The author states that there is a need to find more effective ways to collect and analyze the data and information necessary as we move into the 21st century; but he cautions that there is a need to avoid information gridlock, as we are deluged with data and high speed computers capable of whirling out more information than the professional can digest and use. Hefurther discusses the information and data gaps in working on the aashto transportation 2020 effort. Threetransportation challenges of the 1990s are pointed out: in the areaof highway safety, particularly, accident data which will support highway project decision making in a more meaningful way; in the areaof congestion, currently there is no consistent, effective way to measure congestion; and in planning, it is imperative to collect and analyze data that will support mobility planning, as opposed to onlyplanning for individual needs. This paper appears in transportationresearch record no. 1271, Transportation data and information systems: current applications and needs 1990.
Abstract