IT4Innovations National Supercomputer Center presents an updated viaRODOS application, which was developed within the RODOS project and which cooperates with the Floreon+ system. The application uses data sources provided by the National Traffic Information Center (NDIC), which falls under the Directorate of Roads and Motorways (DRM) of the Czech Republic. Users thus receive the most up-to-date data on traffic on roads and in selected cities in the Czech Republic.

Fourteen years ago, research teams at VSB – Technical University of Ostrava developed the Floreon+ application to evaluate information for decision-making in crisis management processes, especially floods. This year, researchers at IT4Innovations National Supercomputing Center upgraded the viaRODOS application, developed within the RODOS Transport Systems Development Center, and connected it to the Floreon+ system. An important part of the modernization is the connection to new data sources from the area monitoring telematics system (FCD) acquired by the Directorate of Roads and Motorways of the Czech Republic.

Users, especially drivers, are brought a new upgraded viaRODOS application, which is accessible via the web interface at www.viarodos.cz, current data on traffic not only on highways and roads in the Czech Republic but also closures and traffic restraints in selected cities, all in real time.

IT4Innovations is now becoming the new viaRODOS operator.                                                

“I am very pleased that the projects that were created at VSB – Technical University of Ostrava many years ago find use even after such a long time. The modernized viaRODOS application will find wide application not only among Czech citizens, but also among experts in the field of crisis management,” says Ivo Vondrák, the Governor of the Moravian-Silesian Region, who was also the rector of VSB – Technical University of Ostrava at the birth of the Floreon+ application.

viaRODOS shows the current traffic situation on selected roads in the Czech Republic, with the help of simple line graphics, but also within the map visualization with data update in a minute interval. It is interesting to note that data from the viaRODOS application is also actively used by Czech Television in its news coverage.

“I believe that the cooperation between VSB and DRM in the field of telematics and the processing of traffic big data will continue to develop. The FCD project is a proof that the results of science and research can be successfully translated into practice. We were all the more pleased with the fact that the information from the area monitoring telematics system has returned to academia and will certainly find other uses than just the basic display on the map. For the sake of completeness, let us add that information from an area telematics source, similar to traffic information, is available free of charge from NDIC to all customers in the form of open data,” says Filip Týc, Head of the Road Databank and NDIC Department inthe project.

“We took over the viaRODOS application at IT4Innovations under tour administration this January and connected it with the new data sources of the National Traffic Information System. As part of the application update, there was also a connection with the Floreon + system, which allows us to improve the capabilities of the viaRODOS application in the area of ​​telematics data visualization within the map base. The user can also look at the development of the traffic situation over time,” adds Jan Martinovič from IT4Innovations, whose team from the Advanced Data Analysis and Simulation Lab administers the application.

Briefly about the viaRODOS application

The main page shows an overview of the main roads in the Czech Republic, for which more detailed visualizations are created on separate pages. The application menu allows the user to move between other menus showing the current traffic situation in selected cities in the Czech Republic. At the top of the screen is a black bar with the name of the current page and the time remaining until the next automatic update.

The application provides two types of traffic information:

  • Line graphics – the option by clicking on the menu “Main road routes” allows a preview of the overall traffic situation on selected routes and displays the current situation in the form of a general overview. The route captures either one specific road or a traffic lane between the start and the end point, which consists of several road sections. The details of the route then display more detailed information such as the speed of the traffic flow, delays on individual sections, traffic restrictions, etc.
  • Map information – after selecting the Czech Republic or clicking on the city name, the map using the Floreon+ application will be displayed. The main roads in the Czech Republic embedded in the map provide a quick overview of the overall traffic situation with the possibility of displaying the history of the situation by means of the timeline in the Floreon+ application. The application also allows the user to set the display of different layers with traffic information.