Modelling of intermittent stages in TRANSYT 16
TRL Software’s range of transport-related software products are being used in many 100s of towns and cities globally, keeping roads flowing, making them safer, reducing congestion and helping to deliver on clean air targets. Two within that product range are Junctions 10 and TRANSYT 16.
Based on over three decades of research and development, the industry-leading product, Junctions 10, is used to model and predict capacity, queues and delays at roundabouts, priority intersections and isolated traffic signal-controlled junctions. At signalled junctions it can evaluate a set of known signal timings and can optimise stage lengths and cycle times to minimise delay. Most recently, the performance of simple adaptive traffic signals can now be evaluated.
Keeping traffic moving and reducing congestion is vital for both the economy and our journey to net zero, and Junctions has been successfully used to evaluate, design and improve thousands of junctions in the UK and throughout the world.
Similarly, TRANSYT has been used to optimise and evaluate traffic signals at single junctions and large traffic networks of mixed control across the planet over multiple decades. It is designed specifically to give quick solutions with minimal user input, and also more considered solutions when needed.
Combined, these two products have a host of satisfied customers including governments, multinational organisations, regional transport authorities and academic institutions. Organisations from the smallest one-person consultancy up to the largest multinational organisation have successfully used one or both of these proven products.
As Product Owner of both Junctions and TRANSYT, I continually refine TRL Software’s development roadmaps for these products. However, I do not do so in isolation, but rely on a myriad of sources, including our customers. Historically, we would use a fairly traditional software development cycle, where we would intermittently make a major push to develop a product in a substantial way, resulting in the launch of a major version, say, every 3 or 4 years.
We now work in a far more ‘agile’ way using modern development processes, which I won’t bore you with the details of! The key change is that we can develop plans for the short, medium and longer terms, while continuously absorbing feedback every month from users of our products. Crucially this feedback of ideas for new features and minor improvements can be prioritised based on merit and urgency, and quickly fed into these plans. This leads to updates to the products more often, more aligned to user needs, and delivered quicker too. Also, we can spread the updates over that same timespan that we would have traditionally taken to deliver one major release, so that instead of a typical four-year wait, you receive improvements ‘on average’ in just two years.
Just recently we have been liaising with one our larger clients, where we were able to offer a very quick turn-around on some new features related to the processes they use when using TRANSYT 16. Now our development team have moved onto adding more functionality to the Simulation model in Junctions 10 – We have tasked the team to do this, as feedback from multiple users told us that a particular model output would add even more value to Junctions 10. I hope you now realise how important your feedback is, and how it can influence the products we produce.
With future versions of Junctions and TRANSYT on our minds, please help us develop the products you need and want, in the following two ways:
- Do send us your ideas for Junctions and TRANSYT using our Ideas Portals located here: https://trlsoftware.com/support/ideas-portal/ or via our support team in the usual way using [email protected]
- Please also accept our invitations to short customer feedback sessions, that you may occasionally receive from us.
I look forward to your valued assistance, and wish to thank all of you who have already contributed.
Jim Binning
Product Owner
TRL Software
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