IVHS~Ohio: A state initiative

The state of Ohio has recognized the importance and potential impact of Intelligent Vehicle-Highway Systems (IVHS) to its citizens and business enterprises. In response to the identified need, a small group of individuals representing Federal and state government, academia, and the private sector have worked together over the past year to initiate a statewide IVHS effort. This initiative is referred to as IVHS~Ohio. The objective of the effort is to "coordinate and foster a public, private, and academic partnership to make the urban and rural surface transportation system in the state of Ohio significantly safer, more effective, and more efficient by accelerating the identification, development, integration, and deployment of IVHS technologies." A May 1993 symposium was attended by over 220 people from government, academia, and the private sector. The result was a unanimous decision to establish a statewide IVHS program. A Board of Directors chaired by the Director of the Ohio Department of Transportation was formed to provide the oversight and direction of working committees established under the authority of the IVHS~Ohio organization. The Board of Directors consists of influential leaders in our state committed to pursuing IVHS. All organizational components of IVHS~Ohio have representation from state and local government, universities, and private industry working together as a team with a common objective. As a result, IVHS~Ohio has experienced a bonding and mutual respect among participants. The group is very actively working as a team to identify and deploy IVHS technology for our residents.

The experience of putting together IVHS~Ohio has been exciting and extremely successful. Much of our approach has been stimulated by and modeled after IVHS AMERICA. The authors of this paper represent the key organizers who initiated the IVHS~Ohio idea in our state. We intend to share the approach, strategies, results, and subsequent benefits that have been experienced from our work. The IVHS~Ohio experience is a successful model from which others can potentially benefit, and our primary objective in the paper is to help other states interested in organizing a state-focused IVHS program.