How Open Source Helps Your
Projects?
Majed Al-Ghandour, Ph.D., PE, CPM
Program Development Branch
NCDOT
NCAMPO 2012 Conference
Asheville, NC
May 2 - 4, 2012
Presentation Outline
• What is the Open Source?
• Tour with Open Source Software - Examples
• DynusT
(Dynamic Urban Systems in Transportation)
• Closing
Open Source Licenses
• My understanding is that “open source” licenses
such as GNU GPL3 don’t necessarily require that
the software be “free” in terms of not charging for
it.
• They just require that
– (a) the source code always be distributed with the
executable, and
– (b) that anyone who receives the software cannot make
it proprietary.
• Check your legal team to provide an open source
license.
GNU GPL General Public License
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_General_Public_License
Open Source Environment
Free
Easy
to Use
Fast
Performance
Source: http://www.openoffice.org/
Writer
Calc
Impress
Draw
Base
E-mail: Mozilla Thunderbird
Source: http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/products/thunderbird/
Video Player: Miro
Source: http://www.getmiro.com/
GIMP: Graphics / Photo Editing
Source: http://gimp-win.sourceforge.net/stable.html
Inkscape: Vector Graphics
Application
Source: http://inkscape.org/download/
PeaZip: Archiving
Source: http://peazip.sourceforge.net/index.html
OpenProj is an open-source desktop project
management application similar to Microsoft
Project.
OpenProj has a familiar user interface and
even opens existing MS Project files.
OpenProj is interoperable with Project, Gantt
Charts and PERT Charts.
Gantt and PERT Charts
Network Diagram
Source: http://drupal.org/
Drupal is an open source content management
platform powering millions of websites and
applications.
Source: http://www.plancheyenne.com/
Source: http://www.plancheyenne.com/
Source: http://www.gcbl.org/blog/marc-lefkowitz/who-collaborate-regional-sustainable-development
Source: http://recoveryfortexas.org/content/texas-transportation-commission-approves-money-public-transportation
Source: http://www.qgis.org/
SketchUp: Picture anything in 3D
Sources:
http://picasaweb.google.com/gallery.sketchup/UrbanPlanning#slideshow/5341003808863538946
http://picasaweb.google.com/gallery.sketchup/LandscapeArchitecture#slideshow/5244093690936510850
Atlantica: Pimlico and Arena Districts
Source: http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=983a71056cbbc9b29040a7c72f5a18f&prevstart=0
Fusion Tables Gather, visualize and share your data
online
Source: http://www.google.com/fusiontables/Home/
Source: http://www.ncdot.org/doh/preconstruct/altern/design_build/expressdesignbuild/expressdb.html
SHRP2 C10
Strategic Highway Research Program
Some Federal projects such as SHRP2 C10 have
required that any software produced be under
an open source license.
Source: http://www.shrp2c10.org/SHRPC10Portal/Home.aspx
DynusT
(Dynamic Urban Systems in Transportation)
Regional Operational Planning Capability
Regional - area larger than corridor
Operational - traffic flow dynamics sensitive
to signals, road configurations
Planning - short-term impact and long-term
equilibrium
Simulation
Mesoscopic Traffic Simulation
Dynamic Traffic Assignment (DTA)
Micro-meso-micro integration
DTA: Dynamic Traffic Assignment Projects
Source: http://code.google.com/p/dta/
Source: http://dynust.net/
Compatibility with Existing Modeling
Framework
Trip-Based Framework
Strategic
Modeling
Sub-Area
Modeling
Source:
http://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdot/MDOT_DTA_DynusT_Overview_Chiu_8_11_10_334886_7.pdf
Compatibility with Existing Modeling
Framework
Activity-Based Model
Source:
http://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdot/MDOT_DTA_DynusT_Overview_Chiu_8_11_10_334886_7.pdf
Triangle, NC Regional DynusT Model
Source:
http://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdot/MDOT_DTA_DynusT_Overview_Chiu_8_11_10_334886_7.pdf
A Regional View (DynusT Animation)
Source:
http://dynust.net/wikibin/doku.php?id=start:getting_started
What is Dynamic Traffic Assignment?
• A method to predict/estimate how trip-makers may shift to
other routes or departure time in response to:
–
–
–
–
–
Congestion
Pricing
Controls
Incidents
Improvements
• Understand how individual travel decisions impact an
entire region, by
– Time of day
– Origin-Destination (OD) zones
– Transportation modes
Macro-Meso-Micro Integration
Macro
Meso
Micro
Proposed toll
lanes
Analyze
Ingress/Egress
points for weaving


Macro
 Travel Demand
Models (TDM)
Micro
 e.g. VISSIM
Estimate toll lane
usage and
revenue
Source: http://dynust.net/wikibin/doku.php?id=start:new_page2
Mesoscopic Traffic Simulation?
Source: http://dynust.net/wikibin/doku.php?id=start:new_page2
Other Freeway Operations
Scenarios/Strategies
• Dynamic message signs
– Congestion warning
– Mandatory detour
– Speed advisory
• Information strategies
– Pre-trip information
– In-vehicle information
• Incident
• Work zone
• Managed lanes
– Truck only
– Truck restriction
Top left shows a view to traffic simulation.
Each vehicles represented by a green dot
as it moves through out road networks.
Bottom left shows a view of work zone area allowing to show
how vehicles diverse around network work zone area.
Top right shows queues due to the work zone
Bottom right shows speed profiles of the links
Source: NCDOT Research Project 2012-36 with NCSU & ITRE
Using WordPress
Source: http://ahb70.wordpress.com/conferences/2012-conference/
Web Services- Transportation
Develop Web Pages & Web Services
Summary
Open Source
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
DynusT  Regional Planning/TDM/WZ/Simulation
FireFox Web browser
OpenOffice Productivity suite
GIMP  Photo Editing
Scribus  Desktop publishing
GLabels  Printing Labels
Apache  Web server
PHP & MySQL Web Development scripting & Databases
OpenLDAP Directory services and access management
BlogsWordPress, Blogger
CMDrupal and Joomla
Social MediaFacebook, twitter
Google Do Every Thing 
Thank you!. Questions?
Majed Al-Ghandour
Ph.D., P.E., CPM, MCP, MCSD, MCT
malghandour@ncdot.gov
919-707-4621