1250 traffic segments across 300 miles of Chicago's arterial roads have their speed estimated every ten minutes. The Chicago Transit Authority provides real-time GPS traces from buses to generate these congestion estimates. Segment-level data shows high volatility, while aggregated region-level estimates offer more stable traffic condition insights.
Use Cases
- Model real-time traffic speed volatility on 1250 arterial road segments using ten-minute interval updates.
- Aggregate segment speed data to analyze average congestion patterns across Chicago's 29 defined traffic regions.
- Correlate GPS trace data from CTA buses with observed speed fluctuations to understand factors affecting arterial traffic flow.
Strengths
- Covers approximately 300 miles of principal arterial streets in Chicago.
- Provides estimates for about 1250 individual traffic segments.
- Data is updated every ten minutes from real-time GPS monitoring.
Limitations
- Segment speed data is described as having high volatility, which may complicate trend analysis.
- Limited to arterial (non-freeway) streets, excluding major highways and the O'Hare airport area.
- The underlying methodology relies on bus GPS traces, which may not fully represent all vehicle traffic patterns.
Provenance
- Source
- City of Chicago
- Collection Method
- Real-time analysis of GPS traces from Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) buses.
- Time Range
- Real-time (ongoing)
- Freshness
- Updated every ten minutes.
- Geography
- Chicago, Illinois, USA (arterial streets)