Statewide Vehicle Bluetooth Data Collection

The State of Florida has strategically invested in seaport, highway and intermodal improvements over the last decade. To ensure those investment decisions are supported by the best available data, MARLIN and FDOT are engaged in a Statewide Vehicle Bluetooth Data Collection project.

MARLIN deployed a state-of-the-art system of Bluetooth monitoring devices at strategically located points across the state and seaport access points to observe increases and shifts in freight flows. The results of this effort provide information related to vehicle trips and lengths, origins/destinations, and speeds and travel times that are valuable for reliable freight and transportation modeling. When merged with existing state traffic data, comparisons reveal gaps in that data.

It may also provide base year information for annual monitoring that will allow the Department to assess growth and shifts in markets and plan for further strategic investment, which is particularly important given the anticipated Panama Canal expansion and its impact on Florida’s ports and the movement of freight.

The information generated from this project and its analyses will set the basis for future seaport/freight strategic planning, investment, and performance measurements of vehicle movement throughout the State of Florida. This project is expected to take approximately five months to complete.