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Geographical Information Technologies for Road Infrastructure Maintenance in Uganda

Lydia Mazzi Kayondo-Ndandiko

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Blekinge Insitute of Technology Licentiate Dissertation Series

No 2011:08ISSN 1650-2140

ISBN 978-91-7295-211-9

School of Planning and Media Design Department of Technology and Aestetics

Blekinge Institute of Technology Sweden

Geographical Information Technologies for Road Infrastructure Maintenance in Uganda

Lydia Mazzi Kayondo-Ndandiko

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Blekinge Institute of Technology

Blekinge Institute of Technology, situated on the southeast coast of Sweden, started in 1989 and in 1999 gained the right to run Ph.D programmes in technology.

Research programmes have been started in the following areas:

Applied Signal ProcessingComputer Science

Computer Systems TechnologyDevelopment of Digital Games

Human Work Science with a special Focus on ITInteraction Design

Mechanical EngineeringSoftware Engineering

Spatial PlanningTechnosicence Studies

Telecommunication Systems

Research studies are carried out in faculties and about a third of the annual budget is dedicated to research.

Blekinge Institue of TechnologyS-371 79 Karlskrona, Sweden

www.bth.se

© Lydia Mazzi Kayondo-Ndandiko 2011Department of Technology and Aestetics School of Planning and Media Design Graphic Design and Typesettning: Mixiprint, OlofstromPublisher: Blekinge Institute of TechnologyPrinted by Printfabriken, Karlskrona, Sweden 2011ISBN 978-91-7295-211-9 um:nbn:se:bth-00498

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Table of Contents

List of Figures

List of Tables

Abstract

Acknowledgements

Preface

List of Acronyms

Part 1 INTRODUCTION

1.1Background

1.2GeoSpatialTechnologiesasDecisionSupportTools

1.3TransportServicesinUganda

1.3.1RoadInfrastructureMaintenanceinKampala

1.3.2GITUsageforRIMinUganda-Theproblem

1.4ResearchObjectivesandQuestions

1.5SignificanceoftheResearch

1.6Methodology

1.6.1LiteratureReview

1.6.2FieldVisitsandInterviews

1.6.3Observations

1.6.4FieldDataCollection

1.6.5WorkshopsandConferences

1.6.6DataAnalysis

1.7Scope

1.8References

Part 2 RESEARCH CONTEXT

2.1DecisionSupportSystems

2.2PreviousRelatedResearch

2.3ConcludingRemarks

2.4References

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Part 3 PAPERS

3.1IntroductiontothePapers

3.2PaperI

3.3PaperII

3.4PaperIII

3.5PaperIV

Part 4 CONCLUSION

4.1SummaryandDiscussionofthepapers

4.1.1PaperI

4.1.2PaperII

4.1.3PaperIII

4.1.4PaperIV

4.2ResearchContribution

4.3WayForward

4.4FinalRemarks

Bibliography

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List of Figures

List of FiguresFigure1-1:ExamplesofGITsFigure1-2:ResearchDesignFigure2-1:TheDecisionMaking/ModellingProcessFigure2-2:ComponentsofSpatialDecisionSupportSystems:TheDDMParadigmFigure3-1:ASnapshotoftheGeosetterMainWindowFigure3-2:MapofUgandaShowingKampalaandJinjaAreasFigure3-3:CamerasClampedontheVehicleGuardRailFigure3-4:FieldBaseMapDocumentFigure3-5:GPSDataasanExcelSheetFigure3-6:KMLPlotoftheGPSLogFigure3-7a&b:SectionsofBujagaliRoadCapturedat10amFigure3-8a&b:ThesamesectionofBujagaliRoadasinFigure3-7,CapturedafterRainfall

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List of Tables

List of TablesTable2-1:PrioritizationSchemeTable3-1:ElementsofRoadManagementTable3-2:ComparisonbetweentheTraditionalROMDASandtheGITBasedTech-nology

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This thesis is a documentation of research on Geographical Information Technologies(GITs)asdecisionsupporttoolsinRoadInfrastructureMaintenance(RIM)inUganda.Themainobjectiveistodevelopanoperationalframeworkwithinwhichtheuseofgeo-informationtechnologiescanbeenhancedasdecisionsupporttoolsinroadinfrastructuremaintenanceworksofUganda.Specifically,theresearchidentifiesthegapsandlimitationsintheuseofandaccesstoGITsforRIManddefinesanalgorithmicframeworktoaccentu-atetheuseofGITsinRIM.Theresearchundertookaparticipatorymultifacetedapproachthatincludedareviewofdocumentationbothinacademia,informofarticles,journals,books,reportsandresearchthesesandalsoreportsanddocumentspreparedbytheroadinfrastructuremaintenancesector.Participantobservations,fieldvisitsandmeasures,in-terviewsandworkshopswerealsotriangularlyemployedtoobtaintheinherentanswers.ContentandGISanalysesweremadetoarriveatthefindingsthataredocumentedinthepaperswhicharepartofthethesis.

ThegapstousingGITsinRIMhavebeenfoundtoincludethelackofstandardizeddatasetstoaddresskeynation-wideandlocalmaintenancerequirements,challengesoncoordinat-inghowgeospatialdataareacquiredandutilizedandthecollectionofduplicatedatasetsatthelocalandnationallevels.Also,thepresentinstitutionalarrangementsdonotpermittheformationoflastingpartnershipsandoperatingunderacoordinatedGISinfrastructure.ThelimitationstoaccessofGITsinthesectorinclude;theabsenceofpoliciesforacces-sibilityandstandarduseofGITs,lackofinfrastructuretosupportutilizationofgeographicdatasets,unavailabilityofandlimitedaccessibilitytogeographicdata, lackofgeospatialcapacityatindividualandorganizational levelsandthedigitaldivide.Anondeterminis-ticalgorithmicframeworkapproachtotheaccentuationofGITusageinRIMhasbeensuggested.Thisframeworkinvolvesstrategieson;developingapolicyondatacollectionguidelinesemphasizingtheuseofGPS,satelliteimageryandGIS,continuousundertak-ingofcapacitybuildinginthebenefitsofGITuseandthescienceinvolved,establishmentofLocalSpatialDataInfrastructures(LSDI)forroadmaintenancedataandsettingasideyearlybudgetsforthedefinedactivities.Inthisframework,thedynamicsegmentationdatamodelisconsideredasuperiordatastoragestrategyforroadmaintenancedatawithintheGIS.DynamicSegmentationistheprocessoftransforminglinearlyreferenceddata(alsoknownasevents)thathavebeenstoredinatableintofeaturesthatcanbedisplayed,que-riedandanalyzedonthemapthroughcomputations.Itallowsforthelocationofmultipleeventsstoredwithlinearlyreferencedattributeswithoutanyduplicationwithroutegeom-etryandineffectsupportssharingofnetworkinfrastructurewithdifferentapplications

Thethesishasbeenorganisedinfourparts.Thefirstpartistheintroductiontotheresearchwhichprovides a background, discusses the conceptual issues related toGITs, the cur-rentstatusofGITsintheRIMsector,theobjectivestotheresearchandthemethodologyadopted to achieve those objectives. Part 2 is a review and contextualisation of relatedresearch,Part3arethepublishedpapersintheiroriginalformandPart4isabriefdiscus-sionoftheattachedpapers,theresearcher’scontributionto-date,thewayforwardtothedoctoralthesisandfinalremarks.

Keywords:Datamodel,Decisionsupport,GeographicalInformationTechnologies(GITs),RoadMaintenance,Uganda.

Abstract

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Acknowledgement

Iamprivilegedtohavetheopportunitytothankwhoeverhassomehowmadeacontri-butiontothesuccessofthisresearchtodate.ThealmightyLordwhohaskeptmealiveandenergetictoperformtheseworks,Iwillalwaysgiveyoutheglory!

Iamgratefultothesponsorsofthisstudy,Sida.Thankyouforthecontinuedsupport!

Tomysupervisors,ProfsGerhardBaxandS.S.TickodriTogboawhoarediligentlyincustodywithmethroughoutthejourneyofthisresearch,Isay,thankyouprofessors!

IappreciatethecooperationandresponsesfromseveralpeoplethatIinterviewedandhavecontinuedtointeractwithduringthedatacollectionstages.EventhoughIcan-notmentionallbyname,thankyousomuchforthetimeandbrilliantideasdiscussed.IwouldhoweverliketomentionEngineers.DavidssaliLuyimbazi,PatrickLudigo,OrachCharlesAssedri,CharlesBakaki,RobertKakiza,Ms.MaryAdweo,EmmyKwe-siga,CharlesKizitoandEmy.Thankyousomuchforthedataanddevotedattitudetowardsthisresearch.

Myseniorcolleaguesatwork,Drs.MosesMusinguziandAnthonyGidudu,Ithankyouforyourguidanceatthevariousstagesoftheresearch.

MyappreciationalsogoestotheentirefamiliesoftheformerFacultyofTechnology,nowthecollegeofEngineering,Design,ArtandTechnologyofMakerereUniversityandthedivisionofTechnoscienceStudiesofBlekingeInstituteofTechnology,Cam-pusKarlshamn,Sweden.YouhaveprovidedacomfortableworkingenvironmentforwhichIamhighlygrateful.SpecialthankstoProf.LenaTrojerforhermotherlytouchateveryopportunityavailed.ThankyousomuchLena.

Lastly,Iamindebtedtomyfamily,forthetimestheyhaveenduredwithoutmyphysi-calpresenceasmotherandwife,especiallytothelatestadditionBrianna!Briannahaskeptjollyandaccommodativeinmyabsence,anaspectofherthatkeptmecomfort-ablywritingthisthesisawayfromhome.

MayGodabundantlyblessyouall!

MazziLydiaKayondo–NdandikoKarlshamnApril2011

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...I dedicate this thesis to my family, Brianna, Bridgette, Bruno and Charles…...So that you may know, that in my absence, I was making these ends meet...

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Thisthesisbuildsfromtheauthor’smaster’sresearchwheresheinvestigatedtherela-tionshipbetweeninformationrequirementsanddataavailabilityinthecaseoftrans-portplanninginUganda.Theproblemaddressedatthetimewascentredonthetrans-portationsystemofKampalabeingfacedwithmanychallenges.Researchhasassignedthesechallengestolackofknowledgeonthepartofplannersastowhichdatatouse,datanotbeingavailableandeventheavailabledatanotbeingputtouseinplanningforabettersystemandservices.Thiswasessentiallybecausethisdatadidnotsuittherequirementsforplanners.However, today, this situation is being addressed through the ongoing National Spatial Data infrastructure (NSDI) studies taking place in the country. A Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) is a framework of policies, institutional arrangements, technologies, data and people that makes it possible to share and use geographic informa‑tion effectively. Although individual attempts to affect SDIs have been on for quite some time, at the moment, there is an ongoing study at the national level that was commissioned to assess NSDI for monitoring development outcomes. This study is at the stage of defin‑ing roles and responsibilities to cater for the various sections of the NSDI. The question of its (NSDI) funding is however still a hassle to come by thus far.Toaddresstheresearchproblem then, the researcher sought topropose someguidelines for improving theutilizationofgeoinformationwithinthetransportdomaininKampala.Thesedevisedguidelineswerelogicallyderivedfromthechallengesfacedwiththeutilizationofgeoinformation.Thechallengesweremainlyorganizationalbutalsotechnicalinnature.Theseguidelines included,struggletowarrantpolitical favour, formalisationofcol-laborationsamongthedifferentorganisations,streamliningoforganisationalrolesandresponsibilities,documentationofdata,developingofdatastandards,maximizingthedonorfundedprojectsandcombiningseveralfundingmechanismstofacilitatedataupdate.Thatresearchconcludedthatbecauseofthecomplexityofthetransportsec-tor demands, therewasno single approach to collecting, analysing, displaying anddisseminationofgeospatialtransportinformation.Fromthatresearch,amanuscriptchapterentitled“SDIRequirementsforTransportPlanning:ACaseStudyofKampalaUganda”hasbeenacceptedforpublishinginthebook,“RecentAdvancesinGISandRemoteSensingAnalysisinSub-SaharaAfrica”bytheNovapublishers.

Inacontinuedprocessfromthemaster’sprogramme,thisresearchthenseekstoinves-tigatetheuseofGeographicalInformationTechnologies(GITs)asDecisionSupportToolsinRoadInfrastructureMaintenance(RIM)inUganda.Despitethetremendousadvancesingeospatialtechnologyandtheincreaseinavailabilityofspatialdata,geo-graphicinformationtechnologieshavenottakenfootintheroadmaintenancesectorofUganda.ThegapsandlimitationsintheuseofGITsforRIMhavebeenanalysedtorelatewiththeinstitutionalchallengeslimitingtheattainmentofbasicdatarequire-mentsfortransportationplanningfromthepreviousresearch.Thesehavebeendis-cussedinpaperIIofthisthesis.InpaperIII,aframeworktoenhancingtheuseofGITsforRIMhasalsobeensuggested.PaperIVdiscussesaLowcostGITbasedmappingmethodology that could assist decision makers at the preliminary decision makinglevelofmaintenanceprograms.Thethreepapers(I,IIandIII)includedinthisthesis

Preface

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havebeenpublishedasconferencepapers.PaperIVisamanuscriptthathasbeensub-mittedforpresentationatthe1stConferenceontheAdvancesinGeomaticsResearchscheduledfor4th-5thAugust2011.Thereferencedetailstothesepapersareasbelow.

IMazzi,L.,K.,Tickodri,S.,S.,T.,andBax,G.,(2009).GeographicalInformationTech-nologiesasDecisionSupportToolsinRoadInfrastructuremaintenanceinUganda.Inproceedingsofthe9thAfricaGISinternationalConference:“GeospatialInformationandsustainabledevelopmentinAfrica;FacingChallengesofGlobalChange”,Kam-pala,Uganda,26th-30thOctober2009.ISBN:9970-814-17-6.

IIMazzi,L.,K.,Tickodri,S.,S.,T.,andBax,G.,(2010).AnOverviewoftheGapsandLimitationsintheUtilizationofGITsforRoadInfrastructureMaintenanceinUgan-da.Presentedatthe5thESRIEasternAfricaUserConference(EAUC),Transporta-tionandUtilities.SafariParkHotel,Nairobi- Kenya.10th-12thNovember2010

IIIMazzi,L.,K.,Tickodri,S.,S.,T.,andBax,G.,(2011).AlgorithmicIncorporationofGeographicalInformationTechnologiesinRoadInfrastructureMaintenanceinUganda.PresentedatTheSecondInternationalConferenceonAdvancesinEngi-neeringandTechnology(AET2011).Theme:Contributionofscientificresearchindevelopment.1(C)InformationandCommunicationsTechnologyandPolicy(ICTP-1)pp242-248.ImperialResortBeachHotel,Entebbe,Uganda.January30th–February1st2011.ISBN:978-9970-214-00-7

IVMazzi,L.,K.,Bax,G.,andTickodriS.S.T.,(2011).LowCostGITBasedTechnologyforPreliminaryRoadMaintenanceDecisionSupport.TobepresentedattheAdvancesinGeomaticsResearchConferenceon3rd-4thAugust2011,Kampala,Uganda.

AsabackgroundtothisresearchbutnotincludedinthisthesisisthemanuscriptbookchapteracceptedforpublicationbytheNovapublishers.Itsdetailsareasbelow;

VMazziLydia.K.N.andGidudu,A.,“SDIRequirementsforTransportPlanning:ACaseStudyofKampalaUganda”inRecentAdvancesinGISandRemoteSensingAnalysisinSub-SaharaAfrica

The researchwill eventuallyprogress to aPhDon assimilationof the stakeholders’contributiontothedevelopedframeworkandondevelopmentofaprototypeGIS-TdynamicsegmentationdatamodelforroadmaintenanceinUganda.

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List of AcronymsADEOS AdvancedEarthObservingSatelliteAVL AutomaticVehicleLocationCAA CivilAviationAuthorityCCD ChargeCoupledDeviceCEDAT CollegeofEngineering,Design,ArtandTechnologyDBMS DatabaseManagementSystemDDM DataDialogModellingDGMS DialogGenerationandManagementSystemDSS DecisionSupportSystemsETM+ EnhancedThematicMapperplusGDP GrossDomesticProductGI GeographicalInformationGIS GeographicalInformationSystemsGIS-T GeographicalInformationSystemsforTransportationGITs GeographicalInformationTechnologiesGLCF GlobalLandCoverFacilityGMMS GISBasedMaintenanceManagementSystemGoU GovernmentofUgandaGPS GlobalPositioningSystemsICT InformationandCommunicationsTechnologyIQL InformationQualityLevelIRI InternationalRoughnessIndexIRS IndianRemoteSensingITS IntelligentTransportSystemsKBS KnowledgeBasedSystemKCC KampalaCityCouncilKML KeyholeMarkupLanguageLC LocalCouncilLG LocalGovernmentLISS LowImagingSensingSatelliteLRP LocationReferencePointLRS LocationReferenceSystemLSDI LocalSpatialDataInfrastructureMBMS ModelBaseManagementSystemMDGs MillenniumDevelopmentGoalsMIS ManagementInformationSystemsMoLG MinistryofLocalGovernmentMoWT MinistryofWorksandTransportMRSAC MaharashtrastateRemoteSensingandApplicationCentreNDP NationalDevelopmentPlanNISDIC NationalInteragencySpatialDataInfrastructureCommitteeNPA NationalPlanningAuthorityNSDI NationalSpatialDataInfrastructureNWSC NationalWaterandSewerageCorporationOPRC OutputPerformance-basedRoadContractsPAN PanchromaticPCI PavementConditionIndex

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PEAP PovertyEradicationActionPlanPMIS PavementManagementInformationSystemPROME ProjectManagementEngineeringPWD PublicWorksDepartmentRAFU RoadAgencyFormulationUnitRAMPS RoadAnalysisManagementandPlanningSoftwareRAMS RoadAssetManagementSystemRGB RedGreen&BlueRIM RoadInfrastructureMaintenanceRIMS RoadInformationandManagementSystemRMS RoadManagementSystemROMDAS RoadMeasurementandDataAcquisitionSystemRS RemoteSensingSDI SpatialDataInfrastructureSDSS SpatialDecisionSupportSystemsSLC ScanLineCorrectorSOI SurveyofIndiaTOR TermsofReferenceTRB TransportResearchBoardTTCA TransitTransportCoordinationAuthorityUBOS UgandaBureauofStatisticsUEB UgandaElectricityBoardUETCL UgandaElectricityTransmissionCompanyLimitedUML UnifiedModellingLanguageUNRA UgandaNationalRoadsAuthorityWTC WorldTradeCentre

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Part 1 - Introduction

1.1 Background

Awellmaintainedtransportationsystemofacountryplaysapivotalroleinitsinfra-structuraldevelopmentthuspromotingsustainabledevelopment.Economically,trans-portisalivelihoodofcities,andinmostcountries,includingdevelopingcountries,citiesarethemajorsourcesofthenationaleconomicgrowth(WorldBank,2002).Thisistoimplythattheeconomichealthofaregionisdirectlylinkedtomobility.Transportaccountsforanappreciablepercentageofacountry’sGrossDomesticProduct(GDP)andassuchiscentraltodevelopment.

Theprovision,operationandmaintenanceofthephysicalinfrastructureofatranspor-tationsectoranditsrelatedsocialservicesrequireapriorknowledgeandmanipulationofgeo-information.Geospatialdataareafoundationforrelevantandcritical infor-mationforplanning,engineering,assetmanagement,andoperationsassociatedwitheverytransportationmodeatalllevelsofgovernmentandadministration,TransportResearchBoard(TRB,2004).

Themanagementofroadtransport,sinceitisthemostwidelyusedmodeoftransportinAfrica,playsanimportantfactorinthecountry’sdevelopment.ThetransportsectorinUgandacontributessignificantlytotheeconomicgrowthandpovertyeradicationinthecountrythroughvariousways,especially,throughtradeandtourism.It(thetrans-portsectorinUganda)comprisesofroads,railways,airandinlandwaterways.Roadtransportisbyfarthemostdominantmodeoftransportinthecountry,carryingwell

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over90%ofpassengerandfreighttrafficandservingasatruebackbonesupportingthecountry’seconomy,UgandaNationalRoadsAuthority,TermsofReference(UNRA-TOR,2007).RoadsprovidetheonlymeansofaccesstomostoftheruralcommunitiesandeffectivemanagementofthisassetisvitaltotheGovernmentofUganda’sstrategyforeconomicdevelopmentandpovertyeradication.TheabsenceofafullyfunctionalrailroadtohandlebothfreightandlongdistancerouteshascreatedstrainontheroadinfrastructureinUganda.

TherehavebeenmanycasesofpoortransportservicesinUgandaasdocumentedby;Grimaudetal.(2007),TransitTransportCoordinationAuthority(TTCA,2004),andMukwaya(2001).Theroadinfrastructurewasdevelopedinachaoticmanner,withnoplanforacoordinatedandrationalizeduseofmodesandroutes(Mukwaya,2001).Asaresult,ithassufferedfromnegligenceleadingtoroadinfrastructurefailure.Attemptstomaintainroadshavefrustratedusersasthey(theroads)almostimmediatelydeveloppotholesafterrepair.Worsestill,roadmaintenancehasprovenadhoc,thusmakingthetransportsystemunsatisfactory.

DimitriouandBanjo (1990)discuss transportproblemsof thirdworldcities.Theyincludetrafficcongestion,impactstotheenvironment,andhighroadaccidents.Eventoday, Uganda still faces problems of traffic congestion, high road accidents, weakinstitutionalsupportleadingtopoordefinitionoftheproblemathandanddifferingtechnologytransferprioritiesinproblemresolution.

Nowadays, however, the need for preventive maintenance is being appreciated inUgandaandplansofmakingitapriorityareinplace(RobinsonandStiedl,2001).Luyimbazi(2007)indicatedthatmaintenanceneedsarebasedonroadinventory,con-ditionand trafficdata, allofwhichcanbeeffectivelycollectedandmanagedusingGeographicalInformationTechnologies(GITs).

TheunderstandingofGITs,effectiveuseofgeographicalinformationandtheknowl-edgeof theiradvantages iscritical totheplanninganddecisionmakingprocess forassetmanagementdepartments.Becauseawellmaintainedroadnetworkassetisveryimportant for theeconomicdevelopmentof thenation,RoadInfrastructureMain-tenance(RIM)isaprerequisiteforthesuccessfulmanagementofroads.TheuseofGeographicInformation(GI)thatiscollected,managedandanalyzedusingGITsisveryusefulindecisionmakingforRIM.GITsarecommonlyreferredtoasInforma-tionCommunicationTechnology (ICT) tools used in the collection,management,maintenance,manipulationandpresentationofgeographicdataandorinformation(Ehrenspergeretal.,2007).Morerecently,ithasbecomeclearthatGIS,togetherwithGlobalpositioning systems (GPS), aerialphotography,RemoteSensing techniques,andotherspatiallyrelatedtoolsfordecisionmaking,comprisealargerarrayofcomple-mentarytoolsthatcanbegroupedtogetherunderthemorecomprehensiverubricof“geographicinformationtechnologies”(GIT)(TeresaM.Harrisonetal.,2007).Theuseofthesetechnologiesisknowntosimplifydecisionmakingtoanontechnicallevelandtosupportthestakeholdersinsustainable-orienteddecisionmaking.Embracingandcontinuingtodevelopaflexible,methodological frameworkforthe integration

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ofdecision-supportingtechnologieswithinfrastructureisfundamentaltosupportingeffectiveincorporationofspatialdataindecision-making(Cartright,1993)ascitedinMasserandOnsrud(1993).

UgandaisbeyondthefirstappearancesofGIT,whenonlyhighlyqualifiedprofession-alscouldhandlethem.Today,advancesintechnologyaretremendous(Ehrenspergeretal.,2007).AwiderangeofGISisavailablerangingfromhighcostserverbasedtolowcostuser-friendlydesktopsoftware.Thesectorhasnotedtheincreaseintheavailabilityofspatialdata.Thespatialandtemporalresolutionofremotesensingdatahasimpres-sively increased, andmoredata arenow freely available.Themostoutstanding ad-vancementhasprobablybeenthedevelopmentoftheInternetandwebGISwhichhasopenedupnewopportunitiessuchasaccesstorealtimemaps,cheapandfrequentdataupdatesandworldwidesharingofspatialinformation.Disseminatingspatialinforma-tionontheInternetthroughweb-basedGISimprovesthedecision-makingprocesses(JainandSharma,2005).Throughgraphicrepresentationandspatialanalysis,theuseofGITswouldhelptomakeRIMprocessesunderstandabletodecisionmakersandlaypersons.

UseofGITs is increasingly shifting fromreference tools todynamicdecisionmak-ingtools.Thisshifthasbeentriggeredby,amongotherfactors,emergencysituationssuch as theWorldTrade Centre (WTC) attacks of September 11 200l (Teresa M.Harrisonetal.,2007).Thisattackbecameacatalyst forchange in theuseofGITsforalmostallrelevantdisciplinestransportationinclusive.Mostofthedatarequiredforroadmaintenanceisspatialinnature,makingGITsrelevantinroadmaintenance.Roadmaintenance inUgandahaspresentedabigchallengeandyet there isno re-searchthathasbeenundertakentocontextualizetheGITrequirementsforimprov-ingroadmaintenance.Maintenanceattemptshaveextensivelycenteredonfixingofpotholeswhenobserved.However,withoutuseofappropriatedataanddatamodels,roadmaintenanceactivitiesareboundtopersistascostlyandtimeconsuming.Thereisnocomprehensivemethodologyorframeworkforaddressingboththetechnicalandnon-technicalissuesaffectingGITimplementation.TheoverallaimofthisresearchistodefineaframeworkthatwillworktowardsenhancingtheuseofGITsasdecisionsupporttoolsinroadinfrastructuremaintenanceworksinUganda.ThisthesisgivesadescriptionoftheroadmaintenancesectorinUganda;itdiscussesthegapsandlimita-tionsfacingtheseorganisationsastheyseektoutiliseGITsinRIM(PaperII).Basingonthesegaps,thethesissuggestsanalgorithmicapproachinformofaframeworktoaccentuatetheuseofGITsinRIM(PaperIII).AspartofthethesisdocumentationisanintroductiontoalowcostGITbasedtechnologyforpreliminaryroadmaintenancedecisionsupport(PaperIV)andabriefoftheavailablefreewareandopensourcesoft-waretomanipulateGIdata/products(PaperI)

1.2 Geo Spatial Technologies as Decision Support Tools

GeoInformationTechnologiesareasetofspecializedInformationandCommunica-tionsTechnologieswhichhelptocollect,manageandanalysedataabouttheresources,

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landscape features, and socioeconomiccharacteristicsofanarea inboth spaceandtime(Ehrensperger,etal.,2007).Theyprovideanimportantfeatureforcommunica-tion,disseminationandknowledgesharingonaccountoftheircapabilitytofacilitatedisplayandvisualizationofspatialdata.GITsincludefourbasicspatialtools,namely,GeographicalInformationSystems(GIS),GlobalPositioningSystems(GPS),RemoteSensing(RS)andwebbasedtoolssuchasGoogleEarthwhichprovidenewwaysofsharinginformationandvisualizingofnearrealtimedata.Figure1-1showsagraphicalexampleofavailableGITtools,includinga)NokiaGPSnetworkroverreceiverwithGISsoftwareformobilemappingb)Satelliteimage,c)TrimbleGPSequipment,d)Aerialphotograph,e)EarthglobeinstancingGoogleEarthandf )Asatellitesurveyingtheearth.

Figure 1‑1: Examples of GITs

GIS facilitates storage,management and analysis of geographically referenceddata,integratingcommondatabaseoperationswithuniquemeansofvisualizationandthegeographicandanalysispotentialsofmaps.Itassistsusersinspatialanalysisandpro-vides a base for interpreting how physical, social and economic factors interact inspace.GIScaneffectivelybeusedasatool intheSpatialDecisionSupportSystem(SDSS)ofroadinfrastructureinUganda.ASDSSisaninteractive,computer-basedsystemdesignedtosupportauserorgroupofusersinachievinghighereffectivenessofdecisionmakingwhilesolvingsemi-structuredspatialdecisionproblems.

GPSaresatellitebasedpositioningsystemsforcapturinglocationsofsamplepointssuchas road junctions,potholesor larger features (landmarks)on the road.Theseotherlandmarksmaylaterbeusedtoreferencesatelliteimagesorotherspatialdatalay-ers.RemoteSensingontheotherhandisthedetectingoftheearth’ssurfacefromsatel-litesandairplanesbymakinguseofthepropertiesofelectromagneticwavesemitted,reflectedordiffractedbythesensedobjects.Itprovidesimagesoftheearth’ssurfacethatcanbeusedtoidentifyespeciallydifferenttypesoflandcover.

 

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Mapping and cartography are a discipline and science with a long historical back-ground,whichdatesbackprobablyas longas thehistoryof thewrittenword(Eh-rensperger, 2006). They are a traditional approach of GITs, which uses maps andsketchesoffeaturesinthegeographicspacetocarryoutspatialanalysis.

AdvantagesassociatedwiththeuseofGITsareimprovedmapping,greaterefficiencyinretrievalofinformation,fasterandmoreextensiveaccesstothetypesofgeographi-calinformationimportanttoplanning,improvedanalysis,bettercommunicationtothepublic,andspeederaccesstoinformationforvariousapplicationprocesses.Theirimplementationhoweverisassociatedwithsomekeyissuestoconsider(Ehrensperg-er,etal.,2007).Theseinclude;Relevanceofcontent:thereisaneedtoidentifythevariousstakeholderstohelpinthedefinitionofthecontentintheGIS.Appropriatetechnology:acrucialaspectofsuccessfulGITimplementationisaccessibilitywhichincludescostsofhardware,softwareanddata.Also,multidisciplinarysystemshavebecomeaprerequisiteforinfrastructuremanagement.Forinstance,roadinfrastructuremaintenancerequiresdatafromutilityorganisations,e.g.,waterandelectricityallofwhichrequireintegration.Furtherstill,oneshouldconsiderthestrengtheningofstakeholder’smotivationtoworktogether,e.g.acrosssectorministriesandordepartmentsandthisistodowiththeinstitutionalizationofGIT.

1.3 Transport Services in Uganda

ThetransportsectorinUgandaconsistsoffourmajormodes;i.e.,air,road,railwayandinlandwatertransport.Roadtransportisbyfarthemostdominantmodeoftransportwithinthecountry,carryingwellover90%ofpassengerandfreighttrafficandservingas a truebackbone supporting thecountry’s economyUgandaNationalRoadsAu-thority,TermsofReference,UNRA-TOR,(2007).RoadsprovidetheonlymeansofaccesstomostoftheruralcommunitiesmakingitseffectivemanagementvitaltotheGovernmentofUganda’sstrategyforeconomicdevelopmentandpovertyeradication.Uganda’sRoadNetworkcomprises:

• 10,800kmNationalRoadsundertheresponsibilityoftheMinistryofWorksandTransport(MoWT)throughtheUNRA.About2700kmarepavedandtheremain-ing8,100gravel;

• 27,500kmDistrictroadsundertheresponsibilityofMinistryofLocalGovernment(MoLG);

• 4,300kmUrbanRoadsundertheresponsibilityofUrbanCouncils;and

• 30,000kmCommunityAccessRoadsunderalowertierofLocalGovernmentresponsibility(LCIII);(RoadFund,2011)

TheGovernment iscurrently implementingaprogrammeofcontinuousupgradingofkeygravel roads tobitumenstandard.Theseroadsarecharacterizedbybadroadsurfaces,potholes,poorroaddesignsandinadequateroadfurniture.ThegovernmentstructureofUgandaiscomposedof2tiers,namelyCentralGovernment(GoU)andLocalGovernment(LG).TheGoUexecutesitsfunctionsthroughministrieswhichre-

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ceivetheirmandatefromparliament.TheMinistryofWorksandTransportisrespon-siblefortheplanning,developmentandmaintenanceoftheclassifiedroadnetworkinUganda.TheLGstructureconsistsofdistrictsgovernedbyautonomousdistrictcoun-cilsandurbanareasgovernedbyautonomousurbancouncils.ThelocalgovernmentactofUgandawaseffectedin1997todecentralizefunctions,powersandresponsibili-ties,includingthedevolutionofroadmaintenanceservicesofrural,district,urbanandcommunityroads to localandurbanauthorities.Thedistrictandurbanauthoritiesareresponsibleforthemaintenanceofthedistrictandurbanroadsrespectively.Eventhoughthisactallowsdistrictstofullyimplementroutineandperiodicmaintenanceactivities,rehabilitationisstillhandledbythecentralgovernmentthroughtheMoWT.Asafurtherdecentralizationstrategy,theMoWTisplanningonissuingoutOutputPerformance-BasedRoadContracts(OPRC)wherethecontractordecideswhattodo,whentodoit,howtodoitandwheretodoitinordertoachievetheclientprescribedservicelevels.

1.3.1 Road Infrastructure Maintenance in Kampala

RoadinfrastructuremaintenanceinUgandainvolvesanumberoforganisations;TheMinistryofWorksandTransport,UgandaNationalRoadsAuthority,roadconsult-ants and contractors. The Local governments and donors also play a part in somecircumstances.TheMoWThastheconstitutionalmandatetosetpolicy,regulate,setstandards, and provide technical guidance and monitoring to the construction in-dustry. Road infrastructure maintenance falls under the construction industry. TheUgandaNationalRoadsAuthorityisresponsiblefordevelopmentandmaintenanceofnationalroads.Thedistrictandurbanauthoritiesareresponsibleforconstructionandmaintenanceofthedistrictandurbanroadsrespectively.Alldistrictsarestaffedwithengineers,plannersandsurveyors.SincetheestablishmentoftheUNRA,thedistrictengineersareanswerabletoUNRAforthenationalroadswithintheirjurisdiction.AmaintenancescenarioinKampalaforexample,KampalaCityCouncil(KCC),alocalgovernment organization, is charged with the responsibility of maintaining districtroadswithinthecity.Dependingonthesizeofroadandthescopeofworksrequired,KCCnormallydecideswhetherornottoperformmaintenanceworksusinginhouseequipmentandpersonnelorcontractbasedroadmaintenance.Inthelattermethod,aprivatecontractorisoftenprocuredandhiredtoperformtheworksunderdirectorin-directsupervisionbyKCC.Underindirectsupervision,aprivateconsultantcompanyisassignedsupervisoryroleonbehalfoftheclientandthisnormallydependsontheprojectsizeandavailabilityoffunds.Thecommunityaccessroadsarearesponsibilityofthelowerlocalgovernmentsandtheirmaintenanceisoftencommunitybased.

1.3.2 GIT Usage for RIM in Uganda - The Problem

ThedesiretouseGISbytheMoWTinthemanagementofnationalanddistrictroadswasevidencedbythecommissioningofaprojectknownasManagementInformationSystems(MIS)in2006.ThisprojectwasplannedtoapplyGISformonitoringcross-

25

cuttingissuesintheroadsector.TheRoadAnalysisManagementandPlanningSoft-ware(RAMPS)wasintegratedwithGISandwasappliedmainlyforreportingvariousattributesforroadmaintenance.Today,theUgandaNationalRoadsAuthority,whichischargedwiththemanagementofnationalroads,alsousesGISforreporting.Pres-entlyundertheUNRA,thereisanongoingprojectofbuildinganationalroadsdata-bankforthecountry.TheestablishmentoftheRoadAgencyFormationUnit(RAFU)in1999sawthetransferofthemanagementofcapital(development)projectsfromtheMoWTtothissemi-autonomousunit,theUNRA.InaccordancewiththispolicyandinordertoimprovetheefficiencyandeffectivenessofitsroadnetworkmanagementtheGoUalsodecidedtointroduceanOutputandPerformance-basedRoadContractssystem.Thissystemofperformance-basedcontractingisdesignedtoincreaseefficiencyandeffectivenessofroadassetmanagementandpreservation.Therefore,thecontractorissupposedtodecidewhattodo,whentodoit,howtodoitandwheretodoitinor-dertoachievetheclientprescribedservicelevels.Thepilotapplicationofthisstrategyisplannedonanetworkofapproximately1,500kmofselectednationalroadsnetworkineasternUgandai.e.Jinja,TororoandMbalemaintenancestations.

InordertoadequatelyprepareforthereplicationofthisOPRCsystemtotherestofthenationalroadnetworkofapproximately9,000km,RAFUnowUNRAneededtosetupacomprehensiveRoad/BridgeManagementSystem(RMS)witha roaddatabanktobeusedaccuratelyfordeterminingthefundingrequirementsforroadmain-tenance,developmentandrehabilitation.Accordingly,theMinistrydecidedtocom-missionconsultancyservicestoassistincollectingplanningdataonthenationalroadnetwork and set up a comprehensive geo-referenced roadmanagement system thatcanbeusedtodeterminethemaintenance,rehabilitationanddevelopmentneedsofroads,bridgesandotherroadnetworkassets.RoughtoninternationalandPROMEconsultantltdareprovidingtheseconsultancyservices.ApparentlyitisatthisprojectlevelthatGITsaretoanextentbeingrealizedinthecollectionandmanagementofroadmaintenancedata.Forexample, theRoadMeasurementandDataAcquisitionSystem(ROMDAS)isbeingusedtovideo-logtheroadconditioninaroadinventorysurveyundertakenbytheprojectinUganda.TheROMDASisasurveyingvehiclethatconsistsofseveralmeasuringinstrumentsincludingagyroscope,GPSreceivers,bumpintegrator,etcandavideocameramountedinthevehicle.Italsopossessessoftwaretoprocessthecollecteddiscretedata. It isusedbasicallyfor inspectionoftheroadnetwork(MihicandIvetic,2010).PROMEisjustoneoftheconsultantcompaniesinvolvedinroadmaintenanceactivitiesinthecountry.SeveralotherconsultantandcontractorcompanieswithoutGITknowledgeandexpertisearesimilarlyinvolvedinvariousroadmaintenanceactivities.

In reality, GITs are being underutilized in the RIM decision making processes. InUganda,thedecisiontoperformmaintenanceworksonaroadisinitiallybasedon;recordsofpastexpendituresontheroadsectionsinquestion,availabilityofresourcesandtrafficlevelsalongtheseroads.However,mostofthedatarequiredforroadmain-tenanceisspatialinnature.Luyimbazi(2007)indicatesthatroadmaintenanceneedsarebasedonroadinventory,conditionandtrafficdata.ThismakesGITsrelevantfor

26

the purpose. And yet, road maintenance has continued to present a big challenge.ThereisnoresearchthathasbeenundertakentocontextualizetheGITrequirementsfor improving road maintenance. Maintenance attempts have extensively revolvedaroundfixingofpotholeswhenobservedoratworst,whencomplaintsaremadeviathemedia.JustlikeBishopetal.,(2002)articulate,aprerequisiteforinterventionisaframeworkofup-to-datespatialinformationandausercommunitywithboththeskillstousespecificsoftwareproducts,andanunderlyingknowledgeofspatialinfor-mationscience.WithoutsuchinterventioninvolvingtheuseofappropriatedataanddatamodelstoenhanceGITusageinthesector,thetraditionalapproachtodecisionmakingwillsuffice.Andyetthisapproachislimitedbytimeconstraintsandwastageofbothhumanandfinancialresources.ThefocusofthisstudyistodevisestrategiesofenhancingtheuseofgeospatialtechnologiesasdecisionsupporttoolsinRIMinUganda, as support to the traditional pattern matching (majorly based on humanjudgement),thathasbeenusedovertime.

1.4 Research Objectives and Questions

Theresearchhasbeenguidedbyageneralobjectiveandthreespecificobjectives

General Objective:Todevelopanoperationalframeworkwithinwhichtheuseofgeo-informationtech-nologiescanbeenhancedasdecisionsupporttoolsinroadinfrastructuremaintenanceworksinUganda.

Specific Objectives:1.ToidentifygapsintheuseofGITsintheroadinfrastructuremaintenanceprocessof

Ugandaandthelimitationstoaccessingthesetechnologies,

2.TodevelopanalgorithmicframeworkthatincorporatesGITsasdecisionsupporttoolsinroadinfrastructuremaintenanceinUgandaand

3.TodeveloparoadmaintenancedatamodelbasedontheroadmaintenancedatarequirementsintheroadinfrastructuremaintenancesectorofUganda

Research Questions:Theaboveobjectivesarebeingaddressedusingthefollowing5researchquestions:

i.WhatarethebarriersfacedbyGITinitiativesinroadinfrastructuremaintenance?

ii.HowcantheuseofGITsbeenhancedintothedecisionmakingprocessesoftheroadinfrastructureworkstoensure,thatdecisionsinroadinfrastructuremaintenancearebasedonreliablespatialdata?

iii.Whatisthenatureofthedatausedforroadmaintenancedecisionmaking?

iv.Howeffectivelycanthedatainiii)aboveberepresentedinaGIS?

v.WhatisthemostappropriateGIS-TdatamodelforroadmaintenancedatainUganda?

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1.5 Significance of the Research

Thesignificanceoftheresearchcanbehighlightedinfourmajorways.Theresearchwillcreateawarenessofthepotentialofgeographicalinformationtechnologiesfordatacollection,managementandanalysisamongthestakeholdersintheRIMsector.ItwillincitethemtotheavailabilityoflowcosttechnologiesandfreewareopportunitiesofengaginginGITsfordecisionsupportpurposes.Inthisway,theresearchisalignedwithgoal8oftheMDGswhichstrivestomakeavailablethebenefitsofnewtechnolo-gies,especiallyinformationandcommunicationstechnologiesindevelopingaglobalpartnershiptodevelopment.Itshouldbeappreciatedthatachievingglobaldevelop-mentisdifficultunlessinitiatedatalocallevel.

Theresearchisalsowellalignedwithobjective5ofUganda’sNationalDevelopmentPlan(NDP)2010/11-2014/15whichhassincethensubstitutedthePovertyEradica-tionActionPlan(PEAP).Ashasbeenestablished,thetransportnetworkofacountryplaysapivotroletotheeconomicdevelopmentofthatnationhenceplayingapartinitspovertyeradication.Roadmaintenancestrategiesareaimedatmaintainingandimprovingthestateofthetransportnetworkinfrastructure.Objective5oftheNDPendeavours to promote science, technology, innovation and ICT to enhance com-petitiveness.Theresearchaddressesthekeybindingconstraintoflowapplicationofscienceandtechnology.

TheresearchwillexposethegapsandlimitationsthatareaffectingtheusageofGITsintheroadmaintenancesectorfortheresponsibleofficestodealwith.Noticethateventhoughtheresearchisdealingwiththeroadmaintenancedivision,thesegapsandlimi-tationsareaffectingseveralothersectorsthatmakeuseofspatialdatafordecisionmak-ingpurposes.Documentingthesechallengesisaprospecttohavingthemaddressed.

TheframeworkasoneofthefinaloutputsofthisresearchshallbeaguidingdocumenttothesectoronhowtoenhancetheuseoftheseGITsinsupportofknowledgebaseddecisionmaking.Finally,theresearchwilldevelopandtestamodelforroadinfrastruc-turemaintenancedataforUganda.

1.6 Methodology

Theresearchismultifacetedandparticipatoryinnature.Itisparticipatoryinthesensethatstakeholdersareinvolvedatallstagesoftheresearchduringinterviews,organi-zational observations, workshops and conferences. The research initially involved athoroughidentificationofallstakeholdersintheroadinfrastructuremaintenancesec-tor.VariousliteraturesrelatingtoGITs,roadmaintenance,diffusionofGITsetc, iscontinuouslybeingreviewed.Participantobservations,fieldvisitsandmeasureshavebeencarriedout.Allthesemethodsareemployedtriangularlytoensurecomplementa-rilyoffindings.TheoverviewissummarizedinFigure1-2.Thefiguresummarizesthemethodsused,thereasonsfortheirapplication,labeledasjustification,andtheoutputobtainedfromthesemethods.Areviewofliteraturewasnecessaryatallstagesofthe

28

researchhencethedirectarrowfromtheliteraturereviewmethodtothejustificationbox.Similarly,allthemethodsemployedintheresearchhadacontributiontowardsthealgorithmicframeworktoaccentuatetheuseofGITsintheRIMsector.Likewise,theconferencesattendedandthescheduledworkshop(seesection4.3)istocontributetotheentirefindingsoftheresearch.

Figure 1‑2: Research Design

1.6.1 Literature Review

Thereisliteraturedocumentedinjournalarticles,conferenceproceedings,booksandreportsontheapplicabilityandimplementationofGITs.Thisliteratureiscontinu-ouslybeingreviewedinsubjectsrelatedto,theuseofGITsincludingbutnotlimitedtoRS,GIS,GPS,groundbasedmappingandcartographyasdecisionsupporttools,theirinstitutionalization,adoption,implementation,andsuccessfactors,roadinfra-structuremaintenancemanagementworks,roadmaintenancedataandallothermate-rialinlinewithmodellingGITsfordecisionsupport.Thecontentofthesedocumentshasbeenanalyzedandusedforpurposesofthisresearch.

 

 

Observations  &  Field  measures  

Literature  Review  

Interviews  

Workshops  &  conferences  

To  understand  GIT  concepts  &  

applicability  for  road  maintenance  

To  identify  gaps  in  GIT  use  and  

limitations  to  enhance  use  

To  acquire  knowledge  on  the  data  

requirements  for  road  maintenance  decision  

support  

To  develop  inputs  into  the  framework  

enhancing  GIT  use  in  road  maintenance  

METHODS   OUTPUT  JUSTIFICATION  

Gaps  in  the  use  and  Limitations  to  access  of  GITs  

in  road  infrastructure  maintenance  

Nature  of  road  maintenance  data  and  Data  Model  for  road  maintenance  

data  requirements    

Algorithmic  framework  for  

GIT  enhancement  in  

road  maintenance  

decision  making  decisionmaking

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1.6.2 Field Visits and Interviews

Initially, field visits were made to the transport ministry and other stakeholders(UNRA,districtengineers,contractorsandconsultancyfirms)forbrief illustrationsonhowdecisionmakingismadepriortomaintenanceoftheroadinfrastructure.Inorder toachieveobjective1and2, theexistingsystems in theseorganizationswerestudied.Ananalysisofthedatausedforroadmaintenancewasmade.Howthisdataiscollected,whomanagesthedatabases,thefrequencyofdatacollectionandsimilarobservationsweremade.Thiswas followedby interviewsusingan interviewguide.For purposes of pretesting and developing a precise interview guide, informal ses-sionswereinitiallyorganizedwithonlyafewquestionsprepared.Theintentionwastoevokemorequestionsbasingontheresponsesoftheinterviewee.Forthispretestingsession,five(5)personswereinterviewedusingthedesignedguideandduringthen,theguidewasaccessedintermsclarityofquestions,timeforinterviewandwhetheralltherequiredparameterswereincludedintheguidequestions.Theinterviewguidewascontinuouslyupdateduntilamomentwhenfoundsatisfactory.

Furtherquestionswerecontinuouslygeneratedduringtheactualinterviewsasameansofprobingintervieweesincaseofunclearresponses.Thesamplingframecomprisedofmanagersinroadmaintenanceorganisations,i.e.MoWT,UNRA,consultantsandcontractors.Thesamplesizewaslimitedto3personsperorganizationconsideringthatthey(organizations)arenotheavilydeployedinthefieldofgeoinformationmanage-ment.However,5personnelfromUNRAwereinterviewed.Thisisbecause,inUNRA,GITisbeingappreciatedatafasterratetoday.Acombinationofexpertandsnowballsamplingwasusedtosamplepersonswithknowledgeanddemonstrableexperienceandexpertiseintheresearcharea,thesethenrecommendedotherswhoalsometthecriteria for inclusionto the interview.Thisdatacollectiontechniquewasmainly toassistinthegenerationofthereportontheexistinggapsintheuseofgeospatialtech-nologiesinroadinfrastructuremaintenanceinthecountry,toidentifythelimitationstoincorporatingthesetechnologiesindecisionmaking,andassessingtherequirementstohavingthesetechnologiesincorporatedinthedecisionmakingprocesses.

1.6.3 Observations

Directparticipantobservationshavebeenmadeattheroadmaintenanceorganisationsespeciallyatthedatacollectionstagesofdecisionmaking.Populatingoftheorganisa-tionsdatabasesandthemanagementofthesedatawerestudiedforaperiodoftime.ThisgaveanindicationofthegapsandlimitationsofGITusageandassistedindevel-opingstrategiestodeveloptheframeworktoaccentuationofGITusageinthesector.

1.6.4 Field Data Collection

An independentmappingof the roadsas ameansof assessing thedigitaldatacor-rectnesswasmade.UsingaGPSandlaptop,theresearchermappedasampleofroadsinthestudyareaforpurposesofaccessingthecurrencyoftheexistingdatabases.A

30

GISanalysisofthesedataisintendedtohighlightthegapsinthedataarchivedintheroadmaintenanceorganizations.Throughthismethodofdatacollection,alowcostGITbasedmethodologyforpreliminaryroadmaintenancedecisionsupportwasalsodeveloped.

1.6.5 Workshops and Conferences

ThetransportsectorofUgandaiscontinuouslyholdingworkshopsandconferenceswheretheirstrategicplansandpoliciesareoftendiscussedandreviewed.Thisisafo-rumwherechallenges,limitationsandexpectationsofplansandprojectsfromvariousdivisionsofthesectorarediscussed.DuringthelatterstagesofthePhD,theresearcherplanstoattendworkshopsandconferencesorganisedbythesectorasameansofenvis-agingthelikelypossibilityoftheresearchinterventionbeingadoptedorplacedinplanforthefuture.Additionally,theresearcherhasmadepresentationsonthePhDworkinprogressatthree(3)internationallyorganisedconferences.

Inordertomaximizestakeholderparticipationandconsentonthefindingsandsug-gestionsinplace,aworkshopof20participantsisplanned(seesection4.3).TheseshallincludemembersfromtheRIMstakeholdercategorythathasalreadybeenidentified,scholarsandprofessionalsinthediscipline.Theresearcherwillmakeapresentationontheresearchfindingsandrecommendationstodate.Thestakeholderswillthenhaveanopportunitytoreactandhaveamoreharmonizedinputintotheresearcher’sevolvedframework.Theintentionistofurtherpublicizethefindingsandrecommendationsfromtheresearchandtoaccesstheviabilityofimplementationoftheframeworkbas-ingonperceptionsofroadmaintenancemanagementstakeholdersandwithscholarsofexpertiseinthesubjectofGITsinroadinfrastructuremaintenance.

Allethicalrules,regulationsandlawsareadheredtoduringtheexecutionoftheaboveresearchmethods.

1.6.6 Data Analysis 1.6.6.1 Qualitative Data Analysis

Thegathereddatafrominterviewswasanalyzedusingcontentanalysis.Themesweredefined and coded based on interview responses and conference discussions (fromtheinternationalconferencesattended).Theobtainedcontentwasrankedaccordinglyundertheseveralthemes.Dependingonthecontentunderthedefinedthemes,itwaspossibleto;

CategorizethegapsandlimitationsintheuseofGITsforroadinfrastructuremainte-nance,and,

Hierarchically,dependingonfrequencyofappearanceinthethematiccontentanaly-sis,definearationalalgorithmicframeworkthatshouldenhancetheuseofGITsasdecisionsupporttoolsinroadinfrastructuremaintenance.

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1.6.6.2 GIS Analyses

GISanalysesarebeingperformedonthedata.To-date,acombinationofdatasetswasmadethroughvectoroverlaysandrasterprocessingusingsatelliteimagery.Thiswasasanattempttoaccessthequalityofdatainuseformaintenancevisavietheindependentfieldmeasures(GPSlocationsandphotoswithembeddedGPSlocations)madebytheresearcher.Attributeandspatialquerieswereusedtogeneratestatisticalsummariesoftheroadinventoryandconditiondata.ThesefindingshavebeendiscussedinpapersIIandIII.

1.7 Scope

ThestudyisspecificallydoneinUganda,withKampalaandJinjadistrictsastheareaswherefieldworkisexecuted.Kampalawasselectedbeingthecapitalcityofthecountry,andJinjabecauseofthepoorroadinfrastructuredespiteitsmanageablesize.

TheresearchinvolvesthedevelopmentofaframeworkwithinwhichtheuseofGITsinroadmaintenanceinUgandashouldbeenhanced.TheframeworkisbasicallyanoperationalstructurewithinwhichtheorganisationsinvolvedintheactivitiesofroadmaintenancedecisionmakingcanworktogethertoboostertheuseofGITs.

AGIS-TroadmaintenancedatamodelforUgandaistobedevelopedbasingontheroadmaintenancedatarequirementsoftheseinvolvedorganisations.Asmostofthedata is spatial in nature, emphasis will be paved on the spatial data aspects. Someexcerptsof themodelwill be adopted,with scrutiny, fromexistingdatamodels ofcountrieswithsimilarroadmaintenancedatarequirements.Theresearchisparticipa-tory,involvingthestakeholderorganisationsintheroadmaintenancesectorindevel-opmentofboththeoperationalframeworkanddatamodel.

ReferencesBishop,I.,D.,Barry,M.,Mcpherson,E.,Nascarella,J.,Urquhart,K.&Escobar,F.(2002)

MeetingtheNeedforGISkillsinDevelopingcountries:Thecaseforinformalsettlements.Transactions in GIS.

Dimitriou,H.T.&Banjo,G.A.(1990)Transport Planning for Third World Cities.,Londonetc.,Routledge.

Cartright,T.J.(1993)GeographicInformationTechnologyasanAppropriateTechnologyforDevelopment.

Ehrensperger,A.,Wymannvon,S.D.&Kakridi,F.E.(2007)GeographicInformationTechnolo-giesforNaturalResourceManagement.InfoResources Focus,No3/07.

Grimaud,P.,Sserunjogi,M.L.&Grillet,N.(2007)AnevaluationofmilkqualityinUganda:ValueChainAssessmentandRecommendations.African Journal of Food Agriculture Nutrition

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and Development,7.Jain,K.&Sharma,V.(2005)DynamicDecisionSupportSysteminTransportation–InternetGIS.

The 8th Annual International Conference, Map India 2005.JotelTajPalace,Geomatics2005Luyimbazi,D.(2007)DeterminationofRoadMaintenanceNeeds.

Masser,I.&onsrud,H.J.(Eds.)(1993)Diffusion and Use of Geographic Information Technologies,Dordrecht:KluwerAcademicPublishers.

Mihic,S.&Ivetic,D.(2010)TowardseffectiveroadconditionstatevideobasedWebconsulting:augmentedvideodatabase.IEEE,505-509.

Mukwaya,P.(2001)UrbanSprawlandtheChallengesofPublicTransportServicesDelivery/ProvisioninUganda.

Robinson,R.&Stiedl,D.(2001)DecentralizationofRoadAdministration:CaseStudiesinAfricaandAsia.Public Administration and Development.copyright©2001JohnWiley&SonsLtd

TeresaM.Harrison,TheresaPardo,J.RamonGil–Garcia,FionaThompson&Juraga,D.(2007)GeographicInformationTechnologies,StructurationTheory,andtheWorldTradeCenterCrisis.58,2240–2254.

TheWorldBank(2002).CitiesontheMove.AworldBankurbanTransportReviewTRB(2004)TowardsafoundationforImproveddecisionmaking,GeospatialInformationInfra-

structureforTransportationOrganisations.Conference Proceedings 3.1, Transport Research Board (TRB).

TTCA,S.(2004)TransitTransportCoordinationAuthorityoftheNorthernCorridor.Invest-mentOpportunitiesintheNorthernCorridorwithEmphasisinTransportInfrastructure.Kampala,Uganda.

http://www.roadfund.ug/TransportSector.htmaccessedonMarch10th2011

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Part 2 - RESEARCH CONTEXT

Thispartofthethesisisintendedtocontextualizetheresearchbyrelatingittootherresearchthathasbeendoneinthesamearea.Asonefamiliarizeswiththeworksofpre-viousresearchers,itwillbeimportanttoappreciatethebackgroundcircumstancesofthecountriesinwhichtheseresearchhavebeenaccomplished(thatis,incomparisonwiththecountrybackgroundofthisresearchundertaking-Uganda)hencethecontextinwhichthisresearchsomewhatdiffersfromwhathasbeenaccomplishedpreviously.SincetheresearchispertainingtoGITsasdecisionsupporttoolsforRIM,abriefback-groundondecisionsupportsystemswillbeadequateasaprefacetocontextualisationoftheresearchwiththereviewedliterature.

2. 1 Decision support systems

A Decision Support System (DSS) is defined as an approach or methodology forsupportingdecision-making. Ituses an interactive, the solution for a specific semi/non-structuredmanagementproblem. Itusesdata,providesflexible, and adaptablecomputer-basedinformationsystem,especiallydevelopedforsupportinganeasyuserinterface, andcan incorporate thedecisionmaker’sown insights. In addition,DSSusually use models and are built (often in consultation with end users) during aninteractiveanditerativeprocess(evolutionaryprototypingprocess).Theyrequirehard-ware,software,informationordata,andshouldsupportallthephasesofthedecisionmakingprocess,whichinclude,intelligence,designandthechoiceandimplementa-tionphases(Turban,2001).Figure2-1diagrammaticallyshowsthisdecisionmaking/modellingprocess.

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Figure 2‑1: The Decision making / Modelling process.Source: (Turban, 2001)

This description of a DSS necessitates a couple of tools of which GITs have beenprovenasusefulinproblemsthatarespatialinnature.ThetechnologyforaDSSmustconsistofthreesetsofcapabilitiesintheareasofdata, dialog,andmodelling(theDDMparadigm)(Turban,2001).Thereshouldbeabalancebetweenthedata;dialogandmodellingforaspatialdecisionsupportsystem.ThefocusofthisresearchisontheDataaspectofthisDDMparadigm.Thisaspectconcernsitselfwithconsiderationsofdatacapture,storage,manipulation,andretrieval.Figure2-2highlightsthecompo-nentsofaSDSSinaDDMparadigm

 

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Figure 2‑2: Components of Spatial Decision Support Systems: The DDM ParadigmSource: (Malczewski, 1997)

TheDataBaseManagementSystem(DBMS)containsthefunctionstomanagethegeographic data base; the Model Base Management System (MBMS) contains thefunctions tomanage themodelbase; and theDialogGenerationandManagementSystem(DGMS)managestheinterface betweentheuserandtherestofthesystem.

2.2 Previous Related Research

GeographicInformationSystems,GlobalPositioningSystems,RemoteSensingandmappingplayanimportantroleinallgeographicandspatialaspectsofthedevelop-mentandmanagementofroadinfrastructures.Ofthethree,GISseemstohaveat-tractedmostattentionandemphasis.Nevertheless,RemoteSensing isviewedasanessentialtoolforthecaptureofdatasubsequentlytobeincorporatedintotheGISandfornearreal timemonitoringofenvironmentalconditions foroperationalmanage-mentoftheinfrastructurefacilities.Remotesensingtechniquesandspatialdataanaly-sisthroughGIShavebeenusedinanumberofdisciplinesasdecisionsupporttools.

TheuseofGeographicInformationTechnologiesiswellacknowledgedinvariousstud-iesundertakenbyresearchersandgovernments.However,thesetechnologieswereonlygroundedintheearly90shencethelimitationonthescopeofliteratureonpreviousre-searchinthesame.Indiaasacountryhasgreatlyadvancedinresearchprojectsleadingtotheuseofgeographicaltechnologiesinroadinfrastructuremanagement.LiteratureonmostoftheseprojectsiswelloutlinedinproceedingsoftheMapIndiaconferences.El-Shair(2003)inacasestudyofBirkenhead,AucklandillustratedtheuseofGISandRSinurbantransportationPlanning.Heusedtwoaspectsoftransportationplanning,i.e.,busroutesandstopsfacilitiesandassumedthatforthesefacilitiestobeadequatelylocatedinBirkenheadAuckland,80%ormoreoftheresidentialandcommercialareasintheregionshouldbelocatedwithinthebufferzoneof300metersfromallroutesandstops.Hisassumptionswereexaminedusingbuffering,shapearc(writesshapefilespatialandattributeinformationtoArcinfocoverage)andidentitytoolsinArcinfo,whichproveduseful.El-Shair(2003)concludedthatGISandRScouldeffectivelybe

 

Geographic  Database  

DBMS          MBMS    

DGMS  

Model  Base  

User  

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usedinurbanroadsmappingandinurbantransportationplanning.However,herec-ommendsthatanothercasestudyshouldbedefinedtoaffirmhisfindings.

Inabidtoevaluatetheexistingconditionoftheroadsandtosuggestneededimprove-mentmeasuresfortheroads,sothatcost-effectivemoderntechnologiescouldbeusedtoprovidehigherlevelserviceabilitybyapplyingregularandtimelymaintenance,Raoet al. (2006)developed a GISBasedMaintenanceManagementSystem (GMMS)formajorroadsofDelhi.Thisdevelopmentwasmadesoastobenefitfromtherealis-ticrepresentationofreal-worldentities,anorganiseddatastructureandthepowerfulanalysisandpresentationcapabilitiesofGIS.Similarly,thisresearchisaimedatdevel-opingaframeworkwithinwhichGITbenefitscanberealisedandinturnbenefittheRIMsectorofUganda.

Karandikaretal.(2003)outlinedexperiencesoutoftheirprojectonaGISbasedRoadInformationandManagementSystem(RIMS). In theirproject, adecision supporttoolforthePublicWorksDepartment,GovernmentofMaharashtrawasdeveloped.Withtheobjectiveofhavingamorescientificandsystematicapproachforthearchivalofmapsandretrievalofstatisticalinformation,astatewide,uptodatedigitaldatabaseofroadsthatinducesefficiencyandaccuracyinmonitoring,management,planningandsubsequentdevelopmentoftheroadnetworkwasdevelopedusingGIS.Theproj-ectwas successful due to collaborationbetweenMaharashtra stateRemoteSensingandApplicationCentre(MRSAC),Nagpur,SurveyofIndia(SOI)andPublicWorksDepartment(PWD).Asaresult,districtmapsusedinthecreationofrawdataforthespatialdigitaldatabasewereobtained.Updatingof this rawdatawaspossiblewiththehelpofIRSsatellite’sPanchromatic(PAN)dataof5.8meterresolutionandlinearself-scanningSensor(LISSIII)datathatwassuitablyenhancedandregisteredtoPANdata.Thisresearchclearlyraisestwoissues,therelevanceofGITaidstomaintainuptodatespatialdata,and,theneedforcooperationbetweendepartmentstoachieveGITinstitutionalization.

ForthesituationofUgandahowever,updatedsatelliteimageryisnotaffordable.Thefreelyavailablesatellite imagery isquiteoutdated.Evenforthefreelyavailable im-agery,hardlyanyuseisbeingmadefromthem.Besidesthehighresolutionimageryalreadycombinedwithancillarydata,thatisavailableinGoogleEarthtoday,thereisfreedownloadableimageryundertheGlobalLandCoverFacility(GLCF)includingthemostrecentETM+imagesofwhichthemostrecentdataarehoweveraffectedbyanerrorduetotheScanLineCorrector(SLC)sensorfailure.Thisresearchhasascer-tained2reasonssofarforthelimitedutilizationofsatelliteimageryasoneofthecom-ponentsofGITs.Firstly,thefactthattheseimageryaredownloadableformvariousgeoportals,thereisanobviouslimitationofinternetbandwidthtoaccommodatethisdownload.Secondly,interviewfindingshaveregisteredadeficiencyintheavailableex-pertisetoaffectthevariousanalysesonsatelliteimagery.TheongoingresearchhoweverhasattemptedtodevelopaframeworkthatcanbeusedtoenhancetheuseofGITsinroadinfrastructuremaintenance.Otherwise,Karandikaretal.(2003)’sresearchdem-onstratedthatwithreadydataavailability,GITs,GISinthiscaseisareliabledecisionsupporttool,which,withroadinfrastructuremaintenance,cannotbeanexception.

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The evaluation of accident black spots on roads using GIS was successful in India(MandloiandGupta,2003).Dataontheroadinfrastructureofthestudyareacouldbereadilyavailedwithsuchattributesas:

• Numberoflanesineachdirection,

• Approximatenumberofvehiclesperday,

• Typeandwidthofroad,amongothers

Eachoftheattributeswasassignedweightsrangingfrom0-10withthefactorstendingtoincreasetheprobabilityofaccidentshavinglowerweights.Forthe11factorsused,thetotalweightwascomputedas;Totalweight=(IndividualWeights)x100andthenassignedtorangesaccordingTable2-1.

Table 2‑1: Prioritization Scheme

Final Weight (%) Accident Prone Level

80-100 VeryLow

60-80 Low

40-60 Medium

0-40 High

Source: (Mandloi and Gupta, 2003)

The need for a similar model in the situation of Uganda cannot be under looked.However,giventhebackgroundtothisresearch,itisclearthatwithoutthepracticeofusingtheseGITtoolsfordecisionsupport,evensuchamodeldevelopedatthispointintime,noticingtheproficiencyoftheroadtransport’sadministrationmaybemoreofabookshelfinvention.

Adatamodel(acollectionofconceptualtoolsfordescribingdata,datarelationships,datasemantics,andthedataconstraints)foranobject-relatedgeodatabaseforIranianroadsnetworkwaspresentedbyDodgeandAlesheikh(2003).Dodge&Alesheikh(2003)’smodelprovidesacontextwithinwhichaGIScanquicklyandeasilyaccepttheinputthatawiderangeofusersneedtoaccomplishtheirtransportationmanage-mentgoals.Themodel’sintentionisaninitialstructuringoftransportdataandwasspecifiedintheUnifiedModellingLanguage(UML).Thereare3categoriesofGIS-T(GeographicalInformationSystemparametersspecificforTransportation)models;Network,ProcessandObjectdatamodel,allastheirnamessuggest:Networkmodelsarethoseconcernedwiththetopologyofconnectionsandintersectionsofnodesandarcsofatransportationsystem.“Insteadoffocusingonanysingleelementofatrans-portation procedure, process models seek to organize many elements into a modelthatdefinesaprocessbywhichsometransportationplanningormaintenanceactivitycantakeplace.Objectmodelsarethosethatseektoidentifyorenumerateasmanytransportationobjectsaspossibleandto logicallyorganizetheminsuchawaythattheycanbemostprofitablyused”(DodgeandAlesheikh,2003).Dodge&Alesheikh(2003)’s researchdefinedadatamodelon thebasisofwhicha transportationgeo-databasewouldbecreated.InrelationtoDodge&Alesheikh(2003)’sresearch,the

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ongoingresearchisspecificallydealingwithroadmaintenancedata.AproposalforadynamicsegmentationGIS-Tdatamodelforroadmaintenancedatahasbeenmadebasedonitsobviousadvantages.Dynamicsegmentationenablestheprovisionofroadsegmentswithpreciseandhighvaluespatialresolutionbasedontheirattributesimi-larity.Itallowsforthelocationofmultipleeventsandstorageoflinearlyreferencedattributeswithoutanyduplicationwithroutegeometry.Italsooffersthepossibilityforsharingofnetworkinfrastructureofdifferentapplicationswithintheroadmainte-nancesubsector.

Siddeswar(2003) illustrates theuseofGIS intransportmanagementspecifically inthemanagementoftrafficcongestion.HehighlightsthebenefitofeffectivetransportplanningusingGISas;easeoftrafficmovement,lessertimeonroads,reducedtemperswithdriving,increasedpersonalsafetyandeffectivetransportplanning.ThesebenefitshavenotbeenrealizedinUgandadueofthe lackofemploymentoftheAutomaticVehicleLocation(AVL)technology.InSiddeswar(2003)’sstudy,GPStechnologyiseffectivelyusedforAVL,withvehiclesbeingequippedwithaGPSthatgivesitsac-curatepositioninlatitudeandlongitude.Withthesedetailsreceivedatacentraltrafficcontrolroom,severalanalysesonvehiclelocationarepossible.Incasesoftrafficjam,thesystemcanbemadeintelligenttogeneratealternateroutes.Also,someofthesedatacanbeminedtobeveryusefullateronforvariousactivitiesoftrafficplanningandmanagement.ThisaspectofminingdataisinharmonywiththeKnowledgeBasedSystem(KBS)assuggestedbyTsouetal.(2000).

RemoteSensinghasbeenusedasanapplicationintheextractionofroadinformation.Inhisstudyofapplyingremotesensingforextractionofroadinformation,Manzuletal.(1999)establishedthatallcommerciallyavailablesatellitebasedsensorsatthattimewere appropriate for identifying roadsnot less than35mwide.Therefore,ADEOSMulti-spectralandLANDSATTMcouldnotbeusedforidentifyingaroadhavingforexample,awidthof15morless.However,today,Landsat-7ETMhas15mresolu-tioninthepanchromaticband,meaningthatroad’sdetailscanbestudiedevenmuchbettertodate.InthestudyundertakenbyManzuletal.(1999),thespatialresolu-tionofdatawasfoundtocontributemoretotheclarityoftheroadthanthespectralobservationcapability.Inaddition,thesurroundingenvironmentalongtheroadwasconsideredtobeaninfluentialfactorinaffectingthedifferenceinreflectanceoftheroadhenceaffectingtheclarityoftheroadinthesatelliteimagery.Foradevelopingcountry like Uganda, where the cost of up-to-date remotely sensed imagery is notaffordable,researchshouldprimarilyfocusoninventingamoresustainableandcosteffectivemethodofobtaininguptodatedataonroads.Howeverifthesatelliteimagecanbeobtainedbyanymeans,therestofthedataextractiontechniquesaretheroutinefunctionalitiesofGISandremotesensingsoftware,whichatthemoment,arealsoarestrainttocomebyduetotheallegedlimitedexpertiseinthetransportsectorofthecountry.ThisstillputstheongoingresearchinperspectiveinargumentthereisneedforaframeworkthatcanstrategiseonhowalltheseenvisagedchallengesinusingGITcanbedealtwith.

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Mohammad et al. (2009)havedesigned a roadmaintenancedatamodelusing thedynamicsegmentationtechnique.ThisdatamodelhasbeenimplementedontheIra-nianroadnetwork.TheresearchersbasetheirargumentonthefactthatdevelopingasuccessfulGISforroadmaintenanceapplicationsishighlydependentonthedesignofawell-structuredroadmaintenancedatamodel.Despiteitslimitations,thetraditionalarc-nodedatamodelwasbeingusedintheirjurisdiction.Inthismodel,roadsarerep-resentedaslinearfeaturesbetweentwonodeswithassociatedattributes.Theattributesare integratedsuchthat theyarerestrictedtoarcswithsimilar lengthand location.Thesemodelsdonotpresentconcentratedandpreciseroadsegmentsefficiently.Thearc-nodedatastructurehandlesthelinearfeatureasanarcusingaCartesiancoordi-natesystemwithwhichitisnotpossibletopresentroaddatavaryingindifferentpartsofarc.Theresultinganalysesareineffectinefficientandnotbasedonrealitywhenitcomestoroadmaintenancedata.Objectivethree(3)oftheongoingresearchseekstoproposearoadmaintenancedatamodelbasedonthemaintenancedatarequirementsintheroadinfrastructuremaintenancesectorofUganda.Similarly,researchquestion3isaccessingthenatureofthedatausedinroadmaintenancedecisionmakingandresearchquestion4addresseshoweffectively thedatacanbe represented inaGIS.Becauseroadmaintenancedataisbasicallydealingwithroadcondition,whichiscon-stantlychangingduetoseveralfactorsaffectingtheroad,thisdynamicsegmentationdatamodel isobviouslyunique inaddressing roadmaintenancedata requirements.Similar toMohammadetal, (2009) isChouetal. (2000)’s implementationofdy-namicsegmentationforaPavementManagementInformationSystem(PMIS)attheUniversityofToledoincooperationwiththeCityofToledo,inNorth-westernOhio,UnitedStates.Dynamic segmentation in that researchwas still anecessary tool forthePMISsinceitallowedformultipleattributesassociatedwithpavementsegmentstobestoredanddisplayedefficiently.(FilipovandDavidkov,2006,andWeigangandGuiyan,2009)havealsoperformedresearchonroaddatamodelling.

Torelateevenmorecloselywiththeongoingresearch,Ehrenspergeretal.(2007)stud-iedtheapplicationsofGeographicalInformationTechnologiesforNaturalResourceManagement.TheyarguethatGITsareaprerequisite fornatural resourcemanage-mentandameansofspatialanalysis.ThefocusoftheirresearchwascentredonthepotentialofGeographicInformationTechnologiestobetterinformandinvolvefarm-ers,communitiesandgovernmentsaswellasinternationalpanelsinplanningandne-gotiationprocesses.Theyinvestigatedhowthesetechnologiessupportstakeholdersinsustainable-orienteddecision-makingandtheconcernsthathavetobecarefullytakenintoconsiderationwhenusingGeographic InformationTechnologies indevelopingcountries.TheydiscussthepotentialsofGITsforvariousapplicationsrangingfromalocaltoglobalscale,highlightingissuesofintegratingknowledgeatthelocalscale,addingspatialdimensionstonationaldevelopmentplans,coordinatingandmonitor-ingtransnationalcooperation,assessingglobaltrendsaswellasformulatingstrategies.TheresearchissummarizedbykeyissuesinGITimplementation.Ehrenspergeretal.(2007)’sinputonthesekeyissueshasadirectrelationshipwiththegapsandchallengesthathavealreadybeendiscoveredaslimitingtheGITimplementationinRIM.They

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includerelevanceofcontent,appropriatenessoftechnology,bridgingpowergaps&digitaldividesandtheinstitutionalisationofGIT.

Brodnig andMayer-Schönberger (2000) attempt to stipulate the roleof spatial in-formationtechnologiesasagapbridgingmechanismintheintegrationoftraditional(local)environmentalknowledgeandWesternScience.TheireffortsareinlinewithAgenda211’schapterontheroleandimportanceofinformationforsustainabledevel-opment.Directlytheyarefocussingontheprovisionsmadeforharnessingthepoten-tialofICTforstrengtheningthecapacityfortraditionalinformation.GITsarespe-cialisedICTtoolsforcollecting,managinganddisplayingofspatialdata.BrodnigandMayer-Schönberger(2000)acknowledgethatthedevelopmentsinthesespatialinfor-mationtechnologiescannotbeseparatedfromthegeneraltrendsinICT.Theirfieldof emphasis is environmentalmanagement for sustainabledevelopment.Theyhaveendeavouredtomatchvariousapplications inthisfieldwithdatarequirementsandappropriatetechnologiesrequiredtobridgethesegaps.BycomparingtheTraditionalEcologicalKnowledge(TEK)withWesternScience(ICTtools),theyhaveconcludedthatthetwoshouldbecomplementaryinordertoachievesustainabledevelopment.

Acontentanalysisof39articlesselectedfrommajorGISandinformationsystempub-licationswasmademyCroswell(1989).HisintentionwastoassesscommonproblemsandapproachesforovercomingproblemsinGISsystemimplementationactivities.Hecombinedthiswithanexaminationofotherliteratureplushisownexperienceinnu-merousinformationsystemsdevelopmentefforts.Withthismethodology,hemanagedtoanswerthequestion;whatapproachesshouldbetakentoincreasechancesofsuccessandtherealisationofthebenefitsthatGIStechnologyshouldprovide?Inthisresearch,inadditiontointerviews,theapproachofreviewingliteraturetodevisestrategiesofsuccessfulGIT implementation ishowevergreatlywith stakeholder involvement inordertodevelopaframeworkmodelthatcanbeadoptedwithlimitedornoresistance.

InstitutionalizationofGITsisproposedasaparadigmforstudyingtheimpactandef-fectivenessofGITsbyEricdeMan,(2000).(Leitneretal.,1998,OnsrudandPinto,1993,AndersonCarrieS.,1996,Goodchild,2000,Sieber,2000)allhavetheirpub-lications dealing with some aspects of GITs, either with their adoption, successfulimplementationordiffusionmechanismswhichinclinetthebasicoutputexpectedbytheendofthisresearch.

2.3 Concluding Remarks

Majorityofthepreviousresearchintheareaofgeospatialtechnologiesasdecision-supporttoolshavefocussedonthedevelopmentofcustomizedGITmodelsandsys-1Agenda21isanactionplanoftheUnitedNations(UN)relatedtosustainabledevelopment

andwasanoutcomeoftheUnitedNationsConferenceonEnvironmentandDevelopment(UNCED)heldinRiodeJanerio,Brazil,in1992.Itisacomprehensiveblueprintofactiontobetakenglobally,nationallyandlocallybyorganizationsoftheUN,governments,andmajorgroupsineveryareainwhichhumansdirectlyaffecttheenvironment.(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agenda_21)

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temapplicationsinseveraltransportdivisions.Forexample,Kumaretal.(2003)inthedesignofanIntelligenttransportsystem(ITS)usingGIS,theavenueprogrammingandscriptinglanguageforArcViewGIS3xwasusedtocustomizethepackage,witheachscriptusedforaspecifiedpurpose(Citybusroutes,closestfacilityandshortestpath).Also,theapplicabilityofGISandGPSforassetmanagementofroadsandrail-waytransportation,andevaluationofaccidentblackspotsonroadsinIndiawereallcustomizedresearches.Inalltheseattempts,datahasbeenreadilyavailedor,ifnot,couldeasilybeavailedorcollected(usingthetargetGITs)fortherespectivestudyar-eas.Thisresearchhoweverhasitsfocusondevelopingasustainableapproachtousinggeospatialtechnologiesforroadinfrastructuremaintenanceinasituationwheredataisnotreadilyavailableandhenceanapproachneedstobedevisedtoaccentuatetheac-quiringup-to-datedataandavailingitforbetterdecisionmaking.Thisisthedilemmafacing road infrastructure planners and managers in Uganda. The most immediateprobleminUgandaarenotmodelsandsystemsbutthecapabilitytoutilizeGITsforthebasicsofdatacollection,managementandanalysis.Nevertheless,itisappreciatedthatifdataisreadilyavailed,GITsthroughcontextspecificmodeldevelopments(aspreviouslydiscussedinthereview)willbemoreapplicableasdecision-supporttools.Siddeswar(2003)’sillustrationofGITusewasspecificallytargetingtrafficmonitor-ing,while,thisresearchisexploringroadinfrastructuremaintenanceallfallingintheumbrellaofroadtransportmanagement.FromEl-Shair(2003)’sstudy,thisresearchhasdefinedyetanothercasestudytoUgandaandwillinturnaffirmthefindingsthatGISandRScaneffectivelybeusedinroadsmappingforsustainabledecisionmaking.

WithintheCollegeofEngineering,Design,ArtandTechnology(CEDAT)ofMak-erere University, under the theme, “SustainableTechnological Development in theLakeVictoriaRegion,Uganda”, the research ison theonehand inharmonywithBagampadde(2005)’s investigationsofstrippingpropensityofbituminousmixturesandmoisturedamagerelatedbehaviourofbituminousmaterials.Bituminousmixtureisamaterial forsurfacingroadsandtheunderstandingof itschemicalbehaviour isaprerequisitetoitsappropriatedecisionforuse.Ontheotherhand,itisrelatedtoMusinguzietal.(2007)’sassessmentofGISdatainteroperabilityinUganda.Musin-guzietal.,(2007)discussthewayforwardtohavingGISdataoperateflexiblybetweenorganisations.Itisthenormtohaveorganisationswithinthesamesectormanagingthesamedatatype(roadsnetworkdatainthiscase)butwithdifferentstructuresandsemantics.Likewise,thisresearchisdealingwiththepotentialofusingGITstocaptureroadinfrastructuremaintenancedata,particularlyconditioninventory,whichinturnshouldeffectivelybeusedfordecisionsupport.Effectiveuseofthesedatawillrequireresolvingconcernsofdatasemanticsandinteroperability.ThekeyissuestoconsideronimplementationofGITsincludeappropriatetechnologyspecificallythepossibilityto integratemultidisciplinarydata fromotherutilityorganisations.Theseare suchaspectsthatrequireGISdatainteroperabilityinterventionsasdiscussedby(Musinguzietal.,2007)

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ReferencesAndersonCarrieS.(1996)GISDevelopmentProcess:AFrameworkforConsideringtheInitiation,

Acquisition,andIncorporationofGISTechnology.URISA Journal/ Refereed WASHINGTON DC,10-26.

Bagampadde,U.(2005)InvestigationsonMoistureDamage-RelatedBehaviourofBituminousMaterials.KTH,Civil and Architectural Engineering.Lindstedtsvägen26,Stockholm.

Brodnig,G.&Mayer-Schönberger,V.(2000)BridgingtheGap:TheroleofSpatialInformationTechnologiesintheIntegrationofTraditionalEnvironmentalKnowledgeandWesternsci-ence.The Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries (EJISDC),1,1-5.

Chou,E.Y.J.,Mathias,J.L.&Wang,C.(2000)ImplementationofDynamicSegmentationforaPavementManagementInformationSystem.Presented and Published at the 81st Annual meet‑ing of the Transportation Research Board.Washington,D.C.

Croswell,P.L.(1989)ObstaclestoGISImplementationandGuidelinestoIncreasetheOpportu-nitiesforSuccess.URISA,43-57.

Dodge,S.&Alesheikh,A.,A.(2003)TransportationDataModelImplementationforIranianRoadsNetwork..The Geo spatial Resource Portal.GISDevelopment.

Ehrensperger,A.,Wymannvon,S.D.&Kakridi,F.E.(2007)GeographicInformationTechnolo-giesforNaturalResourceManagement.InfoResources Focus,No3/07.

El-shair,I.,M.(2003)GISandRemoteSensinginUrbanTransportationPlanning:ACaseStudyofBirkenhead,Auckland.Map India Conference 2003.,GISDevelopment.net.

EricdeMan,W.,H.(2000)InstitutionalizationofGeographicalInformationTechnologies.Cartog‑raphy and Geographic Information Science,Vol.27,pp.139-151.

Filipov,L.&Davidkov,B.(2006)DevelopmentofnetworkdatamodelforurbantransportationsysteminGISenvironmentforthecityofPlovdiv,Bulgaria.International Conference on Car‑tography and GIS.Borovets,Bulgaria,DepartmentofCartographyandGIS,SofiaUniversity“St.KlimentOhridski”,Bulgaria.

Goodchild,M.F.(2000)CommunicatingGeographicalInformationinaDigitalAge.Association of American Geographers,90,344-355.

Karandikar,V.S.,Amit,P.,Nbindu,P.S.&Prashant,N.(2003)GISbasedRoadInformationandManagementSystem:ADecisionSupportToolforPublicWorksDepartment,GovernmentofMaharashtra.Map India Conference 2003.GISDevelopment.net.

Kumar,P.,Dhanunjaya,R.&Varun,S.(2003)IntelligentTransportationSystemUsingGIS.Map India Conference2003.GISDevelopment.net.

Leitner,H.,Mcmaster,R.,Elwood,S.,Mcmaster,S.&Sheppard,E.(1998)ModelsForMakingGISAvailableToCommunityOrganisations:DimensionsOfDifferenceandAppropriate-ness.Paper presented to the NCGIA specialist meeting on Empowerment, Marginalization and GIS, Santa Barbara CA,October1998.

Malczewski,J.(1997)Unit127-SpatialDecisionSupportSystems.NCGIACoreCurriculuminGeographicInformationScience.InMalczewski.,C.B.J.(Ed.)All commercial rights reserved.

MandloI,D.&Gupta,R.(2003)EvaluationofAccidentblackspotsonroadsusingGeographicalInformationSystems(GIS).Map India Conference2003.GISDevelopment.net.

Manzul,K.H.,Kiyoshi,H.,Lal,S.&Shunji,M.(1999)ApplicationofRemotesensingforEx-tractionofRoadInformation.ACRS 1999GISDevelopment.

MohammadRezaJelokhani-Niaraki,AliAsgharAlesheikh,AbbasAlimohammadi&Sadeghi-Niaraki,A.(2009)DesigningRoadMaintenanceDataModelUsingDynamicSegmentationTechnique.ICCSA,5592,442-452.

Musinguzi,M.,Bax,G.&Tickodri-Togboa,S.(2007)AssessmentofGISDATAInteroperabilityinUganda.Proceedings of the conference on the collaborative Research for Technological Develop‑ment: Kampala Uganda

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Onsrud,H.J.&Pinto,J.K.(1993)EvaluatingCorrelatesofGISAdoptionSuccessandtheDeci-sionProcessofGISAcquisition.URISA / Refereed,Fall1993,16-39

Rao,I.P.,Kanchan,P.K.&Nanda,P.K.(2006)GISBasedMaintenanceManagementSystem(GMMS)forMajorRoadsofDelhi.Map India 2006.

Siddeswar,P.H.R.(2003)UseofGISinTransportationManagement.Map India Conference 2003.GISDevelopment.net.

Sieber,R.E.(2000)GISImplementationintheGrassroots.URISA,20(1),15-29.Tsou,K.-W.,Chang,Y.-L.&HUNG,Y.-T.(2000)Acase-basedurbanplanningsupportsystem

usinganintegratedcombinationofGeographicalInformationSystemsandRemoteSensing,GIS & Data Integration.GISdevelopmentproceedings,ACRS,2000..

Turban,E.A.(2001)DecisionSupportSystemsandIntelligentSystems.India:PrenticeHallofIndia.

Weigang,Z.&Guiyan,J.(2009)ANewExtendedArc-NodeDataModelofDynamicSegmenta-tionTechnologyinUrbanGIS-T.IEEE,WorldCongressonSoftwareEngineering,208-212.

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Part 3 - Papers

3.1 Introduction to the papers

Paper I:Thispaperwaspublishedduetotheneedtocreateawarenessaboutthecur-rentresearchinthecountryatthetimetheAfricaGIS2009conferencewasheldinKampala,Uganda.Atthatinstance,ithadalreadybeenascertainedthattherewasadigitaldivideamongthestakeholdersinvolvedintheRIMprocesses.Bydigitaldividehereismeantthedifferencesinperception,awarenessandunderstandingofGITsandtheirpotential.ThecontractorcategoryofstakeholdersinRIMwashardlyknowledge-ableofwhatGITswereletalonetheadvantagesassociatedwiththeirusage.Inwritingthispaper,theauthorsaimedatcreatingawarenessabouttheresearchdevelopmentsunderGITinthecountryandAfricaatlarge.Consideringthatthetechnicalprofes-sionalsemployedintheRIMorganisationsarepurelycivilengineersthispaperservedasadisclosuretothatbracketofstakeholdersofthepotentialandavailabilityofGITs.ThepapergivesabackgroundonGITsanddiscussesthechallengesfacedbytheRIMsectorinadoptionofthesetechnologies.Itproceedstodiscussroadmanagementdata,particularlyroadconditionspatialdataanditsinclinationtoGITs.Considerationsoftheframeworkthatwasthentobedevelopedduringtheresearcharealsohighlighted.Acosteffectivemethodofcapturing thevisualconditionof the road isbrieflydis-cussedtogetherwiththeexamplesofOpenSourceandFreewarethatcouldsupportinthedisplay,manipulationandanalysisofthecaptureddatasets.

TherestofthepapersII,IIIandIVareafollowupofpaperIandaddressingsectionsoftheresearchobjectivesandquestionsstatedinpartoneofthethesis.

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Paper II:PaperIIlargelydiscussesthefindingsthataddressobjective1oftheresearch.ItdiscussesthegapsintheuseofGITsintheroadinfrastructuremaintenanceprocessofUgandaandthelimitationsexperiencedinaccessingthesetechnologies.

Paper III:ThefocusofpaperIIIisonthealgorithmicapproachtoaccentuatingtheuseofGITsinRIM.Sincetheaudiencetoallthepublishedpapershadbeensomewhatdifferent,itwasimperativetogiveabackgroundtotheresearch.Inthisbackground,GITswereintroduced;roadmaintenancedata,activitiesinvolvedandtheactorswerealsobrieflydiscussed.AnoverviewofthegapsandlimitationsfrompaperIIwassimi-larlymade.

Paper IV:Thispaper ispresentingpreliminaryfindings fromfieldmeasurements intheindependentsurveyingofroadinventoryandvisualconditioninthestudyarea.Inplanningforthefieldwork,theauthorshadanideaofrecommendingacosteffectivemethodofcapturingroadinventoryandvisualconditiondataforroadmaintenancedecisionsupportpurpose.TheplanwastoflyoverthestudyareausingalowflyingparamotorwhiletrackingwithaGPSandfilmingtheroadwithbothanordinarycolorandamodifiedconsumercameratomeasureinfrared.Theintentionwastocapturetheroadshouldersbesidesthecarriagewaywhichordinarilywouldnoteffectivelybereg-isteredwithaRGBcamerabecauseofthevegetationinterference.However,forsafetyandsecuritymeasures,itwasnotpossibletogetclearancefromCAA,Ugandatoaffecttheflight.Instead,themethodologydiscussedinthepaperwasadopted.Suggestionstoenhancethefindingsarementionedinthediscussionwithinthepaper.

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PAPER IGEOINFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES AS DECISION

SUPPORT TOOLS IN ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE MAINTENANCE IN UGANDA

Lydia.K.N.Mazzi,MakerereUniversity,Uganda

Tickodri.S.Togboa.MakerereUniversity,Uganda

GerhardBax,BlekingeTechnicalUniversity,Sweden

AfricaGISConference2009ABSTRACT

RoadtransportinUgandaisbyfarthemostdominantmodeoftransport.Thesectorcarrieswellover90%ofpassengerandfreighttraffic.Itthusservesastruebackbonetosupportthecountry’seconomy.RoadsprovidetheonlymeansofaccesstomostoftheruralcommunitiesandeffectivemaintenanceofthisassetisvitaltotheGovernmentofUganda’s(GoU)strategyforeconomicdevelopmentandpovertyeradication.Itisofrecent,thatpreventivemaintenanceisbeingappreciatedinUgandaandplansofmak-ingitapriorityarebeingputinplace.Thespatialdata,onwhichRoadInfrastructureMaintenance(RIM)actionsarebased,arenotcomprehensiveenough.However,Geo-graphicalInformationTechnologies(GITs)areknowntoenableassetmanagementtofunctioninthecollection,storageandanalysisofdatafordecisionmaking.ThisisanongoingresearchexpectedtodevelopanintegralframeworkforenhancingtheuseofGITsasdecisionsupporttoolsinthemaintenanceofroadsinUganda.ThepapergivesabackgroundonGITsanddiscussesthechallengesfacedbytheRIMsectorinadap-tiontothesetechnologies.Itproceedstodiscussroadmanagementdata,particularlyroadconditionspatialdataanditsinclinationtoGITs.Considerationsoftheframe-worktobedevelopedarealsohighlighted.Acosteffectivemethodofobtainingroadconditionparametersisdiscussedtogetherwiththeexamplesofthefreewareusedtomanipulatethedatasets.

Key Words:RoadInfrastructureMaintenance,GeographicalInformationTechnologies.

1 BACKGROUND

1.1 Road Infrastructure and Management in Uganda

ThetransportsectorinUgandaconsistsoffourmajormodes;i.e.,air,road,railwayandinlandwatertransport.Roadtransportisbyfarthemostdominantmodeoftrans-portwithinthecountry,carryingwellover90%ofpassengerandfreighttrafficandservingasatruebackbonesupportingthecountry’seconomyUgandaNationalRoadsAuthority,TermsofReference,UNRA-TOR,(2007).Roadsprovidetheonlymeansofaccesstomostoftheruralcommunitiesmakingitseffectivemanagementvitalto

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theGovernmentofUganda’s(GoU)strategyforeconomicdevelopmentandpovertyeradication.TheroadtransportinfrastructureinUgandacomprisesabout64,558kmofroad,includingabout10,500kmintheNationalRoadsnetwork,22,300kmofDis-trictRoads,2,800kmofUrbanRoadsand30,000kmofCommunityAccessRoads.About2,200kmoutofatotalof10,500kmofNationalRoadsarebituminized(tarma-cked)andtherestaregravel(murram).Governmentiscurrentlyimplementingapro-grammeofcontinuousupgradingofkeygravelroadstobitumenstandard.Theseroadsare characterizedbybad road surfaces,potholes,poor roaddesigns and inadequateroadfurniture.ThegovernmentstructureofUgandaiscomposedof2tiers,namelyCentralGovernment(GoU)andLocalGovernment(LG).TheGoUexecutesitsfunc-tionsthroughMinistrieswhichreceivetheirmandatefromparliament.TheMinistryofWorksandTransport(MoWT)isresponsiblefortheplanning,developmentandmaintenanceoftheclassifiedroadnetworkinUganda.TheLGstructureconsistsofdistrictsgovernedbyautonomousdistrictcouncilsandurbanareasgovernedbyau-tonomousurbancouncils.ThelocalgovernmentactofUgandawaseffectedin1997todecentralizefunctions,powersandresponsibilities,includingthedevolutionofroadmaintenanceservicesofrural,district,urbanandcommunityroadstolocalandurbanauthorities.Thedistrictandurbanauthoritiesareresponsibleforthemaintenanceofthedistrictandurbanroadsrespectively.Eventhoughthisactallowsdistrictstofullyimplementroutineandperiodicmaintenanceactivities,rehabilitationisstillhandledbythecentralgovernmentthroughtheMoWT.Asafurtherdecentralizationstrategy,theMoWTisplanningonissuingoutOutputPerformance-BasedRoadContracts(OPRC)wherethecontractordecideswhattodo,whentodoit,howtodoitandwheretodoitinordertoachievetheclientprescribedservicelevels.

1.2 Geo Information Technologies as Decision Support Tools

GeoInformationTechnologies(GIT)areasetofspecializedInformationandCom-municationsTechnologies(ICT)whichhelptocollect,manageandanalysedataabouttheresources,landscapefeatures,andsocioeconomiccharacteristicsofanareainbothspaceandtime(Ehrenspergeretal.,2007,Eprenspergeretal.,2007).Theyprovidean important feature for communication,disseminationandknowledge sharingonaccountoftheircapabilitytofacilitatedisplayandvisualisespatialdata.GITincludesfourbasicspatialtools,namely,GeographicalInformationSystems(GIS),GlobalPo-sitioningSystems(GPS),RemoteSensing(RS)andweb-basedtoolssuchasGoogleearthwhichprovidenewwaysofsharinginformationandvisualizingnearrealtimedata (Ehrensperger et al., 2006, Eprensperger et al., 2007). GIS facilitates storage,managementandanalysisofgeographicallyreferenceddata,integratingcommonda-tabaseoperationswithuniquemeansofvisualizationandthegeographicanalysispo-tentialofmaps.GPSaresatellitebasedpositioningsystemsforcapturinglocationsofsamplepointssuchasroadjunctions,potholesorlargerfeatures(landmarks)ontheroad.Theselandmarksmaylaterbeusedtoreferencesatelliteimagesorotherspatialdatalayers.RemoteSensingontheotherhandisthedetectingoftheearth’ssurfacefromsatellitesandairplanesbymakinguseofthepropertiesofelectromagneticwaves

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emitted,reflectedordiffractedbythesensedobjects.Itprovidesimagesoftheearth’ssurfacethatcanbeusedtoidentifyespeciallydifferenttypesoflandcover.AdvantagesassociatedwiththeuseofGITsareimprovedmapping,greaterefficiencyinretrievalofinformation,fasterandmoreextensiveaccesstothetypesofgeographicalinforma-tionimportanttoplanning,improvedanalysis,bettercommunicationtothepublic,andspeederaccesstoinformationforvariousapplicationprocesses(Ehrenspergeretal.,2007).

(Mazzi,2007)observedthatforthecaseofUganda,thereislowusabilityofGITsandspatialdataintransportplanning.Thereasonsforlowusabilityofspatialdatarangefromthelackofadatasharingframeworkbetweenorganisations,questionabledataquality,absenceofdatadocumentationandtheabsenceofclarityinproblemdefini-tion(inconformitywith(Ramasubramanian,1999)).However,iftherightcombina-tionsofdataalgorithmsormodelsaremadeforagivenapplication,andassuranceofdataqualityisguaranteedtheworthofGITscanbeachieved.Eventhough(Hunteretal.,2003)seemtoarguethatperfectdatamaybeararity,thefactremainsthattherearecertainfundamentalelementsthatneedtobepresentininformationforittobecon-sideredsufficientlyuseableforthepurposesathand.Theaimofthisresearchistoin-vestigatehowRoadInfrastructureMaintenance(RIM)managerscanexploittheGITsavailabletotheminthecollectionanduseoftheserelevantdatafordecisionmaking.

2 RESEARCH CONCEPT

2.1 Problem

DimitriouandBanjo(1990)haveidentifiedroadproblemsinthirdworldcountriesofwhichUgandastillfacestodate.Theyinclude;trafficcongestion,highroadaccidents,weak institutional support leading topoordefinitionof theproblem,anddifferingtechnologytransferprioritiesinproblemresolution.InUganda,severalcasesofpoortransportservicesaredocumentedin((Grimaudetal.,2007); (TTCA,2004);and(Luyimbazi,2007)).Respectively,theseinclude;thestillinsufficienttransportinfra-structure,thepoorconditionofthenortherncorridorduetoinadequatemaintenanceandthepotholescharacterizingmostoftheroads.AlmostallroadsinKampalacityarecontinuouslybeingrepairedaconsequenceofwhichthecityisfacingcolossaldust,which,besidesbeinganinconveniencetopeople,iscausingseveraldiseasesasaresultofpollution.Therepairedroadshardlylastayearbeforetheneedforanotherrepairofthesameroadsection.Thisislargelyattributedtoimpromptudecisionmakinginher-entinsituationswheredecisionsupporttoolsarelackingandpatternmatchingaswellasvisualinspectionaredominate.Thedecisiononwhichroadsbearmaintenancepri-orityhasprovedtobeadhoc.Inmanysituationsroadsareupgradedalmostimmedi-atelyafterbeingrepaired.However,GITscangoalongwayinaidingdecisionmaking.Dataonthebasisofwhichmaintenancedecisionsaremadecanbegathered,analysedandupdatedcontinuouslytoallownearrealtimeknowledgeoftheexistingsituationofroads.Theexistingdata,onwhichdecisionscouldbebased,arenotcomprehensive

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anduptodate.ItisinthisaspectthatGITscanbeemployedtobasemeasuresofroadmaintenanceonreliablespatialdata.

Atthemoment,GITsarebeingunderutilizedinRIMdecisionmakingprocesses.Thedesire touseGISby theMoWTin themanagementofnationalanddistrict roadsisevidencedbythecommissioningofaprojectknownasManagementInformationSystems (MIS) fordistrict roads in2006.TheMISwas intended toapplyGIS formonitoringcross-cuttingissuesintheRoadSector.Todate,itappliedmainlyforre-portingvariousattributesforroadmaintenance.TheUgandaNationalRoadsAuthor-ity(UNRA),anauthoritychargedwiththemanagementofnationalroads,alsousesGISbasicallyforreporting.ThisresearchisworkingtowardsdefiningaframeworkthatshouldenhancetheuseofGITsparticularlytowardsachievingandmanagingup-to-datespatialinformationthatwillfacilitateevidencebaseddecisionmakinginRIM.

2 Research Objectives and Design

Themainobjectiveoftheresearchistodevelopanintegralframeworkforincorporat-ingGITsasdecisionsupporttools inRIMworksinUganda.Toachievethis,threespecificobjectivesaredefined,1.ToidentifygapsintheuseofGITsintheRIMproc-essofUgandaandidentifythelimitationstoenhancingtheuseofthesetechnologies,2.TodevelopanalgorithmicframeworktoincorporateGITsasdecisionsupporttoolsinRIMactivitiesinUganda3.Todevelopadatamodelforroadmaintenancedatabasingontheroadmaintenancedatarequirements.ThestudyisbasedinUgandawithKampalaandJinjaasthestudyareas.RIMisthespecificfieldofstudy.Weareusingamulti-methodapproachwhichinitiallyinvolvedathoroughidentificationofallstake-holdersintheRIMsector.Toensuresynchronizationoffindings,thedatacollectionmethodsarecrosscuttinginvolvinginterviews,observationsandfieldmeasures.

3 DISCUSSION

3.1 GIT Challenges

Fromtheon-goingfieldvisitsanddiscussions,fivechallengeshavesofarbeenidenti-fiedasaffectingtheuseofGITtechnologiesfordatacollectioninroadmaintenance.First is the absence of explicit data collection policies. Data collection policies aremeanttodescribeatahighlevelthetypeofdatatobecollected,itsfrequencyanditslevelofdetail.Theyshouldalsodescribetheprocessbywhichdatawillbecollected,i.e.,inhouseorbycontract,theequipmenttobeusedandanyotherdetailthatcouldenhancetheuseofthedatatobecollected.Secondlyisthepreviouslyhighcostsofsatelliteimagesandyetbudgetswere(andstillare)notalwaysavailedfordatacollec-tion.ThereisanoteddigitaldivideamongthestakeholdersinRIM.Aproposalfrommanagementofoneorganisationforexample,isthatatechnologylikeremotesensingcouldassistinthepredictionofsuitablematerialresourceforpotholefixingsuchasgravel/laterite/crashstonewhichseemtohaverunoutinthecountry.Management

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isoftheviewthatremotesensingwouldreduceonthecostofprostratingconsideringthehighcostsofthesematerialsaltogether.Anothercategoryofstakeholders,theroadcontractorsareatanotherlevelofthinkingwithlimitedknowledgeofthepotentialofGITsforRIM.Staffarenotproperlytrainedandmonitored.Remotesensingspe-cialistsforexampleareunavailableinmanyoftheseorganisations.Thedataqualityassuranceproceduresareeithermissingorareinadequate.Similarly,GISasanalreadyadopted technology within the road management organisations faces challenges ofkeepingthedatacurrent(uptodate),implementingstandards(datastandards)andpromotingthesharingofdataamongagencies(SDIIssues)

3.2 Road Management Data

Roadmanagementdataiscomposedof;roadinventory,pavement,structures,traffic,finance,activityandresourceselements,eachofwhichhasvariousaspects(Paterson&Scullion,1990).Thefocusofthisresearchhoweverlieswiththenetwork/locationaspectoftheroadinventoryelementandthepavementconditionaspectofthepave-mentelement.Thedifferencebetweeninventory(physicalelementsofthesystem)andconditiondatalieswiththefactthatinventorydatadoesn’tchangeremarkablyovertime.Itistypicallymeasuredinoneoffexercisesandupdatedasneedarises.Conditiondataontheotherhandchangesovertimeandrequiressomekindofmonitoring(Ben-nettetal,2006).Duringdatacollectionitisalwaysconfusingtodecideonwhatdatatocollect.Itishoweveradvisableto;collectonlythedatathatisneededforthepresentpurpose, collectdata to the lowest level ofdetail sufficient tomake an appropriatedecision,collectdataonlywhentheyareneededandusepilotstudiestotesttheappro-priatenessoftheapproach.AccordingtoBennettetal.,(2007)thesurveyfrequencyindicatesthat,inventorydataisupdated/verifiedevery5yearsandpavementcondi-tiondataformainroadsarecollectedevery1-2years,whileforminorroads,every2-5years.HoweverinUganda,thisisnotthecase.Asmentionedearlier,theroadsareinacontinuousstateofrepairandupgrade.Thisimpliesthatdatashouldalwaysbecol-lectedpriortoanupgradeorrepairscheduleinordertoprioritizeworks.Theamount,typeanddetailoftherequireddatashouldthenbethefocusduringthedatacollection.

Unlessreferenced,allthesedatawhencollectedwillbeoflimiteduse.Therearetwoelementsofreference,thelocationandtheaddressusedtoidentifythelocation.Thethreeimportantcomponentshereare1.theidentificationofaknownpoint,2.direc-tion,and3.distancemeasurement.Thereferencingiseitherlinear(measuredinkmsfromaknownpoint)orspatial(measuredinlatitudeandlongitudeusingGPS).InUganda, the known referencepoint for linear referencing is thepost office locatedonKampalaroad.ItisofrecentthatspatialreferencingisbeingadaptedinUganda.Originally,onlyGPSlocationsofthestartandendofaroadsectionwouldbecap-tured.To-date,theUNRAdatacollectionsheetshavebeendesignedwithanattributeofGPScoordinatesforeverychainageforwhichdataiscollected.

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3.3 Framework Development

WiththeadvancementinGITsforspatialdatacollectionanddecisionmaking,itisnecessarytousesomelogicalconstructinformofaframeworktodefineanintegra-tionofthesetechnologiesinthedecisionmakingprocessofRIM.Therearepersistentchallengeshowevertointegratinginstitutionalandtechnicalsolutionstooptimizetheutilisationofthesetechnologiesandtheresultingspatialdata.InUganda,themajorof thesechallenges is foundtobe institutionalorpolitical (policy)tobeexact.Thenecessary framework components are in the process of being generated by; assess-ingthepotentialofGITsthroughunderstandingthemthoroughlyintermsoftheirweaknesses,strengths,andrequirementsforadoptionwithintheRIMdiscipline;re-viewingliteratureonhownewtechnologiesinotherdisciplinesareincorporatedintoorganisations;identifyingemergingissuesfrominterviewsandfieldvisitsanddefiningmethodstoaddresstheseissuesandfinally;definingaframeworkthataddressestheseissuesandproposesinputs.Animportantpointtonotehoweveristhenon-uniformityoftheGIS-Transportation(GIS-T)datamodelsbythedifferentassetmanagementor-ganisations.DuekerandButler(1999)advocateforacommondatamodelthatholdstransportationfeaturesastheobjectofinterest,andthatattributesoftransportationfeaturesarerepresentedas linearandpointeventsthatarelocatedalongthefeatureusinglinearreferencing.Thisthencallsfordynamicsegmentationdatabasedesignforroadmaintenancedataintheresponsibleorganizations.

3.4 Film and Photograph

Roadconditiondataincludesmainlyroaddistresssurveyswhichprovideinformationonthevariousdistresstypes,theirlocations,severity,andextent(Miller&Bellinger,2003).Thesesurveysaretraditionallybasedonextensivefieldobservationsbytrainedexperts.Theyevaluatethepavementconditioninsituconsideringavarietyofdistresstypes andaggregate the information into aPavementCondition Index (PCI).Thisindexisasingleroadperformanceindicatorwithascaleusuallybetween0and100andthehigherthevaluethebettertheconditionoftheroad.Thisextensivemethodoffieldobservationsisacknowledgedasexpensiveby,forexample,Heroldetal.,(2004).Theirconclusionhoweverwasbasedonacomparisonwithroadconditionmappingwithhyperspectralimageremotesensing.Likewise,wehavedevelopedatechniqueofcosteffectivelycarryingout thesedistress surveys.This isbyfilmingtheroadbymountingavideocameraontoavehicleandsettingupaGPSloggerwithinthesamevehicle.Thevehiclemovesataconstantspeedwhichtogetherwiththewidthoftheroadbeingfilmedisrecorded.GPScoordinatesalongsectionsoftheroadareregis-teredduringthefilming.Forveryevidentdistresses,photographsarecapturedwithhighresolution(13.5megapixels)GPSembeddedcamera.Howwiththiscosteffec-tiveinventioncanroad/pavementconditionparametersbeextractedtosupportthecurrentpracticeinRIM?Thefilmsandphotographsofsectionsofroadsinthestudyareaareavailableforthesemeasurementstobeextractedwithassistancefromaroadmaintenanceexpert.

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3.4.1. Film and Photograph visualization

Itisimportanttoappreciatethatbesidesobtainingtheroadconditionindicators;thereisalsoneedfortheirvisualization.Thereisavailablefreewarethatcanbeusedtoma-nipulate the video and photographs to best visualize the road condition indicatorsneededfordecisionmaking.

Routemapper:RoutemappervideosurveyingsystemshavebeenusedbyhighwayandrolltollauthoritiesinseveralcountriesliketheUK,Ireland,USAandCanadaforvari-ousapplications.Theseinclude;assetmanagement,planningstudiesandinfrastructureplacement.Underassetmanagement,ithasbeenpossibletomeasureassetdimensionsand export them to external asset management systems and GIS applications. Theabovementionedfilmcanbemanipulatedwithroutemappertovisualizeroadcondi-tionstatusandthenexportedintotheGISapplicationinuse.Otherinterestingfea-tureswithroutemapperarethepossibilityforintegratingvideoandGISmappingandthe availabilityofdesktopandwebapplication software.The routemapperdesktopbrowserintegrateshighresolutiondigitalvideoimagery,accuratelocationreferencing,GISmappinganddatastorageintooneapplication.Userscannotonlydigitizeandreviewassetinformationheldinthesystem,butalsoload,viewandeditmanydifferentengineeringandGISbaseddatasets.Clientspecificnetworkreferencingsystemscanbeimportedintothesoftwarethusallowinguserstouseaknownreferencetoquicklynavigatethroughthevideo.

Opticks: Opticsisacollectionofsoftwaretoolsthatenableanalyststodevelopintel-ligenceproducts.Itgeneratestheseproductsbyanalyzingsignaturesanddatasetscol-lectedfromspecifictechnicalsensors.Thesedatasetsandsignaturesarepresentedtotheanalystusingimagesandplots.Theanalystthenusestheseviewstomanipulatethedataandrunalgorithmstogenerateintelligenceproducts.Itisanopensourceremotesensingapplicationanddevelopmentframework,supportingtraditionalimagery,mo-tionimagery,SyntheticApertureRadar(SAR),multi-spectralandothertypesofre-motesensingdata.ItsupportsmanyremotesensingfileformatsincludingENVI,Ge-nericRAW,ESRIshapefile,MPEG,JPEG,GIF,PNG,BMP,TIFF,GeoTIF.ItisalsopossibletoconnecttogeodatabaseswithESRIArcSDEintegration.Withopticksonecanpan,zoom,rotate,andgeoreferencespatiallylargevideo.Forsoftwaredevelopers,italsoallowsforplug-ins.

GeoSetter: GeoSetter is a freeware tool for windows for showing and changing geodataofimagefiles(e.g.,imagestakenbydigitalcameras).Itoffersseveralfeatureslikereadingpictureformats(e.g.,JPEG,TIFFaswellascameraRAWformats),showingexistinggeocoordinatesandtracksonembeddedGooglemaps.WithGeoSetter,itispossibletosetgeodatabyembeddedGooglemapsorbyenteringknownvaluesforcoordinatesandaltitudedirectly.ThedisadvantageofusingtheGooglemapsisthataninternetconnectionisrequiredwhichisoftenadrawbackwithdevelopingcountieswherethebandwidthisneverguaranteed.Italsoallowsforthesynchronizationoftrackfileswithalreadygeotaggedimages(e.g.,betweenRAWimagesandtheircorre-spondingJPEGimages).Figure3-1showsthemainwindowoftheGeoSetterinterfaceandgeotaggedphotographsofJinja(Bujagaliroad)inthedisplay.

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Figure 3‑1: A Snapshot of the Geosetter Main Window

4 CONCLUSION

ThechallengesfacingtheuseofGITsinRIMhavebeenfoundtoprimarilyrelatetoknowledgecapacityandbudgetaryissuesandthefactorslimitingtheirintegrationaremajorlypolicyrelated.Thedatarequirementsforroadmaintenancethoughbasicallyvaluesintermsofindices,visualsurveysforinventoryandconditionwouldrequireGITservices.TheseindicescanalsobederivedfromGITproducts.Furthertoo,thelocationreferenceofboth inventoryandconditiondatacanonlybeaccuratelyob-tainedbyuseofGITs.Theresearchisworkingtowardsrecommendingacosteffectivemethod of collecting road condition data as it advances towards development of aframeworktointegratingGITsinRIM.ThishasprogressedbyfilmingtheroadwithordinaryvideocameraanduseofGPS logger thatcapturesGPScoordinatesalongsectionsoftheroad.ThiscoupledwiththeavailabilityofOpenSourceandfreewareformanipulationofthecollecteddatacangoalongwayingroundingGITsinRIM.FurtherexploringofthepotentialoftheGITsandimplicationsoftheirintegrationintothedecisionmakingprocessofRIMwillhaveaninputintotheframeworktobedeveloped.

5 REFERENCESBennett,C.R.,H.deSolminihac,&Charmoro,A.(2006).Data collection Technologies for Road

Management. Transport Notes. Roads and Rural Transport Thematic Group.TheWorldBank,WashingtonDC.TransportNoteNo.30

Bennett,C.R.,Charmoro,A.,Chen,C.,H.deSolminihac,&Flintsch,G.W.,(2007).Data collec‑tion Technologies for Road Management.EastAsiaPacificTransportUnit.WashingtonDC:TheWorldBank.

Dimitriou,H.T.&Banjo,G.A.,(1990).TransportplanningforThirdWorldcities.Londonetc.,Routledge.

 

  Instance  at  which  photograph  was  taken    

GPS  Coordinates  of  above  instance  Photograph  of  

the  road  showing  extent  of  distress  

taken

ofdistress

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Dueker,J.K.,&Butler,J.A.,(May1999).GIS-TDataSharingIssues,DiscussionPaper99-02,CenterforUrbanStudies,PortlandOR97207-0751,PortlandStateUniversity,HamiltonCounty,Tennessee

Ehrensperger,A.,Wymannvon,S.D.,&Fani,K.E.,(2007).GeographicInformationTechnologiesforNaturalResourceManagement.InfoResourcesFocusNo 3/07.

Grimaud,P.,Sserunjogi,M.L.,&Grillet,N.(2007).AnevaluationofmilkqualityinUganda:valuechainassessmentandrecommendations.AfricanJournalofFoodAgricultureNutritionandDevelopment.7(5).ISSN:1684-5374.

Herold,M.,Roberts,D.,Smadi,O.,&Noronha,V.,(2004).RoadConditionMappingwithHyperspectralRemoteSensing.

Hunter,G.J.,Wachowicz,M.,&Bregt,A.K.(2003).UnderstandingSpatialDataUseability.DataScienceJournal(spatialdataUsabilityspecialsection)Vol.2:79-89

Luyimbazi,D.(2007).DeterminationofRoadMaintenanceNeeds.PowerpointPresentation.MinistryofFinanceworkshoponRoadmaintenanceRequirements.MinistryofFinanceplanningandEconomicDevelopmentpublications.

Mazzi,L.K.N.(2007).Balancing Information Requirements with Data Availability: A case of Trans‑port Planning, Kampala, Uganda.InternationalInstituteforGeo-InformationScienceandEarthObservation.Enschede,Netherlands.MscDegree(Geo-InformationManagement).

Paterson,W.D.O.,&Scullion,T.,(1990).Informationsystemsforroadmanagement:draftguidelinesonsystemdesignanddataissues.InfrastructureandUrbanDevelopmentDepart-mentReportINU77.WashingtonDC:TheWorldBank.

Ramasubramanian,L.(1999).GISImplementationinDevelopingCountries:LearningfromOr-ganisationalTheoryandReflectivePractice.TransactionsinGIS3(4):359-380.

TRB,(2004).Towards a foundation for Improved Decision Making: Geospatial Information Infra‑structure for Transport Organization.ConferenceProceedings3.1,TransportResearchBoard(TRB).

UNRA,(2007).TermsofReferenceforNationalRoadsDataCollectionandSettingupaRoadsManagementSystem.UgandaNationalRoadsAuthority

ftp://popo.jpl.nasa.gov/pub/docs/workshops/04_docs/Herold_et_al_aviris_2004_web.pdfaccessedon3rdAugust2009

http://www.routemapper.net/accessedon20thAugust2009https://opticks.ballforge.net/accessedon20thAugust2009http://freegeographytools.com/2007/geosetter-the-best-free-photo-geotagging-appaccessedon

20thAugust2009

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PAPER IIAN OVERVIEW OF THE GAPS AND LIMITATIONS IN THE

UTILIZATION OF GITs FOR ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE MAINTENANCE IN UGANDA

LydiaMAZZIKayondo1,UgandaProf.S.STickodriTogboa2,Uganda

Prof.GerhardBax3,Sweden

SUMMARY

ThispaperispartofongoingresearchontheuseofGeographicalInformationTech-nologies(GITs)asdecisionsupporttoolsinroadinfrastructuremaintenanceinUgan-da. Itdiscusses thegaps in theuseofGITs in the road infrastructuremaintenanceprocessofUgandaandthelimitationsexperiencedwhileenhancingtheuseofthesetechnologies.RoadmaintenanceorganizationsusingGITs are often facedwith theneedanddesiretosolvesimilarandcross-cuttingtechnicalproblemsthatarerepetitiveinnature.However,theircurrentinstitutionalarrangementsdonotpermitforgingoflastingpartnerships,useofstandardizeddataandoperatingunderacoordinatedGISinfrastructure.Theyalsolackstandardizedfundamentaldatasetstoaddresskeynation-wideandlocalmaintenancerequirements.ChallengestocoordinatinghowgeospatialdataareacquiredandutilizedarethenorminUganda.Similarly,collectionofdupli-catedatasetsatthelocalandnationallevelsisacommonscenario.WefinallyidentifythelimitationstoaccessingGITsinthesectoras;lackofinfrastructuretosupportuti-lizationofgeographicdatasets,unavailabilityofandlimitedaccessibilitytogeographicdata,limitedgeospatialcapacityatindividualandorganizationallevelsandthedigitaldivide.Aboveall,therearenopoliciesforaccessibilityandstandarduseofGITs.

Keywords:GeographicalInformationTechnologies(GITs),RoadInfrastructureMain-tenance(RIM),Data,Uganda

1. INTRODUCTION

Theunderstandingofgeographictechnologies,effectiveuseofgeographicalinforma-tionand theknowledgeof their advantages is critical to theplanninganddecisionmakingprocessforassetmanagementdepartments.Aroadnetworkanditswellbeingforexamplearevery important for theeconomicdevelopmentof thenation.RoadInfrastructureMaintenance(RIM)isthereforeaprerequisiteforthemanagementofroads.Geographicinformationcollected,managedandanalyzedusingGeographicalInformationTechnologies(GITs)isveryusefulindecisionmakingforRIM.GITsarecommonlyreferredtoasICTtoolsusedinthecollection,management,maintenance,manipulationandpresentationofgeographicdataandorinformation(Ehrenspergeretal.,2007).Theuseofthesetechnologiesisknowntosimplifydecisionmakingto

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anontechnicallevelandtosupportthestakeholdersinsustainable-orienteddecisionmaking.However,thesetechnologiesareunderutilizedforRIMinUganda.

UgandaisbeyondthefirstappearancesofGIT,whenonlyhighlyqualifiedprofession-alscouldhandlethem.Today,advancesintechnologyaretremendous(Ehrenspergeretal.,2007).AwiderangeofGISisavailablerangingfromhighcostserverbasedtolowcostuser-friendlydesktopsoftware.Thesectorhasnotedtheincreaseintheavail-abilityofspatialdata.Thespatialandtemporalresolutionofremotesensingdatahasimpressivelyincreased,andmoredataarenowfreelyavailable.ThemostoutstandingadvancementhasprobablybeenthedevelopmentoftheinternetandwebGISwhichhaveopenedupnewopportunitiessuchasaccesstorealtimemaps,cheapandfre-quentdataupdatesandworldwidesharingof spatial information.Throughgraphicrepresentationandspatialanalysis,theuseofGITshelpstomakeRIMprocessesun-derstandabletodecisionmakersandlaypersons(Ehrenspergeretal.,2007).

UseofGITsisincreasinglyshiftingfromreferencetoolstodynamicdecisionmakingtools.Thisshifthasbeentriggeredby,amongotherfactors,emergencysituationssuchastheWorldTradeCentre(WTC)attacksofSeptember11200l(TeresaM.Harrisonetal.,2007).ThisattackbecameacatalystforchangeintheuseofGITsforalmostallrelevantdisciplinestransportationinclusive.ThispaperoutlinestheRIMorganizationinUganda,theactorsinvolvedaswellastheirroles.ItdiscussesthegapsthathavebeenidentifiedintheuseofGITsforRIMinUgandaandthelimitationsassociatedwithenforcingtheuseofthesetechnologies.

2. GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES - THE PROB-LEM

GeoInformationTechnologies(GIT)areasetofspecializedInformationandCom-municationsTechnologies(ICT)whichhelptocollect,manageandanalysedataabouttheresources,landscapefeatures,andsocioeconomiccharacteristicsofanareainbothspace and time (Ehrensperger et al., 2007). They provide an important feature forcommunication,disseminationandknowledge sharingonaccountof theircapabil-itytofacilitatedisplayandvisualisespatialdata.Morerecently, ithasbecomeclearthatGIS,togetherwithGlobalpositioningsystems(GPS),aerialphotography,remotesensing techniques, and other spatially related tools for decision making, comprisealargerarrayofcomplementarytoolsthatcanbegroupedtogetherunderthemorecomprehensive rubric of “geographic information technologies” (GIT) (Teresa M.Harrisonetal.,2007). According toEhrenspergeretal. (2007),GIT include fourbasicspatialtools,namely,GeographicalInformationSystems(GIS),GlobalPosition-ingSystems(GPS),RemoteSensing(RS)andweb-basedtoolssuchasGoogleearthwhichprovidenewwaysofsharinginformationandvisualizingnearrealtimedata.GIS facilitates storage,management and analysis of geographically referenceddata,integratingcommondatabaseoperationswithuniquemeansofvisualizationandthegeographicanalysispotentialofmaps.GPSaresatellitebasedpositioningsystemsfor

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capturinglocationsofsamplepointssuchasroadjunctions,potholesorlargerfeatures(landmarks)ontheroad.Theselandmarksmaylaterbeusedtoreferencesatelliteim-agesorotherspatialdatalayers.RemoteSensingontheotherhandisthedetectingoftheearth’ssurfacefromsatellitesandairplanesbymakinguseofthepropertiesofelectromagneticwavesemitted,reflectedordiffractedbythesensedobjects.Itprovidesimagesoftheearth’ssurfacethatcanbeusedtoidentifyespeciallydifferenttypesoflandcover.TheadvantagesassociatedwiththeuseofGITsinclude;improvedmap-ping,greaterefficiencyinretrievalofinformation,fasterandmoreextensiveaccesstothetypesofgeographicalinformationimportanttoplanning,improvedanalysis,bet-tercommunicationtothepublic,andfasteraccesstoinformationforvariousapplica-tionprocesses(Ehrensperger,2006).UgandahasnotfullybenefitedfromtheaboveadvantagesandasMazzi(2007)observed,thismanifestedinunderutilizationofGITsandspatialdataintransportplanning.However,itisimportanttonotethateffortsarenowemergingtotakeadvantageofthebenefitsofGITs.ThedesiretouseGISbytheMinistryofWorksandTransport(MoWT)inthemanagementofnationalanddistrictroadsasevidencedbythecommissioningofaprojectknownasManagementInfor-mationSystems(MIS)fordistrictroadsin2006isoneofsuchefforts.TheMISwasintendedtoapplyGISformonitoringcross-cuttingissuessuchasgender,occupationalhealth,HIV/AidsandenvironmentintheRoadSector.Todate,theMISisstillbeingappliedmainlyforcapturingandreportingvariousattributesforroadmaintenance.Similarly,theUgandaNationalRoadsAuthority(UNRA),anauthoritychargedwiththemanagementofnational roads, alsousesGISprimarily for reportingpurposes.WhereasitisthedesireofUNRAandotherinstitutionstoutilizeGISintheiractivi-ties,thereisageneralrequirementthatlimitsutilizationofGITs.Thelimitationessen-tiallyoriginatesfromtheinherentnatureofGITs.TheuseofGITsrestsontheabilitytoaccesscoredatasetsanduniformorinteroperablespatialreferencesystemthatcanserveasfoundationforthedevelopmentofsubsequentapplicationsthatdependonsharinggeospatialinformationacrossregionsandintegratinggeospatialinformationwithotherrelevantdatasets(WehndeMontalvo,2002)ascitedby(TeresaM.Har-risonetal.,2007).ThemajorproblemthereforeistheunderutilizationofGITsintheRoadInfrastructureMaintenanceprocessofUganda.ThemainobjectiveistoidentifythegapsintheuseofGITsandlimitationstoenforcingtheiruseforRIMinUganda.

3. METHODOLOGY

ThisstudycoveredKampalaandJinjadistrictsasthestudyarea,seefigure3-2.Theprojectadoptedamulti-facetedapproach.Inthisapproach,theinitialstageinvolvedthe identificationofall stakeholders/actors intheroadinfrastructuremaintenancesector.Thiswasfollowedbyareviewofdocumentationdescribingtheroadmainte-nanceprocess. Key informant interviewsusingan interviewguidewereconductedwiththeroadengineers,managersandGISspecialistsintheidentifiedorganizations.Furthermore,otherknowledgeablepersonnelinvolvedintheroadmaintenanceactivi-tieswerealsointerviewed.Insummary,acombinationofexpertandsnowballsamplingtechniqueswereusedtoidentifypersonswithknowledgeanddemonstrableexperience

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andexpertise inGITs.Thesamplingframecomprisedofmanagers inroadmainte-nanceorganisationsanddepartmentsandthesamplesizewaslimitedto3personsperorganization.Theresultwasthatatotalof23personswereinterviewedacrossalltheorganisations.Inadditiontotheabovemethods,participantobservationsandfieldmeasuresweretriangularlyemployedtoensurecomplimentarilyoffindings.Finally,anindependentmappingoftheroadsasachecktotheexistinggeodatabaseswasdone.

Fromacombinationofinterviews,documentreviewandothertechniquesasoutlinedabove,gapsintheuseofGITswerederived.Lateronduringtheparticipantobserva-tionandfieldmeasurephases,thesegapswereconfirmedandthisservedasabasisforderivinglimitationstoenhancingtheiruse.Tounderstandthenatureoftheidentifiedgapsandlimitationsfurther,itwasconsiderednecessarytoevaluatetheorganizationsandtheirprocesses.Forthispurposetherefore,moredatapertainingtothefollowinginstitutionalaspectswascollected; theorganizational structureofRIMcomponent,activitiesundertakeninthemaintenanceprocess,actorsinvolvedintheseactivities,thegoalsandregulationsthatgoverntheactivities,andthedocumentsthatarecreatedduringthemaintenanceprocess.Thefindingsaredocumentedinthefollowingsec-tionsofthepaper.

Figure 3‑2: Map of Uganda Showing Kampala and Jinja Areas

 

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4. FINDINGS

4.1 Road maintenance Activities and Actors

TheMinistryofWorksandTransport(MoWT),UgandaNationalRoadsAuthority(UNRA),consultantsandcontractorswereidentifiedasthekeystakeholdersinRoadInfrastructureMaintenance(RIM).Localgovernmentsanddonorsalsoplayapartinsomecircumstances.MoWThastheconstitutionalmandatetosetpolicy,regulate,setstandards,andprovidetechnicalguidanceandmonitoringtotheconstructionindus-try.Uganda’sroadnetworkcomprisesabout78,000kmofroadofwhich21,000kmarenational,22,500kmaredistrict,4,500kmareurbanand30,000kmcommunityaccessroads.TheUgandaNationalRoadsAuthorityisresponsiblefordevelopmentandmaintenanceofnational roads.Thedistrictandurbanauthoritiesareresponsi-bleforconstructionandmaintenanceofthedistrictandurbanroadsrespectively.Alldistrictsarestaffedwithengineers,plannersandsurveyors.InKampalaforexample,KampalaCityCouncil(KCC),alocalgovernmentorganization,ischargedwiththeresponsibilityofmaintainingdistrictroadswithinthecity.Dependingonthesizeofroadandthescopeofworksrequired,KCCnormallydecideswhetherornottoper-formmaintenanceworksusinginhouseequipmentandpersonnelorcontractbasedroadmaintenance. In the lattermethod,aprivatecontractor isoftenprocuredandhiredtoperformtheworksunderdirectorindirectsupervisionbyKCC.Underindi-rectsupervision,aprivateconsultantcompanyisassignedsupervisoryroleonbehalfoftheclientandthisnormallydependsontheprojectsizeandavailabilityoffunds.Thecommunityaccessroadsarearesponsibilityofthelowerlocalgovernmentsandtheirmaintenanceisoftencommunitybased.

4.2 Gaps in GIT utilization

ThegapsandlimitationstousingGITsinRIMhavebeenbasedononeguidingprin-ciple thatorganizational standaloneGITusage iscostlyandtimewasting.Onthebasisofthisprinciple,thegapsidentifiedhavebeengroupedinfourbasiccategoriesasdiscussedinthefollowingsection.

(i)GITs are not integrated into the working procedures of any of the involved organizations.InordertobuildupthecapacityandinfrastructureinGITs,theirusehastobeincor-poratedintheongoingpracticesoftheorganizations.ThesustainabilityofGITusagewillbederivedfromtheirfrequentuseforplanning,reportinganddecisionmakingoftheroutineandperiodicmaintenanceactivities.However,itisobservedthatGITusageisonprojectbasisandconvenience.KCCforexampleistaskedwiththerespon-sibilityofmaintainingtheroadswithinKampala,however,theGISdataavailablewithKCCto-datewereobtainedduringthecapacitybuildingprojectin2003.Thesehavenotbeenupdatedsincethen.Similarly,theuseofsatelliteimagerybyconsultantsisonprojectbasis.Alloftheprojectsthatuseimageryhavethespecificationsstipulatedinthetermsofreferenceandthisendsatprojectlevel.However,thereisanongoingconsultancy“RoadInventoryStudy”whoseprincipalobjectiveistoassistUNRAtoestablishaNationalRoadsDatabankandAssetManagementSystem.Thesearetobe

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usedasadecision-makingsupporttoolforannualandmulti-annualmaintenanceandinvestmentworkplansandreportingonroadandbridgesinthecountry.Thefuturesustainabilityofthesystemisfundamentalandthestrategyadoptedbytheconsultantduringtheassignmentisthereforedirectedatthisobjective.Assuchtrainingoftheclient’sstaffandtechnologytransferareimportant,UgandaNationalRoadsAuthorityTermsofReference(UNRA-TOR,2007).

(ii)The current institutional arrangements are not inclined to lasting partnerships, stand‑ardized data and a coordinated GIS infrastructure.AsobservedfromtheorganizationalstructureoftheRIMprocess,theorganizationsinvolvedarenotstandalone.Forin-stance, in one project the contractor reports to the consultant who also reports toUNRAwhothenfinallyreportstotheministry-MoWT.However,thisworkflowisoftenorganizedforaparticularprojectonanad-hocbasis.Incasethesameconsult-antandcontractoraretoworktogetheronanotherproject,adifferentinstitutionalarrangementmaybedefined.Onceprocessesandinstitutionalarrangementschangeasaresultofchangesinprojectreportingarrangements,thedataformatandstandardschange.Consideringthattheseinvolvedorganizationsusesimilardatasetsinresolvingroutineandperiodicmaintenanceproblems,itisarequirementthatthesedatasetsarestandardizedandthattherelationshipbetweentheorganizationsisformal.Inessence,ithasbecomedifficulttoarchivethesedata inacoordinatedGISinfrastructureforRIM.

(iii)Lack of data sharing and collaboration.Theemphasisontechnicalratherthanin-stitutionalanddata-relatedissueswasearmarkedby(MartinRalphsandWyatt,1998)asoneofthecommonproblemsthatGISapplicationsencounter.DatasharingandcollaborationisvitalinavoidingduplicationofeffortsfortheorganizationsinvolvedinRIM.ThereisanumberoffundamentaldatasetsusedinallGISprojects.Mostofthedatausedinthemanagementofsuchprojectsissharedamongutilitydisciplines.Theseincludewater,power,telephonelines, landuse,etc.However,thereis lackofcollaborationamongtheutilitycompanies.Majorityoftheutilitycompanies(NWSC,UEB,UMEME)forexamplehaveestablishedGISunitsthroughwhichcollaborationwouldbenefittheroadsectorandfurthertheestablishmentofitsGISunit.TheUnitedStatesGeneralAccountingOffice(GAO,2003)arguesthatlongstandingchallengestodatasharingandintegrationneedtobeaddressedbeforethebenefitsofgeographicinformationsystemscanbefullyrealized.Theproblemsleadingtothisgaphavebeenidentifiedtoinclude;insufficientknowledgeofwhoownswhatdataandthestatusofthedata,differencesinreferenceframes,datapricingirregularities,copyrightandpri-vacypolicies,dataqualityaspectsandtechnologicalissuesrelatedtoincompatibilityofsoftwareplatforms.However,collaborationhasbeenprovedtoallowforthepoolingofresourcesandbetteruseofsynergies(Ehrenspergeretal.,2007).Thisinturnsleadstomotivationamongthetechnicalstaffastasksbecomemorediversifiedandinteresting.

(iv) There is lack of a data foundation to address key national and local maintenance requirements.InitiativesforestablishingaSpatialDataInfrastructure(SDI)-aframe-work for connecting all users of Geographical Information (GI) to the producers(ordata) throughanefficient infrastructure (Nebert,2004)arenot forthcoming in

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Uganda.InWashington,Update(2001),recognizesasimilargapwhichisstatedasthelackofacommondatafoundationtoaddresskeystate-wideandlocalpolicyis-sues.Thisinturnhasbeenfoundtodeprivetheorganizationsofgeospatialdata.Itiswidelyrecognizedthatcollectingdatamultipletimesforthesamepurposeiswastefulandinefficient.GeospatialdatacollectedtomeettherequirementsofdistrictroadsforexampleisusefultoUNRAinthemanagementofnationalroads. Thisisbasicallybecausesomesectionsofnationalroadsqualifyasdistrictroads.However,theuseofthesedataforthetwopartiesisonlypossibleifthedatameetasetofbasicandcon-sistentguidelinesandprotocols.Inturn,thiswillrequiretheexistenceofpoliciesandstandardsgoverningdatacollectionandmanagement.

4.3. Limitations in GIT usage

Basingonthesameprinciplehighlightedabove,thelimitationstoenforcingtheuti-lizationofGITsinRIMhavebeencategorizedintofivecategoriesasdiscussedbelow.

(i)Absence of policy on the standard use of GITs:Oneoftheprincipalinputsforeffec-tiveroadmanagementiswelldefinedobjectivessuchaswouldbestatedinapolicyframework.Usually,policiesprovideguidelinesofuseandsetforththeprinciplesthatgoverntheuseofthesettechnology.AbsenceofapolicythatencouragestheuseofGITsinRIMandsetsforththestandardstobefollowedisafundamentallimitation.100%oftheroadcontractorsforinstancearguethattheyhavenoreasontoinvestinGITapplicationsiftheirusehasnotbeensetasmandatory.

(ii)Budget Limitations:Besidesthecostsofequipmentanddatacollection,buildingGITcapacityandinfrastructurealsorequireapredefinedbudget.LackofdurabilityofGITbasedprojectsisoftenduetoinsufficientbudgetsfortheinvolvedactivities.IthasbeenthetraditionthatbudgetsandprogramsforroadworksinUgandahavebeenpreparedonahistoricalbasis.Thisimpliesthateachyear’sbudgetisbaseduponthepreviousyearwithanadjustmentfor inflation.It isarequirementthatbudgetsbepreparedbasingonobjectiveneeds-basedapproachestoincorporateknowledgeofthecontent,structureandconditionoftheroadsbeingmanaged.TheGISprojectinKCCin2003isstillreferredtotodayforitsprematureendingwithnobenefitrealiza-tionsimplyduetobudgetarylimitations.Justlikeanyothertechnology,GITusagerequiresongoingimprovedcapacitytohandlethefastgrowingtechnology.Thistoorequiresabudgetfortrainingtheresponsibleprofessionals.Eventhoughsatelliteim-ageryisfreelyavailableto-date,theimagesfaceachallengeofbeingold.Theuptodateimageryisquitecostlytobeprocuredbytheorganizations.Likewise,theinitialcapitalforGISestablishmentisquitehigheventhoughtheoperationalcostsaremanageable.Allthecontractorsinterviewedmadeitclearthattheirrevenueisnotworththeinvest-mentinthesetechnologies.

(iii)Lack of infrastructure to support use of geographic datasets:Effectiveuseofgeograph-icdata requires that thesedata are collected,maintained andupdatedon a regularbasis.Decisionmakingfortransportmaintenancerequiresaccesstodatafrommul-tiplesources.Tothiseffect,sisterorganizationsusingsimilardatasetsshouldbeina

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position to share thesedatawhenneeded.Theuniversallyaccepted frameworks forgeographicdatamanagement inUgandaare stillunderdeveloped.Data structures,formats,syntax,andterminology,whichconstitutesemanticcontentorqualitystand-ards,donotexist.ThiscoincideswithNationaletal.(2002)andKittyHancockandFletcher(2004)thatthereisnouniversallyacceptedframeworkforgeographicdatamanagementinAfrica.Theacceptableinfrastructurerequiresefficienttelecommunica-tioninfrastructures.Atthemoment,accesstogeographicdatathroughtheinternetislimitedashighconnectioncostandlowbandwidthrestrictdatasharing

(iv)Geospatial capacity at individual, organizational and societal levels:Theprofessionalsthatworkinthefieldofroadmaintenancehavediverseresponsibilities.However,theministryhasadepartmentthat isresponsibleforplanning,designing,constructing,andmaintainingthetransportationinfrastructure.Theprofessionalschargedwiththistaskaremajorlycivilengineers,trainedintheareasofdesignandconstruction.Asaresult,challengestocoordinatinghowgeospatialdataareacquiredandusedarethenorm.Collectingduplicatedatasets,atthelocalandnationallevelsisacommonsce-nario.However,parametersrelatedtotheinventoryandconditionofroadsrequiresaninputfromgeographicdata.Decisionstorepairgivenroadsaredependentonthem.ThisthenrequiresthatGITprofessionalsarethusanecessityinthesaiddepartment.However,inthiscase,theseprofessionalsareavailedonprojectbasis.Thisusuallycre-atesagapatthecloseoftheprojectlivingalottobedesired.

(v)Digital divide:TheimplementationofGITsandtherelateddataconversionacrossthecountryisstilluneven.Thegovernmentorganizations(MoWT,UNRAandKCC–LocalGovernment)unlikeprivatecompanies(thecontractorsandconsultants)’are‘richer’,oftendonorfunded.Theyarefastgrowingandexperiencingarapidlyincreas-ingdemandforservices.TheyarethereforeoftenabletoaffordthefundstosupportthedevelopmentofrobustGITs.Theconsultantandcontractorcommunitieschangemoreslowlyandgenerate less revenue.Thesignificantupfrontcostsof staffingandimplementingGITs(satelliteimagery,dataconversion,hardware&software,training,etc)haveimpededtheadoptionofthesemoreefficientandproductivecomputerizedsystemsinthiscategoryofstakeholders.Thishasresultedintothecontinueduseofmanual andhardcopymethodsandmaterials inmostof the spatial applicationsoftheseorganizations.ThiswerefertoasthedigitaldividebetweenUNRA,theMinistryandtheLocalGovernmentandthecontractorsandconsultants.

5. CONCLUSION

ThepaperhasdiscussedthegapsintheuseandlimitationstoaccessingGITsforRIM.Thesehavesofarbeenfoundtobebothsocialandtechnicalinnature.Thegapsinus-ingthesetechnologiesinclude;thelackofanintegrationofGITsintheorganizations’workingprocedures,inadequateinstitutionalarrangementthatshouldallowforlast-ingpartnerships,absenceofstandardsfordataandacoordinatedGISinfrastructure,absenceofdatasharingandcollaborationandthelackofadatafoundationatnationalandlocallevels.ThelimitationstoaccessingGITsinRIMinclude;theabsenceofa

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policy on standard use of GITs, budget constraints, inadequate geospatial capacityat all levels and the digital divide between the involved organizations. Apparently,researchintheroadmaintenancesectorisyettotacklevariouswaysinwhichGITscanbeusedtofurthertheirperformanceasdecisionsupporttools.Aproposalforarational algorithmic incorporationofGITs inRIM inUgandawillbepresentedatthe2ndAdvancedEngineeringTechnologies’(AET)conferenceinFebruary2010inKampala,Uganda.

6. REFERENCESUnitedStatesGeneralAccountingOffice(GAO)(2003)GeographicInformationSystems:

ChallengestoEffectiveDataSharing.TestimonyBeforetheSubcommitteeonTechnology,InformationPolicy,IntergovernmentalRelationsandtheCensus,CommitteeonGovernmentReform,HouseofRepresentatives.

Ehrensperger,A.(2006)Potentials,LimitationsandRisksofGeo-InformationTechnologyforSustainableDevelopmentApproachesinKenya..

Ehrensperger,A.,Wymannvon,S.D.&Kakridi,F.E.(2007)GeographicInformationTechnolo-giesforNaturalResourceManagement.InfoResources Focus,No3/07.

KittyHancock&Fletcher,D.R.(2004)GeographicInformationSystemsforTransportation,CommitteeonSpatialDataandInformationScience,A5015.

MartinRalphs&Wyatt,P.(1998)Theapplicationofgeographicandlandinformationsystemstothemanagementoflocalauthorityproperty.Property Management.16:2,83-91.

Mazzi,L.K.N.(2007)BalancingInformationRequirementswithDataAvailability:AcaseofTransportPlanning,Kampala,Uganda.International Institute for Geo‑Information Science and Earth Observation.Enschede,Netherlands.

NationalAcademyofSciences(2002)DownToEarth:GeographicalInformationforSustainableDevelopmentInAfrica.The National Academics: Advisers to the Nation on Science, Engineering, and Medicine.

Nebert,D.D.E.(2004)Developingspatialdatainfrastructures:theSDIcookbook:version2.0.CapeTown,GlobalSpatialDataInfrastructureAssociation(GSDI).

TeresaM.Harrison,TheresaPardo,J.RamonGil–Garcia,FionaThompson&Juraga,D.(2007)GeographicInformationTechnologies,StructurationTheory,andtheWorldTradeCenterCrisis.58,2240–2254.

StrategicPlanUpdate(2001)TheGeographicInformationChallenge.WAGIC DRAFT Working Document

WehnDeMontalvo,U.(2002)Thedistributionofspatialdata.InR.Mansell(Ed.),Insidethecommunicationrevolution:Evolvingpatternsofsocialandtechnicalinteraction.Oxford: Oxford University Press.,186-203.

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BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES AND CONTACTS

1Ms. Lydia Mazzi Kayondo is aLand surveyor andGeographical Information systemsmanager.SheholdsanMSc.inGeoinformationManagementfromITCnowtheFac-ultyofGeoInformationScienceandEarthObservations,Netherlands.Shehaspar-ticipatedinanumberofGISconsultanciesandprojectswithinUgandaintheMinistryofWorksandTransportandwetlandmanagementdepartment.SheiscurrentlyanAs-sistantLecturerintheDepartmentofSurveying,MakerereUniversity,P.O.Box7062Kampala,Email:mklydia@tech.mak.ac.ug

2Prof. Sandy Stevens Tickodri‑TogboaisanEngineeringScientistandaProfessorofEngi-neeringMathematics,withbackgroundinElectricalEngineeringandTelecommunica-tionsandwideexperiencesinInformationCommunicationTechnologyandstatisticaldataanalysis.Hehasalsobeen involved inresearch into the impactsof InformationCommunicationTechnology (ICT) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) ap-plicationsinenhancingsustainableruraldevelopment.HehasbeenUniversityadmin-istratoratthelevelsofHeadofDepartment,DeputyDeanofFacultyofTechnology.Currently he is the DeputyVice Chancellor (Finance and Administration) of Mak-erere University and he is also the Chairman, Board of Directors, Uganda Electric-ity(UEGCL)GenerationCompanyLimited. HehasundergoneseveraltrainingsinBusinessAdministration andCorporateGovernance,ProjectManagement,ResearchManagementandAdministration,PhDSupervision,andonInnovationSystemsandInnovativeClustersFacilitation.MakerereUniversityP.O.Box7062Kampala,Email:stogboa@tech.mak.ac.ug

3Prof Gerhad BaxisprofessorofEarthSciences.HehasworkedwithUppsalaUniversity,wherehewasheadofGeoinformatics,andiscurrentlyaffiliatedtoBlekingeInstituteofTechnologyinSweden.Prof.Baxhasmorethan20yearsexperienceofresearchandsupervisioninGISandRemoteSensing,withhundredsofstudentsthatarenowactiveinabroadrangeofGISbranchesinandoutsideSweden.Heisalsoaprofessionaline-learningandhasbeenguestprofessorinGIS,RemoteSensingandE-learningattheUniversityofHeidelberginGermany.HisresearchcoversawiderangeofapplicationsinGeoinformatics, includingfieldwork indifferentpartsofEurope, theArctic, theHigherHimalayasandAfrica.PresentlyheisworkingonaWorldBankprojectmap-pingthegeologyofUgandaandtrainingthestaffoftheGeologicalSurveyandMinesinnewdigitalmappingtechniques.Hehasbeenamemberofnumeroussteeringboards,severaltimesaschairman,oforganizationspromotingtheuseofICTandGISinthepublicsector.BlekingeTechnicalInstituteP.OBox214,S-37424Karlshamn,Sweden,Email:gb@rockspace.se

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PAPER IIIALGORITHMIC INCORPORATION OF GEOGRAPHICAL

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES IN ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE MAINTENANCE IN UGANDA

MazziLydiaKayondoAssistantLecturer,DepartmentofSurveying,MakerereUniversity,P.O.Box7062,Kampala,Uganda.Correspondingemail:mklydia@tech.mak.ac.ug;Lndandiko@yahoo.

co.uk.

TickodriTogboaS.S,Professor,DepartmentofComputerEngineering,MakerereUniversity,P.O.Box7062,Kampala,Uganda

GerhardBax,Professor,SchoolofTechnoculture,HumanitiesandPlanning,DivisionofTechno-scienceStudies,BlekingeInstituteofTechnology,P.O-Box214,S-37424Karlshamn,Sweden

ABSTRACT

GeographicalInformationTechnologies(GITs)areunderutilizedforRoadInfrastruc-tureMaintenance(RIM)inUganda,thusthenecessitytorationallyincorporatetheiruseasdecisionsupporttoolsintheparticipatingorganizations.GITshereinincludeRemoteSensing,GlobalPositioningSystems(GPS),GeographicalInformationSys-tems(GIS)andwebbasedtoolssuchasGoogleearth.Thispaperisrootedinresearchundertaken toassess theuseofGITsasdecision support tools inRIM inUganda.Basingonresultsfrominterviews,fieldvisits&measuresandparticipantobservations,thegapsandlimitationstotheusageofGITsforRIMinUgandaarebrieflydiscussed.Thedata requirements forRIMarehighlighted.Thepaper suggests analgorithmicapproachtoaccentuatetheusageofGITsintheRIMprocess.Thisapproachinvolves:apolicyondatacollectionguidelinesemphasizingtheuseofGPS,satelliteimageryandGIS, capacitybuilding in thebenefitsofusingGITsand the science involved,establishmentofalocalspatialdatainfrastructureforroadmaintenanceandsettingasideyearlybudgetsforthedefinedactivities.ThedynamicsegmentationdatamodelisidentifiedasasuperiordatastoragestrategyforroadmaintenancedatawithintheGIS.

Keywords:GeographicalInformationSystems(GIS),GeographicalInformationTech-nologies(GITs),RoadinfrastructureMaintenance(RIM),Uganda

1 INTRODUCTION

The understanding of Geographic Information Technologies (GITs), effective useofgeographicalinformationandtheknowledgeoftheiradvantagesiscriticaltotheplanninganddecisionmakingprocesses forassetmanagementdepartments.Awellmaintained roadnetworkasset is very important for the economicdevelopmentofthenation.Therefore,Road InfrastructureMaintenance (RIM) is aprerequisite forthemanagementofroads.TheuseofGeographicInformation(GI)thatiscollected,managedandanalyzedusingGITsisveryusefulindecisionmakingforRIM.GITsarecommonlyreferredtoasInformationCommunicationTechnology(ICT)toolsusedinthecollection,management,maintenance,manipulationandpresentationofgeo-

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graphicdataandorinformation(Ehrenspergeretal.,2007).Theuseofthesetechnolo-giesisknowntosimplifydecisionmakingtoanontechnicallevelandtosupportthestakeholders insustainable-orienteddecisionmaking.Embracingandcontinuingtodevelopaflexible,methodologicalframeworkfortheintegrationofdecision-support-ingtechnologieswithinfrastructureisfundamentaltosupportingeffectiveincorpora-tionofspatialdataindecision-making(Cartright,1993).However,GITsinUgandaareunderutilized.Thereisnocomprehensivemethodologyorframeworkforaddress-ingboththetechnicalandnon-technicalissuesaffectingGITimplementation.ThispaperhighlightsdatarequirementsforRIM,theorganizationoftheRIMprocessandthegapsandlimitationsinutilizationofGITsinRIMinUganda.Finally,itsuggestsanalgorithmicapproachinformofaframeworktoaccentuatetheuseofGITsinRIM.

2 METHOD

ThisstudycoversKampalaandJinjadistrictsas thestudyarea. Itadoptedamulti-facetedapproach.Inthisapproach,theinitialstageinvolvedtheidentificationofallstakeholders/actorsintheroadinfrastructuremaintenancesector.Thiswasfollowedbyareviewofdocumentationdescribingtheroadmaintenanceprocess.Keyinform-antinterviewsusinganinterviewguidewereconductedwiththeroadengineers,man-agersandGISspecialists intheidentifiedorganizations.Furthermore,otherknowl-edgeablepersonnelinvolvedintheroadmaintenanceactivitieswerealsointerviewed.Insummary,acombinationofexpertandsnowballsamplingtechniqueswereusedtoidentifypersonswithknowledgeanddemonstrableexperienceandexpertiseinGITs.Thesamplingframecomprisedofmanagersinroadmaintenanceorganisations.Thesamplesizewaslimitedto3personsperorganizationandtheresultwasthatatotalof23personswereinterviewedacrossalltheorganisations.Inadditiontotheabovemethods,participantobservationsandfieldmeasurementsweretriangularlyemployedtoensurecomplimentarilyoffindings.Finally,anindependentmappingoftheroadsasachecktotheexistinggeodatabaseswasdone.Fromacombinationofinterviews,documentreviewandothertechniquesasoutlinedabove,gapsintheuseofGITswerederived.Lateronduringtheparticipantobservationandfieldmeasurementphases,thesegapswereconfirmedandthisservedasabasisforderivinglimitationstoenhanc-ingtheiruse.

3 ROAD MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES AND ACTORS

ThekeystakeholdersintheRIMprocessare;TheMinistryofWorksandTransport(MoWT),UgandaNationalRoadsAuthority(UNRA),consultantsandcontractors.Localgovernmentsanddonorsalsoplayapartinsomecircumstancesasoutlinedbe-low.TheMinistryofWorksandTransport(MoWT)hastheconstitutionalmandatetosetpolicy,regulate,setstandards,andprovidetechnicalguidanceandmonitoringtotheconstructionindustry.TheUgandaNationalRoadsAuthority(UNRA)isre-sponsiblefordevelopmentandmaintenanceofnationalroads.Thedistrictandurbanauthoritiesareresponsibleforconstructionandmaintenanceofthedistrictandurban

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roadsrespectively.Alldistrictsarestaffedwithengineers,plannersandsurveyors.InKampala forexample,KampalaCityCouncil (KCC),a localgovernmentorganiza-tion,ischargedwiththeresponsibilityofmaintainingdistrictroadswithinthecity.Dependingonthesizeofroadandthescopeofworksrequired,KCCnormallyde-cideswhetherornottoperformmaintenanceworksusinginhouseequipmentandpersonnelorengagecontractbasedroadmaintenance.Inthelattermethod,aprivatecontractorisoftenprocuredandhiredtoperformtheworksunderdirectorindirectsupervisionbyKCC.Underindirectsupervision,aprivateconsultantcompanyisas-signedsupervisoryroleonbehalfoftheclient(KCCinthiscase)andthisnormallydependsontheprojectsizeandavailabilityoffunds.Thecommunityaccessroadsarearesponsibilityofthelowerlocalgovernmentsandtheirmaintenanceisoftencom-munitybased.

4 ROAD MAINTENANCE DATA

Roadmanagementdata is composedof; road inventory,pavement, structures, traf-fic,finance,activityandresourceselements,eachofwhichhasvariousaspects(Pater-sonandScullion,1990).Table3-1showsthecompositionofroadmanagementdatagroupedinelementsanddataaspectsofeachelement.Thefocusofthisresearchhow-everlieswiththespatialdatarelatingtothenetwork/locationandpavementconditionaspectsoftheroadinventoryandpavementelementsrespectively.Thedifferencebe-tweeninventory(physicalelementsofthesystem)andconditiondatalieswiththefactthatinventorydatadoesn’tchangeremarkablyovertime.Itistypicallymeasuredinoneoffexercisesandupdatedasneedarises.Conditiondataontheotherhandchangesovertimeandrequiressomekindofmonitoring(Bennettetal,2006).

Table 3‑1: Elements of Road Management

Element Aspects

Roadinventory Network/Location,Geometry

Pavement Pavementstructure,Pavementcondition

Structures Structuresinventory,Bridgecondition

Traffic Volume,Loadings,Accidents

Finance UnitCosts,Budget,Revenue

Activity Projects,Interventions,Commitments

Resources Institutional,Materials,Equipment

Source: Paterson and Scullion (1990)

GITsarecapableofeffectivelymonitoringtheseuntimelychanges.AccordingtoBen-nettetal.,(2007)thesurveyfrequencyindicatesthat,inventorydatashouldbeveri-fiedevery5yearsandpavementconditiondata formainroads shouldbecollectedevery1-2years.Forminorroadshowever,surveyfrequencyshouldbeevery2-5years.However,inUganda,thisisnotthecase.Theroadsareinacontinuousstateofuncoor-

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dinatedrepairandupgrade.Thisimpliesthatdatashouldalwaysbecollectedpriortoanupgradeorrepairscheduleinordertoprioritizeworks.Theamount,typeanddetailoftherequireddatashouldthenbethefocusduringthedatacollection.

5 GAPS AND LIMITATIONS IN GIT USAGE IN RIM

ThegapsandlimitationsinGITutilizationarebasedononeguidingprinciplethatorganizationalstandaloneGITusageiscostlyandtimewasting.Inconsequence,thesegapsandlimitationsarecategorizedinto4and5groupsrespectively.

5.1 Gaps in GIT Utilization

5.1.1 GITs are not integrated into the working procedures of any of the involved organiza‑tions:ItisobservedthatGITusageisonprojectbasisandconvenience.InordertobuildupthecapacityandinfrastructureinGITshowever,theirusehastobeincorpo-ratedintheongoingpracticesoftheorganizations.ThesustainabilityofGITusagewillbederivedfromtheircontinueduseforplanning,reportinganddecisionmakingoftheroutineandperiodicmaintenanceactivities.

5.1.2 The current institutional arrangements are not inclined to lasting partnerships, standardized data and a coordinated GIS infrastructure:Fromthecurrentorganizationalstructure,thestakeholdersintheRIMprocessarenotstandalone.Despitethis,theirworkflowisorganizedonprojectbasisinanad-hocway.Onceprocessesandinstitu-tionalarrangementschangeasaresultofchangesinprojectreportingarrangements,thedataformatandstandardschange.Inessence,itisincreasinglybecomingdifficulttoarchivethesedatainacoordinatedGISinfrastructureforRIM.

5.1.3 Lack of data sharing and collaboration:Theproblemsleadingtothisgaphavebeenidentifiedtoinclude;insufficientknowledgeofwhoownswhatdataandthestatusofthedata,differencesinreferenceframes,datapricingirregularities,copyrightandpri-vacypolicies,dataqualityaspectsandtechnologicalissuesrelatedtoincompatibilityofsoftwareplatforms,alsoinharmonywithMusinguzietal.,2007andMazzi,2007.

5.1.4 There is lack of a data foundation to address key national and local maintenance requirements:InitiativesforestablishingaSpatialDataInfrastructure(SDI)-aframe-workforconnectingallusersofGeographicalInformation(GI)totheproducers(ordata)throughanefficientinfrastructure(Nebert,2004)arestillnotforthcominginUganda(Musinguzietal.,2007).

5.2 Limitations in GIT usage

5.2.1 Absence of policy on the standard use of GITs:Oneoftheprincipalinputsforeffec-tiveroadmanagementarewelldefinedobjectivessuchaswouldbestatedinapolicyframework(Robinson,1998,PatersonandScullion,1990).However,thereisnosuchpolicythatencouragestheuseandsetsforththestandardstobefollowedintheuseofGITsinRIM.

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5.2.2 Budget Limitations:IthasbeenthetraditionthatbudgetsandprogramsforroadworksinUgandaarepreparedonahistoricalbasis.Thisimpliesthateachyear’sbudgetisbaseduponthepreviousyearwithanadjustmentforinflation.LackofdurabilityofGITbasedprojectsisoftenduetoinsufficientbudgetsfortheinvolvedactivities.Besidesthecostsofequipmentanddatacollection,buildingGITcapacityandinfra-structurealsorequireapredefinedbudgetwithamorelongtermperspectivefornon-annualinvestments.

5.2.3 Lack of infrastructure to support use of geographic datasets:TheuniversallyacceptedframeworksforgeographicdatamanagementinUgandaarestillunderdeveloped.Datastructures, formats, syntax, and terminology, which constitute semantic content orqualitystandards,donotexist.Anacceptablegeographicdatainfrastructurerequiresefficienttelecommunicationinfrastructures.Atthemoment,accesstogeographicdatathroughtheInternetislimitedandhighconnectioncostandlowbandwidthrestrictsdatasharingonanationallevelinUganda.

5.2.4 Geospatial capacity at individual, organizational and societal levels:Theprofession-alsthatworkinthefieldofroadmaintenancearemajorlycivilengineers,trainedintheareasofdesignandconstruction.Asaresult,challengeswiththeacquisitionandcoordinationofgeospatialdataarefartoocommon.

5.2.5 Digital divide: The implementation of GITs and the related data conversionacrossthecountryisstilluneven.Thegovernmentorganizations(MoWT,UNRAandKCC–LocalGovernment)unlikeprivatecompanies(thecontractorsandconsultants)areoftendonorfunded.TheyarethereforeoftenabletoaffordthefundstosupportthedevelopmentofrobustGITs.Theconsultantandcontractorcommunitieschangemoreslowlyandgenerate less revenue.Thesignificantupfrontcostsof staffingandimplementingGITshaveimpededtheadoptionofthesemoreefficientandproductivesystemsinthiscategoryofstakeholders.

6 ALGORITHMIC ACCENTUATION OF GIT USAGE IN RIM

The algorithmic approach proposed is an operational framework within which theroadmaintenancesectorcouldaccentuatetheuseofGITinRIM.Itisnotsequentialbutiterativeinthesensethattheoutlinedstrategiesdependonandsupporteachotherasdiscussedinthefollowingsections.Thisthereforequalifiesitasanondeterministicalgorithm.

6.1 Policy on GIT usage for RIM

ThesettingupofapolicyontheobligatoryuseofGITsbyallstakeholdersinRIMcould be the first step towards enhancing the use of the mentioned technologies.Supportstructuresdonotemergeanddonotcontinuetoexistautomatically.Theyneedpoliticalcommitment(Yeh,1991,SundeepSahayandWalsham,1996,HeatherCampbellandMasser,1995).Thispoliticalcommitmentshouldbeinformofpoli-cies.Thepolicy could statedata collectionguidelines emphasizing theuseofGPS,

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aerialphotographs,satelliteimageryandGIS.Inthelongrun,GITsinselfcouldbeusedinroutinesupportofpolicymaking.EventhoughGITprojectshaveendedupinfrustrationfortheorganisationsinvolved,itisadvisablethatthewholeconceptionbeginswithasimilarsettingwhichatthemomentisworkingwellforUNRAundertheprojectofsettingupaNationalRoad’sdatabank.MandatoryprojectrequirementfortheinstitutionalizationofGITsisadvocatedforbyEricdeMan(2000).Theuseof consultants to guideorparticipate in feasibility study is recommended (OnsrudHarlanJandPintoJeffreyK,1991).Theuseofconsultantsisdesirabletoreviewor-ganizationalgoals,assessneeds,offeralternatives,anddevelopstrategy.

6.2 Capacity building in GITs

Withapolicyinplace,capacitybuildingonthebenefitsofusingGITsandthesci-enceinvolvedwouldthenbenecessary.Inthepresentstudy,ithasbeenobservedthat,thecontractorcategoryoftheinvolvedstakeholdershaslimitedknowledgeableofthebenefitsofGITsletalonethefunctionalitiesofthetechnologiesthemselves.Capacitybuildingforthiscategoryofstakeholderscouldbeginwithdiffusion“theprocessofcommunicationofaninnovationtoandamongthepopulationofpotentialuserswithanaimofthemadoptingit”Zaltmanetal,1973in(OnsrudHarlanJandPintoJeffreyK,1991).Thecapacitybuildingcouldthenproceedasfollows;

6.2.1 Continued Professional Development (CPD):CPDshouldbecomeanintegralpartof the processes of enhancing geospatial capacity in RIM. Organizations that pro-videprofessionaltrainingongeographicinformationsciencessuchasuniversities,andprivatecompaniesshouldbestrengthenedandlinkedtotheorganisationsinRIM-amovetowardsthetriplehelixconceptofgovernment,academiaandindustrywork-ingtogetherforsustainabledevelopment.Thisdefinitelyrequiresabudgetaswillbediscussedinthesection6.5.

6.2.2 University collaboration:PublicuniversitiesshouldinitiallybecomeafocusforcapacitybuildingincludingtrainingandresearchinGITs.Induecourse,privateuni-versitieswiththemeanscouldpartnerwiththeparticipatingorganizationsaswell.Thestakeholders’organizations–theMinistryinthiscaseshouldcoordinatetheeffortsoftheseuniversitiestoachievethisgoal.BasingonthewillbeadvancementofGITus-ageinthesector,arecommendationofprioritiesforresearchshouldbemadebythestakeholders.Moreso,theseuniversitiesshouldbeincludedinthevariousdataman-agementandusagenetworks,whichareasteptowardstheestablishmentofaLocalSpatialDataInfrastructure(LSDI)forthesector(seesection6.3).Theevaluationofcurriculumdesignandcontentshouldbeanongoingactivitybasingontheadvance-mentofGITusage in the sector.According to (Ghose,2001,Leitner et al.,1998,HelgaLeitneretal.,2000,Leitneretal.,2000),universitypartnershipsaredeemedadvantageousinseveralrespectsincludingeasieraccesstotherichpotentialsourcesofGISexpertiseattheuniversity.TheabilitytofocusonthespecificdataandapplicationneedsofthepartneringorganizationandthelowercostsoflearningandmaintainingtheGITsystemwillinduecourseberealized.

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6.2.3 Systematic Research:Adoptsystematicresearchonfactorsandprocessesaffectingthediffusion,utilizationand impact assessmentofGITsby considering thevarietyofconceptualandmethodologicalproblems(OnsrudHarlanJandPintoJeffreyK,1991).Theobserveddigitaldividewilleventuallybeaddressedintheprocessofat-tendingtotheresearchrecommendations.

6.3 Establishment of a LSDI for road maintenance data

Sustainablemanagementoftheroadinfrastructurecallsfortheintegrationofstake-holdersfromdifferentdecisionmakinglevelsinplanning.Theuseofspatialinforma-tionmanagementtoolswillinthiscasesupportmultistakeholderandthemultilevelapproachesintheroadmaintenancefield.Therefore,bystartingfromlocalperspec-tivesandknowledge,andsubsequentlyintegratingexternalviews,multi-stakeholderapproaches shouldbeused for theproblemdefinitionandpriority settingstagesofanyproject.TheestablishmentofaLSDIisproposedfortheabovereasons.Aspatialdatainfrastructure(SDI)isaframeworkofspatialdata,metadata,usersandtoolsthatareinteractivelyconnectedinordertousespatialdatainanefficientandflexibleway.Local inthesensethatit isspecificfortheRIMsectorasthecountrysubsequentlyintegratesexternalviewsintoaNationalSDI.

6.4 Promoting collaboration and data sharing amongst the stakeholder organiza-tions

Like all technologies, GITs encompass technical and non technical issues (Eric deMan,2000).It is therefore importanttorealizethatsuccess isnotnecessarilyguar-anteedby a perfect technical tool (AndersonCarrie S., 1996) but also by address-ingthesocialaspectsthatrequirecollaborationbetweenorganizations.Inpromotingorganizationalcooperation,emphasis shouldbeplacedon fostering innovationandthetransferofgeographicdataandtechnologythrough;1.Partnershipsandresearchnetworksamonggovernmentagencies,researchandtraininginstitutions,theprivatesectorandthenongovernmentsectorand2.Advocatingforinternationalcollabora-tionandcooperationbetweendevelopedanddevelopingcountries

6.5 Setting aside yearly budgets for the defined activities

AcrucialaspectofsuccessfulGITimplementationisaccessibilitywhichincludescostsofhardware, softwareanddata (Ehrenspergeretal.,2007). It is advised that fund-ingopportunitiesareidentifiedandthegovernmentorganisations,theMinistryandUNRAinthiscase,aggressivelypursueapplicationforthosemonies.Thisshouldbewithparticularemphasisonaddressingdigitaldivideissuesandframeworkpriorities.Forsustainability,theusageofGITsshouldbeintegratedintotheworkingproceduresandbudgetsofalltheinvolvedorganisationsinRIM.

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6.6 Adoption of the dynamic segmentation data model

ThereisnoexistingdatamodelusedfortheGIS-T(GISforTransportation)inUgan-da.ThetraditionalarcnoderelationaldatastructureisusedtomaintaindatawithintheGIS.However,thedynamicsegmentation(DynSeg)datamodel isconsideredasuperiordatastoragestrategywithintheGIS-T.DynSegistheprocessoftransforminglinearlyreferenceddata(alsoknownasevents)thathavebeenstoredinatable,intofeaturesthatcanbedisplayed,queriedandanalyzedonthemap(Jelokhani-Niarakietal.,2009)throughcomputations.ItiswidelyusedinGIS-Tasanefficientmeasuretomanagetheheterogeneousattributesalongtheroadswithoutanyredundantdatastorage(EddieY.etal.,2002).Thisinturnallowsforlessstoragespace,quickerdataprocessing,andmoreinformationstorage.Theusefulnessofroadmaintenancedatacanbegreatlyenhancedbyapplyinga segmentationprocedure toproduce sectionsthatareuniformandconsistentwiththeroadcondition.

7 CONCLUSION

ThepaperhasdiscussedtheroadmaintenanceorganizationinUganda,thedatare-quiredforroadmaintenance,andthegapsandlimitationstousingGITsintheRIMprocess.IthasinturnsuggestedaframeworkthroughwhichtheRIMsectorwoulden-hancetheuseofGITsforroadmaintenance.Thisframeworkisnotlinearbutiterativesinceallstrategiesdiscussedaredependentandsupportiveofeachother.Thestandardrequirementswhichcomprisea successful institutionalGITmodel include;draftedandpassedpolicies allowing for long termuppermanagement commitment to theGITprojects,sufficientallocationofresources,adequatestaffingintermsofnumbersandskills/competencies,timelyandsufficienttrainingandorganizationalcommuni-cationtosmoothenthetransitiontofullutilization.Ontheadoptionofaninstitu-tionalGITmodel,itisrecommendedtodevelopeffectiveframeworksforevaluatingtheutilizationofGITs.TheseframeworksarecriticaltothelongtermefficacyofGITs.

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8 REFERENCESAndersonCarrieS.(1996)GISDevelopmentProcess:AFrameworkforConsideringtheInitiation,

Acquisition,andIncorporationofGISTechnology.URISA Journal/ Refereed WASHINGTON DC.

EddieY.,J.Chou,J.L.M.&Wang,C.(2002)ImplementationofDynamicSegmentationforaPavementManagementInformationSystem. Transport Research Board (TRB) Annual Meeting, Washington DC.

Ehrensperger,A.,Wymannvon,S.D.&Kakridi,F.E.(2007)GeographicInformationTechnolo-giesforNaturalResourceManagement.InfoResources Focus,No3/07.

EricDeMan,W.,H.(2000)InstitutionalizationofGeographicalInformationTechnologies.Car‑tography and Geographic information Science,Vol.27,pp.139-151.

Ghose,R.(2001)UseofInformationtechnologyforCommunityEmpowerment:TransformingGeographicInformationSystemsintoCommunityInformationSystems.Transactions in GIS,5,141-163.

HelgaLeitner,SarahElwood,EricSheppard,SusannaMcmaster&Mcmaster,R.(2000)ModesofGISProvisionandtheirAppropriatenessforNeighbourhoodOrganizations:ExamplesfromMinneapolisandSt.Paul,Minnesota.Journal of Urban and Regional Information Systems As‑sociation12:,43-56.

Leitner,H.,Mcmaster,R.,Elwood,S.,Mcmaster,S.&Sheppard,E.(1998)ModelsforMakingGisAvailabletoCommunityOrganizations:DimensionsofDifferenceandAppropriateness.Paper presented to the NCGIA specialist meeting on Empowerment, Marginalization and GIS, Santa Barbara CA,October1998.

Leitner,H.,SarahElwood,EricSheppard,SusannaMcmaster&Mcmaster,R.(2000)ModesofGISProvisionandtheirAppropriatenessforNeighbourhoodOrganizations:ExamplesfromMinneapolisandSt.Paul,Minnesota.Journal of Urban and Regional Information Systems As‑sociation12:,43-56.

Mazzi,L.K.N.(2007)BalancingInformationRequirementswithDataAvailability:AcaseofTransportPlanning,Kampala,Uganda.International Institute for Geo‑Information Science and Earth Observation.Enschede,Netherlands.

MohammadReza,J.-N.,AliAsghar,A.,Abbas,A.&Abolghasem,S.-N.(2009)DesigningRoadMaintenanceDataModelUsingDynamicSegmentationTechnique.Proceedings of the International Conference on Computational Science and Its Applications:PartI.Seoul,Korea,Springer-Verlag.

MusinguzI,M.,Bax,G.&Tickodri-Togboa,S.(2007)AssessmentofGISDATAInteroperabilityinUganda.Proceedings of the conference on the collaborative Research for Technological Develop‑ment: Kampala, Uganda

Nebert,D.D.E.(2004)Developingspatialdatainfrastructures:theSDIcookbook:version2.0.CapeTown,GlobalSpatialDataInfrastructureAssociation(GSDI).

OnsrudHarlanJ&PintoJeffreyK(1991)DiffusionofGeographicalInformationinnovations.International Journal of Geographic Information Sciences,5:,447-467.

Paterson,W.,D.,O.,&Scullion,T.(1990)InformationSystemsforRoadManagement:DraftGuidelinesonSystemDesignandDataIssues.Infrastructure and Urban Development Depart‑ment Report,INU77,TheWorldBank.

SundeepSahay&Walsham,G.(1996)ImplementationofGISinIndia:organizationalissuesandimplicationsInternational Journal of Geographic Information Systems,10,385-404.

Yeh,A.G./O.(1991)TheDevelopmentandApplicationofGeographicalInformationSystemsforUrbanandRegionalPlanningintheDevelopingCountries.International Journal of Geograph‑ic Information Systems,5,5-7

http://www.ncgia.ucsb.edu/varenius/ppgis/papers/leitner.pdf.(Accessedon13thAugust2010)

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PAPER IVLOW COST GIT BASED TECHNOLOGY FOR PRELIMINARY

ROAD MAINTENANCE DECISION SUPPORT

MazziLydiaKayondoAssistantLecturer,DepartmentofSurveying,MakerereUniversity,P.O.Box7062,Kampala,Uganda.Correspondingemail:mklydia@tech.mak.ac.ug;Lndandiko@yahoo.

co.uk.

TickodriTogboaS.S,Professor,DepartmentofComputerEngineering,MakerereUniversity,P.O.Box7062,Kampala,Uganda

GerhardBax,Professor,SchoolofTechnoculture,HumanitiesandPlanning,DivisionofTechno-scienceStudies,BlekingeInstituteofTechnology,P.O-Box214,S-37424Karlshamn,Sweden

ABSTRACT

ThispaperpresentsalowcostGITbaseddatacollectiontechnologythatissimilartotheROadMaintenanceDataAcquisitionSystem(ROMDAS). It is composedof avehicle,twodigitalvideocameras,2GPSreceiversandanotebookcomputer.Twodif-ferentcamcordersusedforcomparisonpurposes(onerealcolorandtheotheramodi-fiedconsumercameratoregisterinfrared)aremountedatthefrontofthevehicleusingahomemadegyromounting.TheGPSreceiversareplacedatthedashboardofthevehicle.ThenotebookcomputerandGPSreceiversareconfiguredtorecordtheposi-tionofthevehicleasitmoves.TheGPSlogfilesmaintainrecordingsofthelatitude,longitude,time,speedandaltitudeofthevehicleposition,astheresearcherannotatesamapdocumentintheArcGIS9.3softwarewithlocationreferencingdetailsandvari-ousroadattributes.ThisdatacollectiontechnologyisaimedatexposingthepotentialofGITtechnologyinperforminginventoryoftheroadcondition.Thecaptureddatamaybeusefulforavarietyofapplicationsrelevanttoroadinventoryandmaintenance.It is basically recommended for preliminary road maintenance diagnosis for whichindepthroadsectionanalysismayproceedfortheaffectedroadsections.Withthistechnology,itispossibletomaproadmarksandotherarchitecturealongtheroadandprovideamapimmediatelybytheendofthesurvey.Inconclusion,dataminingofthespatialvideodatabasestofacilitateroutineandperiodicmaintenancedecisionsandthepossibilitytomodifyconsumercamerasforresearchpurposesisrecommended.

Keywords:Geographical InformationTechnologies (GIT), roadmaintenance,video-log,ROMDAS

1 INTRODUCTION

Theconductionofacomprehensive setof roadsurveys suchasLocationReferencePoints(LRPs),Roughness(IRI-InternationalRoughnessIndex),andGlobalPosition-ingSystems(GPS)surveysisvitalforwellorganizedroadassetmanagement.Numer-ousdatatypesneedtobecollectedtosuccessfullyapplyaRoadAssetManagementSystem(RAMS).Theseincludeinventoryandconditiondataamongothers.Varioustechnologiesareavailabletoprovideinformationtoassetmanagers,policymakersand

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fundingagenciesconcerningtheirroadnetwork(Fawcettetal.,2002).Thisinforma-tionisintendedtofosterinformeddecisionmaking.Besidesknowledgeofthemerenetwork,i.e.inventorydata,informationrelatingbutnotrestrictedto,thespatialloca-tionoftheroads,theircondition,pavementtype,trafficandfeaturesthatarelocatedalongtheroadincludingbridges,signpostsandculvertsarealsoquiterelevanttotheassetmanagementdepartments.

Often,datacollectionattemptsforroadmaintenancerequirementsarespearheadinabigway.AteamofroadengineersissentouttocollectInformationQualityLevel1(IQL-1)1dataonawholeroadnetworkofsay500km.Inrealityhowever,onlysectionsofthisnetworkcoveringforexample<30%oftheroadisusuallyinneedofimmediateattention.ThelowcostGITbasedtechnologydiscussedinthispaperisintendedtointroducetheconceptofpreliminarydatacollectionofroadconditiononthewholelengthofthetargetedroadfromwhichdetaileddatacollectioncanproceedalongtheidentifiedcritical sections. Thedata levels recognizedby theWorldBankPatersonandScullion(1990)weretakenintoaccountwhilecollectingdatawiththistechnol-ogy. The data collected was only appropriate for the planned use, which as earliermentionedwas topreliminarilyhighlightmaintenancerequiredsections for furtheranalysis.ThetechnologycollecteddataatIQL-3,whichdatacouldthenbeusedinpreliminaryscreeningstudiesforfurtherroadmaintenancedecisionmaking.Itisin-tendedthatinthisscreeningstudy,sectionsthatwarrantmoredetailedinvestigationcanbeidentifiedandanalyzedmoretechnicallyandatdepth.Thisisbasicallytoavoiddetaileddatacollectionontheentirelengthofroad,especiallyinfinancialstringentsituations,whichdataendsupnotbeingconsideredforprioritymaintenanceactions.

Thistechnology iscomposedofavehicle, twodigitalvideocameras,2GPSreceiv-ers and anotebook computer. It involved video logging the road and storingGPScoordinatesofthevideo-log.Video-logdatacollectiontechnologiesarequitepopularofrecent.Thisispartlybecause,thetimespentinacquiringthevideo-logsandGPSsignalsinthefieldisveryshort.Theunprocessedvideoisquiteinformativeatonsetascomparedtocumbersomemanualdatacollectiontechniquesthatobviouslyrequireprocessingbeforetheycanmakesensetothedecisionmaker.Eventhoughaugmentingthevideocapturedistimeconsuming,thisprocesshappensintheoffice/laboratoryfarfromtheuncertainfieldconditions(Silvaetal.,2003).InSilvaetal.(2003),alistofplatformsforacoupleofnavigationandmappingsensorshasbeendiscussed.Vansand trucks aremajorlyused,but also, cars, trains andaircrafts, todevelop thevasttypesofequipmentforthisnavigationandmapping.Digitalcompasses,GPS,gyros,andodometerswereusedfornavigationwhile,anumberofCCDdigitalcameras,ana-loguecamerasanddigitalcamcorderswereusedformapping.Thesemobilemappingsystemshavevariousnamesasdecideduponbythevariousdevelopers.DetailscanbeobtainedfromSilvaetal.(2003).1HighresolutionandprecisiondataisreferredtoasHighInformationQualitylevel)data.These

informationqualitylevelsrangefromIQL-1toIQL-5intheorderofreducingresolutionandprecision.Thisisoftenagreeduponbyrelatingthehierarchyofneedsaswellastheanalysismeth-ods.IQLisaveryfundamentalconsiderationtoavoidcollectionofdatainmuchmoredetailthanisactuallyrequiredbytheanalysis.

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Thetwomainobjectivesofdefiningthetechnologyare,1.TorecommendtheuseoflowcostGITconceptstoobtainaninventoryofroadconditiondataforpreliminaryroadmaintenancedecisionsupport,and2.ToprovidearoadconditioninventorybasemapoftheroadnetworkThisdevelopmentispartofanongoingresearchtargetingtheaccentuationofGITuseintheroadinfrastructuremaintenancedivisionofKampala,Uganda.

2 THE ROMDAS TECHNOLOGY

Themostcommonvideosurveyingtechnologyinusetodateisthewell-knownROadMeasurementandDataAcquisitionSystem(ROMDAS).TheROMDASwasdevel-opedasagenericsystemforcollectingdataonroadconditionandtraveltime(RashidandTsunokawa,2006).WithROMDAS,itispossibletoconductroughnesssurveys,traveltimeandcongestionsurveys,conditionrattingsurveys,inventorysurveys,mov-ingtrafficsurveys,transverseprofile/ruttingsurveys,videologgingsurveys,collectingGlobalPositioningSystems(GPS)data,recordingthelocationofdigitalphotographs,andcreatingvoicerecordswhichareassociatedwithroadattributes(Sodikovetal.,2005,HunterandPorter,2005,Fawcettetal.,2002).ROMDASisoneofthefewdatacollectionsystemsthathasbeenspecificallydesignedfordevelopingcountriestobeusedbylocalroadcontrollingagencies(Fawcettetal.,2002).InUganda,theProjectManagementandEngineeringConsultancy(PROME)isusingROMDAStocollectdatatopopulatethenationalroaddatabankandlaterdesignanassetmanagementsys-tem.Thisdataistobeusedasadecision-makingsupporttoolforpreparingannualandmulti-annualmaintenanceandinvestmentworkplansandreportingingeneral.Thesystemconsistsofavideocameraandseveralmeasuringdevicesincludingagyroscope,GPSreceivers,odometer,etc,mountedonavehicle,togetherwithsoftwarethatproc-essesthemeasurements.Asthevehiclemoves,thevisualroadconditionisrecordedbythevideocamera.Meanwhile,theROMDASmaintainssynchronizationbetweenthevideodataandthediscretedataacquiredbytheseveralmeasuringdevicesmentioned(DraganIveticetal.,2010).It isaflexiblewelldocumentedsystemthat involves3modules(survey,record,andplayback)andiseasytotransport.Fawcettetal.(2002)provideanelaboratearchitectureoftheROMDAS

Regardless of its obvious advantages, the ROMDAS collects so much data that inmanysituationsremainsuselessbesidescreatingstorageandanalysisproblemsfortheroadmanagementdepartments.TheLowcostGITbasedtechnologythatisproposedinthispapersuggestspreliminarydatacollectionforthetargetedroadsections.Theresultsofthispreliminarysurveythenleadtomoredetaileddatacollectionwithindepthanalysis,probablywiththeaidoftheROMDAS.Theproceedingdatacollec-tionandanalysisphasesshouldthenbeaimedathigherIQLdatafromthislowcostrecommendedtechnology.

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3 LOW COST GIT DATA COLLECTION TECHNOLOGY

ThislowcostGITdatacollectionmethodologyissimilartotheROMDAStechnolo-gy.ThetechnologyhasbeenprototypedforselectedroadsinJinjadistrictofUgandainEastAfrica.ThemainobjectiveofthisROMDASlikenedtechnologyis,todevelopalowcostGITbaseddatacapturemethodologyfortheroadcondition,whichtechnol-ogythatcanbeusedbyroadmanagersindecisionmakingpositionsbyhighlightingmaintenancerequiredsectionsforfurtheranalysis.Itiscomposedofavehicle(guardedwith railsat the front), twodigitalcamcorders (aCanonHF11andaSonyHDRCX520VE),2GPS receivers (DG-100GPSData logger+ receiver andBT-359SBluetoothGPSreceiver), andanotebookcomputer (PanasonicToughbookCF-U1runningwindowsXP).TheSonycamerawasmodifiedtorecordIRandtheCanonwasmaintainedwithrealcolor.Thereasonfortheuseofthese2cameraswasforcom-parisonofrealandinfraredimageryofthecapturedroadsections.Thiscomparisonisbrieflydiscussedunderthediscussionsection.Thedigitalcamcordersaremountedatthefrontofthevehicleontheguardrails,seeFigure3-3.TheGPSreceiversareplacedatthedashboardofthevehicle.ThenotebookcomputerandGPSreceiversareconfig-uredtorecordthepositionofthevehicle,itstime,speedandaltitude.Thevisualroadconditionisrecordedbythecamcorderasthevehicletraversestheroad.Meanwhile,theGPSloggersaresynchronizedwiththeGISonthenotebookcomputertoallowfortrackingofthevideopathandmakingofannotationsatLRPsandimportantfeatures-roadarchitecturealongtheroadsection.

ThistechnologyisapositiontowardsIntelligentTransportationSystems(ITS).ITSin-tendtouseexistingInformationCommunicationsTechnologies(ICT)capacitymoreeffectivelybycollectingdetailed spatial and temporaldataabout the transportationnetworkandusingthisinformationintransportationsystemmanagement.Theac-complishmentmadewiththistechnologyisinitiallyanawarenessofthepotentialofGITsintheroadinfrastructuremanagementsector.

Figure 3‑3: Cameras clamped on the vehicle guard rail

 

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Itisalsopointertotheroadmaintenanceorganisationsthatpreliminarydatacollec-tionisarequirementbeforehigherIQLdatacanbecollected.Besidestheexpenseofdatacollection,thesehighIQLdatarequiretechnicallyinvolvinganalysistechniquesthatshouldnotbeunnecessarilyperformedonthewholelengthofaroad.

3.1 Methodology

The network was prior divided into manageable sections that began and ended atknownLRPs.Thefollowinghardwarecomponentswereused;Avehiclepickupcabinwithfrontguardrails,2GPSreceivers(the2ndhandsetwasforbackuppurposes),twodigitalvideocameras(SonyHDRCX520VEandCanonHF11)andanotebookcomputer.Thetwocamerasweremountedontotheguardrailofthevehicle.TheCanonHF11usedvisiblelightfilmsthatwererecordedinfullHD1080p2(1920*1080).TheSonyHDRCX520VErecordedin1080iandwasmodifiedtoNearInfra-red(NIR).Forpurposesofcalibration,initially,two(2)B+W093filterswereplacedinfrontofthelensoftheSony,tofilteroutthevisiblelight(VIS).ThiswasbecauselightwassointenseatthetimeofthesurveyandtheautomaticexposuremeasuringinthecameraisonlycalibratedtoVIS.Anequivalentofastronggreyfilterwasplacedoutsidethelensaslightcontinuedtobeintense,seeFigure3-3.FullychargedcamerasandGPSreceiversweremaintainedwithreadymemoryspace.

Atthestartofthesurveyforaparticularroadsection,linknodeswerepredeterminedforlocationreferencing.Actuallocationreferencingwasperformedduringthecourseofthesurvey.Thecomponentsqualifyinglinearreferencingmethodswereprofession-allydealtwithinthefollowingmanner;

1. Identificationofaknownpoint.ThesepointscomprisedofKMposts,bridgesandjunctionsandatsuchpoints,digitalphotosweretaken.TheywerealsoannotatedinthemapdocumentasGPSloggingwastakingplace.

2. Direction.Theresearchernarratedinthefilmthecurrentlocationofthesurveyvehicleandthedirectionthatthevehiclewasheadingto.Sketchesofthisinforma-tionwerealsomadetothemapdocument.

3. Distancemeasurement.Thevehicleodometerwasusedtomakedistancemeasure-ments.

Nofieldsignagewasinstalledforthissurveyexercise.Insteadthenetworkwasbrokendownintolinksandsections.Datacapturebeganfromjunctiontojunctionanddis-placementsweremeasuredfrom0metresatthefirstnodeintheincreasingdirectionofthemovingvehicle.Sectionsthenbeganandendedatmoreclearlyfixedbenchmarks.

TheGPSreceiverswereplacedatthedashboardofthevehicle.ThePanasonicTough-bookCF-U1runningwithwindowsXPandArcGIS9.3hasaninbuiltGPS.ItwasalsoconfiguredandsynchronizedtogetherwiththeDG-100GPSDatalogger+re-2Thepstandsforprogressive,meaningthateveryrowofeveryframeisrecordedincontrasttothe

1080i,istandingforinterlaced,wherelines1,3,5...ofthefirstframearerecorded,and2,4,6...ofthesecondframe,and1,3,5...ofthethirdframeandsoon.

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ceiverandBT-359SBluetoothGPSreceivertorecordthepositionofthevehicleasitmoved.Onthenotebookcomputer,theresearchermaintainedanannotatedshapefileofthepathtakenbythevehiclewithaLandsatETM+imageatthebackground.AtLRPs,theresearchermaderemarksinformofdrawingsanddescriptionsasannota-tionstotheshapefileseeFigure3-4.Featuresrelatingtoroundaboutlocations,taxiparks,waterfalls(Bujagalifallstobeprecise),railwaycrossings,airfieldsandthegolfcourselocationweredemarcatedontheshapefile.NotethatthesearereferredtoaseventswhenmodelingtransportationdatainGISandassuch,arevitaldatarequire-ments.

Figure 3‑4: Field Base Map Document

Figure 3‑5: GPS data as an excel sheet

 

 

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3.2 Discussion

Therearenumerousprovidersofthestateoftheartdatacaptureequipmentforroadnetworksurveys(Fawcettetal.,2002).ThisparticularlowcostGITbasedtechnologycollects 2basic categories of information; spatial coordinates usingGPS and videologging for inventory and condition records.The software comingwithGlobal satGPSallowssavingtheGPSlocationsindifferentfileformats.Figure3-5showsasnapshotoftheGPSdatainanexcelsheet.TheattributestothecapturedrecordsareDate,Time,Latitude,Longitude,Speed(Km/Hr)andAltitudeinMeters.Figure3-6showsasnapshotoftheGoogleEarthcoveragefromtheKMLfile.Thepegsalongtheroadindicatethevehiclepositionsduringthesurvey.

Figure 3‑6: KML plot of the GPS log

Twocameraswereusedandloggingwasdonealongboththefromandtodirections.Aneventpointordetailontheroadcanthereforebeseenfromseveralpositionsofthevideo-log.Ifanalysisinonepositionwasnoteffective,thensuccessivepositionswouldbeusedformoreinformativeanalysis.Figure3-7showsasnapshotofthevideo-logofthesamepositioncapturedbythetwodifferentcamerasatthesametimeinstance.

a. Canon (real color) camera b. Sony (Infrared) cameraFigure 3‑7a&b: Sections of Bujagali road captured at 10am

 

   

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It is imperativetohighlightthedifferencesinthevideo-logsfromthetwodifferentcamerasandtheircauses.Thecamerasweremountedatthesamesideofthevehicle.Intheforwarddirectionofthevehicle,thecanonwasclampedontheleftandtheSonyontheright(furtheroutward).Thisexplainsthedifferenceintheportionoftheroadthatisvisiblefromeachcameraatthesametimeinstance.

WhenrecordingfrominbuiltBluetoothGPS,theuserpresetstherateatwhichrecord-ingshouldbemade.Thiswouldnaturallybeinclinedontheavailabilityofsatellitesandthestrengthofthesignals.Initially,theGPSlocationswerecapturedeverysecond.Thiscreatedalaginthebasemapbeingannotated.Thiswasthenresetto5secondswhichprovedexactintracingthevehicleaccordingtoitsspeed.AscomparedtotheROMDASrecommendedspeed,theaveragespeedofthevehicleforthesampledatasetis56.535km/hr.ThisclearlyshowsthatthetechnologyadvocatedisstillwithintheguidelinesofthewelldocumentedandrecognizedROMDAStechnology.Acompari-sonoftheROMDASandthislowcostGITtechnologyissummarizedinTable3-2.

3.2.1 Challenges and their effects

ThislowcostGITtechnologyisnotwithoutchallenges.Itisaffectedmainlybythreeissues;Rainfall-sincethecamerasareclampedoutsidethevehicle,nosurveycanbedoneduringtherain, -extremesunshineespeciallywiththeSonymodifiedcamera.Thiswasirrespectiveofthefiltersused.Moderationofspeedwasalsoofconcerncon-sideringthefactthatitismajorlydonebythedriverofthevehicle.

Table 3‑2: Comparison between the Traditional ROMDAS and the GIT Based Technology

Compari-son param-

eterROMDAS Augmented technology

Calibration• Odometer,Bumpinte-

gratorandvideocamera(tweaksandadjustmentsforframespersec,autofocusdisabled.)arepriorcalibrated

• Seefilterplacementundermethodology,• Fullychargedbattery,• Readilyavailablememoryspace

LocationReferencing

• Mainlyperformedasanindependentactivity.

• LRPsdefinedanddocumentedpriortothesurvey

• Sectionslinksandnodesdecideduponpriortothesurvey,

• LRperformedduringthesurvey,Pic-turesofreferencepointstakentogetherwithnarrationatstartandendofvideo-log,

• LRPannotationsmadeonthemap

Speed • Maintainedat<=60km • Managedbythedriverdependingonfirmnessofthedigitalcameras.

• Averagefortheseparticularsurveyswas56.535Km/hr

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Collecteddata

Speed,IRI,GPSlocations,video-log,etc.

• GPSlocations,speed• Video-log,i.e.Visualsurfacecondition

ofcrackingandpotholing• Transverseprofile• Trafficdensity-canbeobservedfrom

thevideo-log

Thesnapshotinfigure3-8isofthesamelocationasthatoffigure3-7.Thelogoffigure3-7wascapturedinthemorningwithaclearday’ssky.Thatoffigure3-8wascapturedon the samedaybutafter some rain in theafternoon.Notice thatvideosfrombothcamerasregisterbetterimagerywithaclearsky.Therealcolorimagehow-evershowslimitedcontrast.FortheIRimage,thelogcapturedshortlyaftertherainisremarkablyofbetterclaritythantheonecapturedduringhighrisesunshine.Thisjustifiestheneedfortheextragreyfilterespeciallyatmaximumsunshine.Thespectralnatureoflightisknowntoinfluenceimagingandimageproperties.Itisthereforerec-ommendedthatforthebestvideo-log,thesunshouldnotbehighabovethehorizon,forwheninthatposition,thesunlightsdirectlyintothepotholeslimitingcontrastsinthecapturedvideo.Althoughthedifferencesaresometimesnegligible,betterimagesareproducedintheearlymorningsorlaterintheevenings.Eveniftrafficcountsarerecommendablewiththistechnology,itisadvisabletosurveyatlowtraffictimestoallowformorevisibilityoftheroadcondition.

a) Real color image b) IR image

Figure 3‑8a&b: The same section of Bujagali road as in figure 3‑7, captured after rainfall

3.2.2 Sony HDR CX 520 VE and Canon HF 11 cameras compared

Themajordifferencebetweenthetwocameraproductswasasaresultoftheimagestabilizing system.TheSonyhas a farbetteroptical image stabilizing system.Bothweremountedatthesameholder,theSonyevenfurtherout,whichwouldmeanmoremovementinbumps.However,thevehiclebumpingaffectedthecanoncameramuchmorethantheSonycamera.Additionally,theSonyhasanadvantageoftheinbuiltGPSshowingthecoordinateswhenplayedfromthecamera.Despiteitspoorimagestability,thecanonHF11hasthebestimagequalityavailable.Inthiscase,thesensi-

   

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tivityofacameraisinverselyproportionaltoitsimagestability.ItrecordsoninternalRAM32GigaByte,alternativelyonaSDcardwhichgivesmorehoursoffilmingandquitelongbatterytime.Arecommendationfortheimagestabilitywouldbe,tomountthecameras1.attherearofthevehicleor2.atthewindshield,asmuchaspossibletowardstherotationalcentreofthevehicletominimizetheengine’sbumpingeffect.

InNovember2010,MicrosoftreleasedtheKinectXbox360videogameconsole.Nu-merousdevelopersareresearchingpossibleapplicationsofKinectthatgobeyondthesystem’sintendedpurposeofplayinggames.TheKinecthas2videorecordingdevices,theRGBcameraand3Dvideosensorswhich isbasicallyscanningthevicinityandproducing depth models. The authors are currently investigating working with thekinecttocapturevisualroadcondition.Withthekinect’sdepthmeasurementpossibil-ity,thesizeandextentofpotholescanbecalculatedforpurposesofestimatingmaterialrequiredforpotholefixing.Thesuggestionistomountitdownwardonthebackofacartoregistersurfaceroughnessoftheroad.Thiscouldevenproducebetterresultsduringthenightastheirritatingsolarradiationtogetherwiththetrafficisobviouslyeliminated.

4 CONCLUSION

Thetechnologyprovidesbothapracticalandflexiblesolutionforkeepinguptodatewithroadinventoryandconditionparameters.Thecapturedvideo-logandGPSdataprovethatthislowcostGITbasedtechnologyisaneffectiveapproachtoinspectingroadpavementconditionandtomappingroadstreetfurnitureandotherimportantfeaturesalongtheroads.Itprovidesforfullvisualandspatialreferencedroadcondi-tion.Thesedetailsarequite importantfordecisionmakingintheplanningofroadmaintenanceworks.ThemainqualityoftheGITmethodologyisthecompleteness,accuracyandeffectivenessofacquiringthefielddatainashorttime.Itsmajorcon-tributionistheabilitytoimmediatelyprovideanmxddocumentofthesurveypathwith annotations explaining the roadparameters as observedduring the survey.Attheproceedingsurveysfromthispreliminaryfinding,incrementintheinformationqualitylevel(IQL)ofthedatacapturedisrecommended.Thisisbecauseforfurtheranalysisontherecommendedsectionsforprioritymaintenance,moretechnicalandin-depthdataanalysisisrequired.Thisresearchproposesdataminingofspatialvideodatabasestofacilitateroutineandperiodicmaintenancedecisions.Additionally,thereareadvancementsincameramodelsonthemarketwhichcanbemodifiedandadoptedforscientificstudies.Amodificationofthevarieties,beyondtheirintendedpurpose,shouldbeconsideredforscientificresearchofthisnature.

Eventhoughdatacollection isconsideredexpensiveandtimeconsuminginseveralroadmanagementstudies,thisvideologgingtechnologylikeallothersiseffectiveinmanagingthischallenge.Sincetheplatform(avehicleinthiscase)carriesallthehard-wareandsoftwareinjustoneroute,then,incompliancewiththeappropriatesam-plinginterval,andtheIQLstandards,allpossibledatathatcanbecollectedshouldbecollectedforeachroute.Whethertousethedatawilleventuallydependonmanage-

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mentrequirementsatthattime.ThisishoweverincontrastwithBennettetal.(2007)’sadvocateforcollectionofonlythedatathatisneededforthepresentpurpose.

5 REFERENCES

Bennett,C.R.,Chamorro,A.,Chen,C.,Solminihac,H.D.&Flintsch,G.W.(2007)DataCol-lectionTechnologiesforRoadManagement.The World Bank, East Asia Pacific Transport Unit, Washington, D. C,Tech.Rep,TRN-30.

Draganivetic,Mihic,S.&Markoski,B.(2010)AugmentedAVIvideofileforroadsurveying.Computers and Electrical Engineering,169–179.

Fawcett,G.A.,Bennett,C.R.&Ollerenshaw,D.G.(2002)FlexibleLow-CostDataCaptureTechnologyForRoadNetworks.Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on Road and Airfield Pavement Technology.MWHNewZealandLtd.

Hunter,P.K.&Porter,H.A.(2005)ROMDASforWindowsUser’sGuide.Data Collection Lim‑ited, Motueka 7161, New Zealand.

Paterson,W.,D.,O.,&Scullion,T.(1990)InformationSystemsforRoadManagement:DraftGuidelinesonSystemDesignandDataIssues.Infrastructure and Urban Development Depart‑ment Report,INU77,TheWorldBank.

Rashid,M.M.&Tsunokawa,K.(2006)PavementConditionSurveyinKagawaPrefectureusingROMDAS.Departmental Bulletin Paper,149-151.

Silva,J.O.F.C.D.,Camargo,P.D.O.&Gallis,R.B.A.(2003)DevelopmentofaLow-CostMobileMappingSystem:ASouthAmericanExperiencePhotogrammetric Record,18,5-26.

Sodikov,J.,Tsunokawa,K.&Ul-Islam,R.(2005)RoadSurveywithROMDASSystem:AStudyinAkitaPrefecture.Departmental Bulletin Paper,149-151.

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Part 4 - CONCLUSION

4.1 Summary and Discussion of the Papers

4.1.1 Paper I

Despitethedigitaldivideintheroadmaintenancesector,stakeholderorganisationslikethenationalroadauthority,theministryandprojectsupportedconsultanciescanalreadybenefitfromtheavailablefreewareandOpenSourcesoftware.Theseorganisa-tionsareequippedwithbasicstaffqualificationstomanipulatecapturedspatialvideoandphotographs tobestvisualize roadconditionwhich isa requirement formain-tenancedecisionmaking.For softwaredevelopers, someof these freewareallowforplug-inswheneverthereisneedtocustomizetheirapplications.Andbesides,theuseofOpenSourcesoftwareisoftenagatewaytomoreadvancedoperationswithenhancedsoftwarecapabilities.

4.1.2 Paper II

ThegapsinGITuseintheRIMsectorhavebeenfoundtobemajorlysocialbutalsotechnicalinnature.Socially,thesegapsinclude;,theinadequateinstitutionalarrange-mentthatshouldallowforlastingpartnershipsandtheabsenceofdatasharingandcollaboration.Technically,GITsarenotintegratedintheworkingproceduresoftheorganizations,therearenostandardsforthegeographicaldataandineffectthiscan-notleadtoacoordinatedGISinfrastructure.Thereisalsolackofadatafoundationat

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nationalandlocallevels.ThelimitationstoaccessingoftheseGITsinRIMinclude;theabsenceofapolicyonthestandarduseofGITs,budgetconstraints,inadequategeospatialcapacityatalllevelsandthedigitaldividebetweentheinvolvedorganiza-tions.OtherthantheprinciplethatorganizationalstandaloneGITusageiscostlyandtimewasting,theapproachtoassessinggapsandlimitationswasbasedontheprincipleofcausality.Thisistheprinciplethateverythingshouldhaveacauseandthatthecausemustprecedeitseffect.Thelimitationsandgapsrelationshipisthereforeacausalityrelationshipwherethelimitationsarethecauseandthegapsaretheeffect.

As the backbone to the gaps and limitations facing the usage of GITs in the roadmaintenance sector is the absenceof apolicy governing custody anduse of spatialdata.ThisabsenceofapolicydoesnotonlyaffectGITusageinRIMbutalsoseveralotherdepartments that relyon theuseof spatialdata throughout thecountry.TheUgandanationalICTpolicyframeworkofMay2002recognisesthatICTplaysabigrole in the stimulationofnational development and globalizationof the economy.However, this ICT policy does not yet recognise the role of geo-information. It isenvisagedthatiftherightpoliciesareinplace,thentheissueslikebudgetandGITinclusionintheworkingproceduresofdepartmentswillbewellcateredfor.Otherwisefornow, theuseofGIS inUganda canbe characterised asuser-orproject-driven,andnotduetoanyspecificgovernmentpolicyimplementation.Thereisnocentralbodychargedwithimplementationormandatetoco-ordinateGISorSDIactivities.UgandahasalottolearnfromtheexperiencesofsomeAfricancountrieslikeEthiopia,Sierra Leone, and South Africa, among others, which have enacted acts for spatialdatainfrastructuredevelopment.Thesecountrieshavegonestepsaheadindevelopingpoliciesforthemanagementandutilizationofgeographicdata.OthercountrieswithrelevantSDIexperienceswhichcouldprovidebestexampleforUgandainclude;NewZealand, Canada, Croatia, EU INSPIRE, Netherlands, Sweden and United Statesof America. These countries have established a wide range of policies, agreements,geodata, institutional frameworks,humanresourcedevelopmentstrategies,financialarrangements and monitoring activities from which Uganda can draw examples todevelopitsNSDI,aninfrastructurethatwilleventuallyboostthedevelopmentofGITusageinallrelevantsectorsinthecountry.Presently,theongoingNSDIinitiativehasmadearecommendationtotheUgandaBureauofStandards(UBOS)togetherwiththeNationalPlanningAuthority(NPA)/theNationalInteragencySpatialDataInfra-structureCommittee(NISDIC)toadoptopenstandardsfortheSDI.Theexistenceofcommonstandardsenablesefficientdataintegrationandexchangeofdataamongstakeholders.SuchthatastheNSDIisyettobeachieved,thesestandardscanstillbeusedbythestandaloneGITuserstofurthertheirknowledgebaseddecisionmakingusingGI.However,therearestillunresolvedissuesontheNSDIfunding,leadership,legalframework,technology,andpolicycoordination.

4.1.3 Paper III

Thedocumentedalgorithmisnondeterministic,meaningthatitisnotsequentialbutiterativeinnature.Thisisbecausethedevisedstrategiesaredependentonandsupport-

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iveofeachother.ThegreatestadvocateistheneedforapolicytobacktheuseofGITsinceitisidentifiedasthebackbonetoallthegapsandlimitationsthatwerefounddominantinthesector.Itisalsonotedthatinthelongrun,GITswouldinselfbeusedinroutinesupportofpolicymakingaspragmaticfromtheiradvantagesoffacilitat-inginformeddecisionmaking.EmbarkingonthediffusionofGITstothecontractorcategoryofthestakeholdersissimilarlyquitefundamentalinthisprocessofenhancingusabilityofGITsinthesector.

ThestandardrequirementswhichcompriseasuccessfulinstitutionalGITmodelarefoundtoinclude;draftedandpassedpoliciesallowingforlongtermuppermanage-mentcommitmenttotheGITundertaking,sufficientallocationofresources,adequatestaffingintermsofnumbersandskills/competencies,timelyandsufficienttrainingandorganizationalcommunicationtosmoothenthetransitiontofullutilization.Datasharingandcollaborationthroughpartnershipsandresearchnetworksbetween;gov-ernmentagencies, researchandtraining institutions, theprivatesectorandthenongovernmentsectorarealsoknowntoboostinstitutionalizationoftechnologyadvance-ments.Thisthenevolvesintothetriplehelixconceptofproblemsolving.Thisconceptinvolvesharnessingandleveragingthecomplementaryexpertiseofacademia,industryandgovernmenttofacilitateinnovationandnovelcollaborativeprocessesforcreativedevelopment.InhiswayforwardcommunicationoftheNDP2010/11-2014/15,thepresidentofUgandaurgedtheprivatesector,thecivilsocietyandacademiatoworkto-getherwiththegovernmentinordertorealizetheobjectivessetintheplan.DuetothecostofmaintainingstandaloneGITinitiatives,theinstitutionalizationofGITsinthesector,aconceptthatrequirespriordiffusionmechanismsforpurposesofbridgingthepresentdigitaldivide,isanapproachthatshouldbeadopted.Internationalcollabora-tionandcooperationbetweendevelopedandundevelopedcountriesalsocomebywithabittolearnfrom.OnadoptionofthedevisedstrategiestoenhanceGITuseinRIM,there will be need to develop effective frameworks for evaluating the utilization ofGITs.Theseframeworkshavebeenfoundcriticaltothelong-termefficiencyofGITs.

4.1.4 Paper IV

Despitethefactthatroadinfrastructuresareconstantlychangingduetovariousfac-tors,therearehardlyanystrategiesforthecontinuousupdatesoftheroadinventoryandconditiondata.Thisisattributedtothecostlyventuresconcerningthedatacol-lectionphaseoftheroadmaintenanceaspect.PaperIVisintroducingalowcostGITbasedmethodologyforroadconditiondatacollectionthatcanbeusedforpreliminarydecisionmaking.Withthismethodology,theideaistoidentifytheroadsectionsthatneedurgentattentionformaintenanceandit’sonlyalongthesesectionsthatindepthdatacollectionandanalysis ismade toplan for roadmaintenance implementation.Inaddition,thefurnitureandarchitectureoftheroadinsurveycanbeupdatedandavailedbothasGPScoordinatesandinformofamapdocument.

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ThemaincharacterofthisproposedlowcostGITmethodologyistheaccuracy,com-pleteness,andeffectivenesswithwhichfielddataiscollected.Theabilitytoprovideamapdocument,alreadyattheendofthesurvey,showingthesectionsofthetargetroadinneedofurgentmaintenanceisamajorcontributionofthetechnology.

ItissuggestedthatinadditiontotheordinaryROMDAShardwareandsoftwareap-plications,excerptsofthismethodologybeincludedtoguidefurtheranalysisofthecollecteddata.ThereishoweveracontrastwithBennetetal.(2007)’sguidelinesondatacollection.Bennetetal.(2007)urgethatbecauseofthecostandeffortsrequiredtocollectroadmanagementdata,onlydatarequiredforthepurposeathandshouldbecollected.However,thistechnologylikeothermobilevideologgingsurveyequip-mentcandootherwise.Dependingonthenumberandsizeofequipment that thesurveyplatformcanhold,itispossibletocollectasmuchdataaspossible.Thestorageandanalysisofthisdatawouldthenbetheconcern.Themethodologyiseffectiveinconductingperiodicandroutinevisualroadinspectionandpresentingittoadmin-istratorswhousuallyperceivemorebyseeingthanreading.Intheconceptionofthistechnology,itisdiscoveredthatthereareavarietyof“good”consumercamerasonthemarketmanyofwhichcouldpossiblybemodifiedforresearchpurposesaswitnessedwiththeSonyHDRCX520VEandKinectxbox360thatwillbeusedinextendingthistechnology.

4.2 Research Contribution

Sustainabledevelopment inUganda is guidedby adherence to theMDGsand theNationalDevelopmentPlan(NDP)2010/11–2014/15ofUganda.Thisresearchisalignedwithgoal8oftheMDGswhichstrivestomakeavailablethebenefitsofnewtechnologies,especiallyinformationandcommunicationstechnologiesindevelopingaglobalpartnershiptodevelopment.Unlessinitiatedatalocallevelachievingglobaldevelopmentisratherdifficult.EnhancingGITuseinthetransportsectorisabottomupapproachtowardsavailingaccessibilitytoICTforsustainabledevelopment.Objec-tive5oftheNDPofUgandaistopromotescience,technology,innovationandICTtoenhancecompetitiveness.ThisresearchisaddressingthelowapplicationofscienceandtechnologykeybindingconstraintoftheNDP.

Apparently, research in the road maintenance sector is yet to tackle various waysinwhichGITs canbeused to further theirperformance asdecision support tools.Throughthisresearchhowever,ithasbeenbroughttobookthegapsandlimitationsthatarechallengingtheinstitutionalizationofGITintheroadinfrastructuremain-tenance division. It has created an awareness of the potential of GITs in the RIMthroughinteractionwithstakeholdersinthesectorandpresentationofresearchfind-ingsandprogressatacoupleofconferences.

AnondeterministicalgorithmicframeworkfortheaccentuationofGITusageinroadinfrastructuremaintenanceinUgandahasbeenrecommended.Inthismodel,strate-giesaregivenforwhichtheRIMsectorcanpursueinordertoadoptinstitutionaliza-tionofGIT.

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Itisobviousthatenormousamountofmoneyisrequiredtomaintainuptodatedatainventoryoftheconditionofroadssoastokeepabreastwiththerightmaintenancerequired decisions. This research proposed a low cost GIT based methodology forpreliminaryRIMdecisionsupport.Insteadofundertakingtheroutineroadcondi-tiondatacollectionforevery2-3oreven5yearsdependingontheclassofroad,thistechnologyservestoindicatewhichsectionsofroadsrequireurgentmaintenanceat-tention.Itisthenforthesesections,thatindepthdatacollectionandanalysisshouldproceed.

4.3 Way Forward

Eventhoughacoupleofpapershavebeenpublishedabouttheongoingresearch,thereare analyses that are accomplishedduring the forthcoming stages of the remainingPhD.studies.

1. TheGISanalysesontheindependentmappingoftheroadsvisaviewhatisbeingusedforroadmaintenanceisstillon-going.Indepthanalysisoftheseindepend-entlycollecteddataisstillrequired

2. Thedynamicsegmentationdatamodelhasbeenrecommendedforroadmainte-nancedataoftheRIMdivision.Aprototypemodelistobedevelopedandtestedwiththedivision’sdatainUganda.

3. Aworkshopisplanned(seesection1.5.5)whereapresentationtotheparticipantsshallbemadeoftheframeworkdevelopmentsto-date.Theintentionistohaveafullyparticipatoryapproachtotheframeworkdevelopmentbyhavingamorestakeholderinvolvementintheresearch.Thedevelopedframeworkhasevolvedwithconsultationwithjustarepresentativefraction(athird(1/3)ofthestakeholdersintheRIMsector.Forthisnatureofdevelopmenthowever,inputfromagenerouslyproportionedstakeholdercommunityishighlyrecommended.

4. Manuscriptsdealingwiththefollowingsubjectsarepresentlyunderpreparation; i.Thenatureandrequirementsforroadmaintenancedata,

ii.Thedynamicsegmentationprototypedatamodel, ii.Detailedguidelinestoimplementthedevelopedframework

4.4 Final Remarks

BasingontheobjectivesandresearchquestionsthatweresetforthePhDresearch,theresearchhassofarmanagedto,establishthegapsandlimitationsintheGITusageforRIM,recognisethesuperiorityoftheGIS-TdynamicsegmentationdatamodelforroadmaintenancedataanddevelopthealgorithmicframeworkforaccentuationofGITinRIM.Additionallybutnotdirectlyinlinewiththeresearchobjectives,alowcostGIS-Tdatacollectionmethodologyforpreliminaryroadmaintenancedecisionsupporthasbeencommended.ThistechnologyistobeextendedusingtheMicrosoft’sKinectXbox360videogameconsoletogobeyondthekinect’sintendedpurposeofplayinggames.Similarly,thereisneedtodevelopaprototypedynamicsegmentation

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datamodelforroadmaintenancedatainthecountry.Itisalsoarequirementtofurtherharmonisethedevelopedframeworkwithamorerepresentativefractionofstakehold-ers andother researchers in the sector throughaworkshop tobe scheduled induecourse.Inaddition,anexpansionontheguidelinesfortheRIMorganisationstoadaptthisalgorithmicframeworkispending.

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