Does GPS + CDCP + GIS = More Efficient Trucking?

Alex Pell-Kline , Grade 7 ,The Londonderry School , Harrisburg, PA

The purpose of this experiment was to determine if truck routing  can become more efficient by using emerging technologies : AVL( Automatic Vehicle Locator), GPS (Global Positioning Systems), CDCP (Cellular Digital Packet Devices) and GIS (Geographic Information Systems). The hypothesis in this is experiment is that by placing Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) units in trucks, the behavior of the drivers can be altered, reducing  their average speed  and becoming more efficient in their routing (spending less time on none essential stops). In order to study truck driver behavior, with the help of the truck company owner, 4 AVL units were installed in 4 trucks in a "hidden" location on the vehicle. Over a 8 day period, with the 4 units remaining hidden in the same 4 vehicles. Using AT&T wireless technology and internet data connections,  GPS measurements were taken of the "effective" and "ineffective" drivers. The GPS measurements were downloaded from the AVL provider internet site and  mapped in ArcView 3.2 GIS software (Geographical Information Systems) using PENN DOT datasets as base maps and  noting the type of driver in the vehicle (effective vs. ineffective).  Using the GIS analysis capabilities of ArcView GIS Software, a history of vehicle routing and vehicle speed will be generated for each driver. In order to test the hypothesis, after the vehicles were tracked for a period of 8 days, the drivers were notified of the placement of  AVL units on the vehicles. This experiment found that, overall, the driver efficiency improved, but not dramatically. When the drivers found out that they were being mapped, two things occurred that disrupted this experiment, 1.) one of the AVL units was disabled and 2.) one of the drivers dropped the vehicle off in the middle of the night at the trucking company and used a different vehicle without the AVL for the rest of his runs.  

  back to GIS at the Londonderry School.