Towards a Reference Architecture for a Collaborative Intelligent Transport System Infrastructure

The intelligent transport systems, which aim at providing smarter transport infrastructures and sustainable mobility, are deeply grounded on the Information and Communication Technologies. Current trends in the development of integrated complex systems, such as integrated road/highway concessions management, require new strategies to match business processes to the underlying technology. New road management policies, supported on new user-payer models, and increasing concerns about traffic safety, establish requirements for a new family of emergent business services. Offering the driver the possibility to extend current tolling business service contracts to make possible the access to public transport systems, parking areas, subscription to innovative insurance service, etc., all covered by a single contract, is a promising strategy to promote sustainable and safe mobility. Nevertheless, this new wave of emergent business services requires high interoperability among a diversity of (heterogeneous) technology systems considering both vehicle and road infrastructures. This paper discusses an approach to the required ICT-based intelligent infrastructure based on a collaborative network of stakeholders as contributors to the business service offering.