The Midlands Driver Information System: influencing route choice

The paper presents an updated view on the operational experience gained from the Highways Agency´s Midlands Driver Information System (MDIS). Stage 1 of the System has been operational since October 1996, it has proved highly successful as an interim system providing advice to drivers in response to around 30 incidents a month on the network. Stage 2, the Network Management System became operational in November 1998 and additional functionality will be commissioned over the next few months (early 1999). The Stage 2 system has the ability to consider road traffic conditions as they occur in real time before making recommendations to operators to implement diversion strategies. The majority of the project´s road network will be instrumented to deliver traffic flow data to the system by Summer 1999. The introduction of real time data on network flows and conditions over a network of this size brings a major improvement to the quality of service Midlands Driver Information System can deliver and with it will come sustained driver confidence in the information displayed on the variable message signs