Esri Australia maps out app for VicRoads

Government agency using data for roading projects

A mapping application designed to improve road works in Victoria is set to go live next month.

Created by Esri Australia, the Connect Maps application will be used by government agency VicRoads to measure what areas of roading need maintaining.

Connect Maps is an online offering providing a platform for spatial data capture, integration, presentation and management.

It will provide support to VicRoads’ existing location intelligence infrastructure, by providing users with access to maps and spatial data to support the development and approval of VicRoads program of road maintenance works and network upgrades. VicRoads manages an inventory including 52,871 kilometres of roading.

Esri Australia project manager, Peter Houwen, said VicRoads chose Esri Australia’s offering because it is designed for the enterprise.

“Applications like Google Maps are very good for consumers but our offering is aimed at the enterprise to help with location information in their business data," he said. "VicRoads approached us as they were working on a strategy for how they wanted to handle location data in the future.

Esri Australia started working with the company in September 2008 on a location preference system.

Connect Maps will initially have 500 users, and will be targeted towards staff involved in the bid management process, Houwen said.

“The expectation is that over time, everyone at Vic Roads will use it," he said. "Eventually it will be a spatial front end to a number of their business systems," he said.

Connect Maps goes live on 7 December in conjunction with project bid application, Connect Bids.

“Each year the various regions of VicRoads propose what projects they will do," Houwen said. "They apply for funding from those projects and use Connect Maps to analyse those projects and make sure they know what other projects are going on in the same area."

Houwen said VicRoads also wants to gather road condition information so they can do more sophisticated analysis.

“If there is lots of accidents somewhere they can look at traffic conditions, and volumes. It helps plan out maintenance work better and enquiries from the public, and tell if someone else has reported the same thing.”

Esri Australia works with a number of state governments and industry verticals including electric utilities, spatial government, defence and forestry.

VicRoads spatial project manager, Evan Quick, said in a statement that by using Connect Maps, individual departments can now see all funding bids submitted under other programs by different parts of the business.

“This way, departments can work together to coordinate projects and deliver network improvements more efficiently and effectively, and with minimal impact on road users."

The project follows a recent trial by VicRoadsnew.

Follow Hamish Barwick on Twitter: @HamishBarwick

Follow Computerworld Australia on Twitter: @ComputerworldAu

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