TDS sets sights on Hamburg wim test

First published in Intertraffic Innovation News - May 5, 2020

Traffic Data Systems (TDS) wants to complete a direct enforcement test site using its weigh in motion (WIM) system in Hamburg, Germany. “The city of Hamburg is the first cooperation partner in Germany to demonstrate a WIM system for direct enforcement,” explains TDS CEO Florian Weiss.

The authorities are currently using the TDS solution to calculate the maintenance required on an old three-lane motorway bridge. “They needed a WIM system to see truck activity,” he continues. “Police use it as a pre-selection device at a nearby rest area. So the system is installed and currently used for statistical and pre-selection applications.”

At present, there are two lines of sensors per lane – but three independent measurements are needed for enforcement/tolling. “An extra array of sensors can be installed when the city of Hamburg gives the go-ahead,” Weiss says. At that point, a gantry, ANPR cameras, laser scanners and road weather information systems shall also be installed.

“Any WIM system for enforcement and/or tolling applications needs to be certified and tested according to the OIML R134-1 standard,” he adds. The OIML certification of the TMCS-IP will again be carried out at a test track in Germany. Weiss says he hopes the system will be ready in May 2021, which means delegates at next year’s ITS World Congress in Hamburg will be able to see it in operation for themselves.