TranStat: an intelligent system for producing road and maritime transport statistics using big data sources

Abstract

The development of digital technologies, increasing the availability of big data and advanced processing techniques have enabled Statistics Poland to modernise the system for producing road and maritime transport statistics. As a result of the activities undertaken to adopt modern big data technologies and data from sensors, e.g. the Automatic Identification System (AIS) or the e-TOLL electronic toll collection system, new statistics have been obtained and data dissemination has accelerated. In addition, these activities ensure continuity in data production, especially in situations where collecting data from individuals may be difficult (e.g. the COVID-19 epidemic). The primary purpose of this article is to present the innovative TranStat system that enables the production of road and maritime transport statistics based on large volumes of data in order to shape the country’s transport policy. The system was developed under the GOSPOSTRATEG programme and implemented by Statistics Poland, the Statistical Office in Szczecin, the Maritime University of Szczecin, and the Cracow University of Technology. The study presents the most important aspects of the TranStat system, i.e. the characteristics of data sources, the description of functional subsystems, assumptions of the developed models and result data for traffic statistics, transport performance and exhaust emissions calculations for both types of transport. This study also provides information on smart forms implemented by Polish official statistics, reducing the burden on respondents and the costs of surveys.