation network – including sidewalks, shared use paths, and other active transportation infrastructure. This page describes the various equipment MVPC uses, as well as highlights several data use cases.

Transportation program staff collect data for the following projects:

MassDOT Traffic Counting Program
MVPC Active Transportation Plan
Safe Streets and Roads for All – Regional Vision Zero Plan
Technical Assistance for Merrimack Valley Transit
Local Technical Assistance (LTA) for Member Communities

Data Collection Equipment

Miovision Scout Explore Camera

Miovision captures low-definition video that can be processed by Artificial Intelligence (AI). Miovision’s AI has no facial recognition capability and neither MVPC nor the associated MVMPO sell collected data. MVPC will only provide video to external parties when such is required by law.

Use cases include:

Collection at difficult locations where the setup of Automatic Traffic Recorders (ATR, see below) is challenging or unsafe
Intersection Turning Movement Counts (TMC)
Shared use path and trail data collection
Roadway congestion and queuing studies

Specifically, transportation program staff have used Miovision to support data collection for the region’s Active Transportation Plan (ATP), MassDOT’s Traffic Counting Program, and Local Technical Assistance (LTA) requests from our member communities.

International Road Dynamics Automatic Traffic Recorder (ATR)

These data collectors use pneumatic tube-counting technology. As the wheels of a vehicle pass over the tube, an air pulse is pushed into the counter, recording vehicle classification, volume, and speed data. Transportation program staff use ATRs primarily in support of MassDOT’s Traffic Counting Program and Local Technical Assistance (LTA) requests.

Jamar Turning Movement Count (TMC) Board

These count boards track all vehicle movements through an intersection. Transportation program staff must be present to manually record data by pressing the appropriate keys on the count board as a vehicle moves through an intersection. Staff use these counters for project-specific data collection, typically related to congestion/delay assessments and signal warrant analyses. For efficiency purposes, staff use Miovision for TMCs where possible/available and only use manual count boards on a limited basis.

Hardcopy Survey

In some cases, staff employ traditional pen/paper survey sheets to record data. For example, transportation program staff support MeVa’s ridership monitoring program by performing on-bus data collection using an NTD survey sheet provided by MeVa. Staff also support the validation of MeVa’s in-bus Automatic Passenger Counters (APC).

Tablet (iPad) and Associated Applications

Transportation program staff manually collect and input data into tablets (iPad) for several collection efforts, including park & ride and commuter lot occupancy studies, as well as sidewalk pavement condition assessments. Staff will occasionally input data into applications designed for a specific purpose. For example, staff use Cartograph Data Collector for pavement assessments.