CAPS is the major leader in the country in integrating standardized GIS packages (e.g., ESRI and Geomedia) into its world-class analytical package (CARE). What this means is that all of the analytical capabilities of CARE can be used to find high crash locations, and then those locations can be GIS-mapped without users having to be at all familiar with the GIS package. Or, any filter can be set within CARE and a map of those locations can be generated with a couple clicks of the mouse. As another example, GIS capabilities can be used to create a filter (e.g., for a corridor), and that filter can automatically be imported into CARE so that any of the CARE analytical capabilities can be applied to it.
As an example, the following is a CARE hotspot analysis. Notice that in addition to the strip map, CARE inserts a street map to enable users to easily locate the hotspot. This map can be enlarged by clicking on it.
***To view the image click here.***
The pane that says “Loading ESRI Utilities” indicates that the user has selected one of the GIS options. This leads to a window that enables users to choose which variables will be exposed when users click on an output crash icon. The GIS option selected was to output all of the qualifying hotspots. These can be seen in red on the following map. Any one of these sets of locations (mostly around urban areas) can be enlarged easily to hone in on the specific hotspots and crashes.
***To view the image click here.***
The following is an example of a GIS output for Commercial Motor Vehicles. Off-system roads are turned off, but they can easily be turned on, especially when focusing in on a given location.
***To view the image click here.***
The following is an example of a GIS output for 2007-2008 alcohol crashes on a county by county basis, with the darker red indicating a greater number of such crashes. This could be generated for the alcohol crash rates per population, or by using CARE’s IMPACT module, the ratio of alcohol crashes to non-alcohol crashes.
***To view the image click here.***
The following is an example of a GIS output for 2007-2008 alcohol crash hotspots statewide.
***To view the image click here.***
The following is an example of a GIS output for 2007-2008 alcohol crashes for the 1:00 to 2:00 AM time period. The GIS tool is set up so that it can be adjusted directly for any given hour. This enables officers in the field to adjust their location strategies accordingly.
***To view the image click here.***
The following is an example of the GIS PatrolSim using 2007 data and the Monday through Thursday time frame. This tool gives patrol officers an optimized route to run during their shift that will cover the areas that contain the maximum number of the worst hotspots.
***To view the image click here.***
The following two displays are examples of GIS outputs for the Ticketing Aggressive Cars and Trucks (TACT). They are automatically restricted to crashes that involve both a large commercial vehicle and a passenger vehicle. The first display is statewide; the second is a closer view of North Alabama. GIS tools allow as close a blow-up as desired.
***To view the image click here.***
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It is important to recognize that CARE and CARE/GIS are not restricted to processing crash information. CARE has been applied to over a half dozen other types of databases, including the citation data that has been accumulated by eCite.
The following is an example of the GIS applied to eCite data in order to find citation density by county.
***To view the image click here.***
The following is another example of the GIS application to the eCite data to provide visualization of the locations where citations were issued during 2009 for all days of the week.
***To view the image click here.***
For more information about our GIS tools and functionality, contact CAPS at 1-866-349-CARE (2273) or care@cs.ua.edu.
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