Automatic vehicle monitoring: A tool for vehicle fleet operations

Automatic vehicle monitoring (AVM) is an electronic means of gathering data and effecting command and control over a land vehicle fleet. While data on vehicle location are required for effective control, such systems are totally dependent upon refiable dedicated communications systems. By presenting a dispatcher or computer with information on each vehicle's location, decisions concerning the fleet's dispersion and operational readiness can be made. The Department of Transportation's Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA) is developing such a system which will be evaluated in actual transit operations and offers potential application in traffic control operations.