Computer-based systems for the delivery of engineering information are beginning to become cost-effective for a growing number of road and civil engineering applications. Optical media, mastering, andauthoring requirements are explored, and the serious problems inherent in the evaluation of the use made of such systems are considered. Examples of the appropriate use of analog (laservision) and digital (cd rom) forms of optical storage in various transport applications are given. The ability to handle high-quality images and text, to access standards-approved computer programs for specific applications within the context of a certified standard, and the rapid changes in accessibility to digital terrain and cadastral data are about to have a major impact on road engineering and training. Examples of hypertext and expert systems for this purpose are now being tested as part of a project evaluating an enhanced version (the third edition)of "australian rainfall and runoff, " and these methods are being evaluated for their ability both to deliver information more cheaply and for their potential to improve engineering practice. Cd rom optical disk delivery forms a key part of this process. The locational requirements of pavement, traffic, road, and transport information systems all point to greater use of gis methods. As a direct result of several australian reviews of transportation survey data needs and uses, the use both of gis methods for data integration and of opticalmedia for collated and economic distribution and archival access have emerged in australia as widely recognized requirements of all future such surveys. This paper appears in transportation research record no. 1261, Geographic information systems 1990.
Abstract