SUMMARY
Use of Automatic Vehicle Monitoring, Vehicle Health Monitoring, and Diagnostic Systems by Transit Agencies
The TCRP team administered a study to assess the use of automatic vehicle monitoring (AVM), vehicle health monitoring (VHM), diagnostic systems, and predictive maintenance technology (PMT) by transit agencies across the United States. This study comprised a literature review, a survey that was deployed to transit agencies across the country, a variety of case examples derived from transit agency interviews, and a conclusion with key takeaways.
Key findings include the following:
- AVM and VHM are becoming more widely utilized by transit agencies across the United States.
- The greatest barriers to agencies incorporating AVM, VHM, and PMT are the cost of implementing the technology and the uncertainty regarding the functionality and successful integration of the technology.
- Transit agencies are increasingly interested in using PMT, artificial intelligence (AI), and other technologies, but the overall capabilities and benefits of these technologies are still emerging.
- Benefits of adopting the various technologies include:
- A decrease in mechanical service interruptions,
- An increase in mean distance between failures,
- A more efficient use of maintenance resources that includes more productive use of maintenance staff, and
- A long-term benefit of reducing the fleet spare ratio as a result of having a more reliable fleet (the industry standard spare ratio is 20 percent; the current standard aims to ensure that there is a sufficient number of vehicles available for ridership).
- Many insights can be derived from agencies that have incorporated the various technologies into their systems, including advice on how they would approach various phases of the process differently.
The work began with an in-depth literature review focusing on past and current technologies. To provide a better understanding of what types of technologies are being discussed throughout the study, a detailed description of the existing technologies is included in this report. After a baseline understanding of technology was established by the study team, an online survey was drafted and shared with transit agencies and operators across the United States. Fifteen transit agencies provided responses to the online survey, and these responses were analyzed. The results were evaluated to identify overarching themes and to establish key takeaways. Following the conclusion of the survey, three case example participants were selected from among the agencies that responded to the survey. The three case example
agencies are Capital District Transportation Authority (New York), Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (Florida), and San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (California). These agencies vary in size, geographical location, user socioeconomics, and fleet composition.
Each case example documents the individual practices and processes of the agency in the following sections:
- Agency Overview
- Introduction of Maintenance Systems
- Deployment of Maintenance Systems
- Training Related to Maintenance Systems
- Integration of Maintenance Systems
- Benefits of Maintenance Systems
- Lessons Learned from the Process
The report concludes with a summary of findings that includes the current state of technology adoption, insights taken from industry experience, the challenges and benefits of the technology, and additional research that can be conducted after the completion of this study.
