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The City of Alexandria recently installed 4 new CCTV cameras, and the infrastructure from this project has been used to manage operations for several snowstorms, as well as help manage the two Metro shutdowns. The City completed fiber to the Department of Emergency Customer Communications (DECC) and developed partnerships with state and regional entities for data sharing for better incident management.
What is ITS Integration?
With a modernized and expanded fiber optics network, Alexandria’s streets will become conduits of real-time communications – linking traffic signals, weather stations, and other devices with the Traffic Management Center. This project will:
- Construct a dedicated broadband fiber network to enable data flow to and from the City’s traffic signals .
- Install CCTV cameras to visualize traffic flow at key intersections
- Expand capabilities of the Traffic Management Center, the City’s central operations center for managing traffic and signals.
The ITS Integration project began in 2009 and has 5 phases that extend through 2030. Phase 1 and 2 are complete and Phases 3 and 4 are underway, and Phase 5 begins in 2025. The Traffic Management Center was constructed, 27 closed circuit television (CCTV) Cameras have been deployed and more than 25,000 feet of fiber optic cable was installed. The goal of this work is to make the Alexandria mobility experience enjoyable, convenient, efficient, and safe.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOU?
These updates will allow the City to better manage and respond to delays and incidents, plan for special events, share critical alerts and data to better inform the public and support new mobility technologies as they come online.
Project Background
Proactive planning and consideration of emerging and future transportation technologies led to the development of ITS Integration project. Over 15 years ago staff recognized the need to migrate the traffic signal communications network to fiber optic cable for better communications between the signals and the Traffic Management Center. By thinking about the future needs of the City, staff applied for and was awarded grant funding to implement these changes. Much of the early stages centered around partnering with private providers to install underground conduit for the City, free of charge, while they were doing other work. This enabled the city to easily deploy fiber optic cable at a later date in the existing conduit. By laying the groundwork for future projects and creating the Traffic Management Center, staff is able to view and communicate with signals remotely. This effort is closely coordinating with the City’s Municipal Broadband project to identify efficiencies in installing both types of fiber at the same time.