Next time you’re traveling along the highway or through a neighborhood, take a moment to observe the road closely. You might notice black cables carefully laid out on the ground. While driving over them is perfectly safe, have you ever wondered what purpose they serve?
These black cables are known as road tubes, and they play a crucial role in helping local transportation agencies gather vital information about traffic patterns in an area.
Placed inconspicuously to minimize disruption, road tubes work by detecting the air pressure changes caused when a vehicle’s tire passes over them. This air pressure variation is then transmitted through the rubber tubing to an on-site counter, which records the data.
After a designated period, the collected data is analyzed to determine various traffic metrics, such as vehicle count, peak traffic times, and even vehicle class, speed, and direction when pairs of tubes are used together.
This valuable information enables transportation agencies to make informed decisions regarding speed limits, signage updates, and other traffic management measures as needed.