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18 Big Data Analytics for Connected Vehicles and Smart Cities Questions to Be Addressed 19

the technology. That’s why the concept of the project is so important within
transportation because it’s focused, it has objectives, it has structure, and it has
a clearly defined set of questions to be addressed. Projects can also be scheduled
and budgeted accurately. It is not a question of avoiding the identification and
definition of the answers and solutions. That will indeed come in Chapters 6
and 9, which discuss how to build a data lake and the nature of analytics. As
a starting point, Sections 2.6–2.8 explore the questions that can be addressed.
Defining the questions also begins the thought process on another impor-
tant aspect of the organizational framework that will support big data and ana-
lytics within the organization. Within private sector organizations, there is typi-
cally one or more business analyst focused on the use of data and the extraction
of information to improve the performance of the business. Typically, this type
of role is less prominent within transportation organizations, as their primary
focus is on planning, designing, delivering, maintaining, and operating trans-
portation services. While information technology plays a significant role in the
modern transportation world, the use of data and the extraction of value from
data is still an emerging subject. Accordingly, it is hoped that these questions
will also start the discussion within transportation enterprises on who will be
responsible for big data and analytics and how this role will fit within the overall
context of the organization. In addition, questions assist us in defining what
we are trying to achieve. Furthermore, questions can have a powerful effect by
focusing thought and subsequent actions. For example, when my discussions
with one client had initially focused on the virtues of big data and analytics, I
suggested that a transportation data lake be created and that transportation data
analytics capabilities be acquired to enable data discovery. After several minutes,
the client asked the following question: “Can you relate all this terminology
to performance management or active arterial management because these sub-
jects are addressed in the current work program and are eligible for funding?”
This not only illustrates the power of a question, it also highlights the fact that
concepts, no matter how good they are, must fit within the current needs of
the organization and, moreover, should align with current organizational mo-
mentum. Given that procurement cycles and planning for the implementation
of new technologies are relatively long in the public sector, it is a good idea
for transportation agencies to continue with ongoing initiatives. These can be
supplemented and enhanced to achieve the same effect as a radical departure.
Another purpose of questions is to help transportation agencies to identify a
suitable starting point that relates to current challenges. The starting point must
also fit exactly with organizational momentum regarding preexisting plans. In
other words, they need to tackle previously identified business problems for
which big data and data analytics solutions have not been considered.
Before beginning the exploration of the 20 big questions, let’s consider
four questions that are extremely valuable in considering transportation as a