To meet the needs of the public agencies involved in the collection, reduction and analysis of traffic safety data, the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) has initiated a project to develop and implement a second generation law enforcement vehicle that will test and demonstrate emerging technologies and systems, and specifically (1) demonstrate feasibility, (2) to showcase technologies, and (3) to provide system design recommendations as well as prototype systems and technologies that could be quickly transformed by industry into products.

The ALERT^TM vehicle is being developed by Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) under contract to USDOT. It is a police package vehicle equipped with advanced communications systems which will provide access to multiple sources of traffic enforcement and investigation information. An integrated architectural system design allows the officer to use everything from hand-held computers with citation, accident, and DWI arrest report forms, to global positioning system for precise location information. Accident report records can now be collected more accurately and efficiently. The entire vehicle and all its technologies, including overhead lights and siren, are controlled by a single touch-screen in the vehicle's cockpit, reducing dangerous clutter and improving the officer's safety. Active duty officers, from two Texas enforcement agencies, help select, evaluate, and field test the technologies to ensure the vehicle and technologies are efficient, practical, safe, and adaptable to the needs of any size agency.

The unique system architecture permits all components to interface into the control module using common interface connections (Plug and Play Concept), this in turn allows all the vehicles' technologies easy access to the overall control system using the same protocols for interconnection.

The ALERT^TM vehicle platform for integration of both off-the-shelf and advanced technologies will have the capability of being adapted to incident management vehicles, commercial vehicle enforcement and basically any emergency vehicle used in efforts to relieve traffic congestion and enhance traffic safety.

The ALERT^TM vehicle project is endorsed by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), the world's largest association of police executives, within the law enforcement community. Additionally the project is endorsed by leading police and public safety equipment industry members. Industry members are assisting in developing criteria for the unique architecture system used in the ALERT^TM vehicle. System integrators will use these criteria and standards to produce the architectural system in a platform which can be marketed for use in police and public safety vehicles manufactured today and into the future.

The initial ALERT^TM vehicle developmental state is completed and will be followed by a test and evaluation phase. The vehicle will continue to be displayed and demonstrated throughout the United States and Canada during 1998. Test bed sites are being developed to deploy five ALERT^TM vehicles in each site for further test and evaluation. Integration into Police and other Public Safety vehicles, Fire and EMS, will be accomplished during the test bed operation.

1997/1998 ALERT^TM Vehicle Showcase Calendar

• Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting
  January 11-15, 1998
  Washington, DC.
• International Association of Fire Chiefs National Conference
  September 12-16, 1998
  Louisville, KY.
• International Association of Chiefs of Police
  October 17-22, 1998
  Salt Lake City, UT.

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