Traffic Control Systems—Past, Present, and Future

Abstract

Traffic control systems are technological laggards when compared with modern control systems used in industry today. The traffic control industry lacks—and often refuses to adopt—necessary standards that will allow it to use the benefits of emerging technologies in a cost‐effective, timely fashion. The same industry cannot keep looking at itself if the promise of future data communications and computing technologies are to be used advantageously. This paper discusses the state of traffic signal systems, how they came to be, the technologies they use, and their technological position with respect to state‐of‐the‐art hardware and software systems. Standards bodies that should play a relevant role in the design of tomorrow's traffic control systems are introduced. Surveys of current and future directions for traffic control hardware, software, and data communications facilities are presented. Traffic control's technological generation gap is identified, and a course of action for academia, manufacturers, and users is suggested.