UrbanTide uMove data solutions support aims recently published by the Department for Transport (DfT) Smart Manuals for Streets programme and Transport Data Strategy.

May 29, 2023

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2 min read

The UK Government's Future for Transport Programme defines how “Technology will drive radical changes in Transport in the next 10 years”. At the heart of this, sharing data will allow development of effective mobility solutions, empower authorities to utilise data efficiently and transform how data is used to support investment.

In the recently launched Department for Transport (DfT) Smart Manual for Streets, the Transport Systems Catapult estimate that not making transport data open and available could cost the UK £15bn by 2025.

Further to this, a recent webinar hosted by Westminster Energy, Environment & Transport Forum highlighted the need to transform how data is used for planning and building strategic cases for investment in Active Travel, so the limited funds can be allocated where most value will be seen in return. The importance of collaboration, holistic approaches and access to open data was also highlighted.

Economic, social and environmental benefits from data sharing by 2025:

UrbanTide understands that Access and effective use of data is essential to achieving objectives set out for Mobility, Active Travel and Sustainable Transport Strategy, which is why, since 2014, we have been working with various authorities across UK and Ireland, opening up data both for internal realisation and external publication.

Somerset County Council are a leading example of an authority who has realised the potential to open up data.

Objective

In 2019, Somerset Council pledged to work with partners across the county to identify ways to make Somerset carbon neutral by 2030. Part of this commitment was to invest in sustainable transport infrastructure, improve transport efficiencies and reduce unintended congestion across the county.

To achieve these goals, Somerset Council needed an integrated evidence base with access to accurate, real-time travel data that would inform decision-making and help them target investment where it was most needed.

Solution

Since 2019, Somerset Council has been using uMove to collect, process and share traffic data across the county. They use this data as an evidence base to inform all transport infrastructure planning and environmental improvement schemes.

Using the uMove platform, SC integrates a vast amount of traffic data from multiple sources, funnelling it through a single-source platform. Data is presented in a clear standard view, with bespoke data visualisations, and our custom report generator makes it easy for users to create and share reports for use inside and outside the organisation.