Virtual mapping helps city improve road asset management

A virtual mapping platform is helping a Queensland city council improve its road asset management.

Logan City Council is using online mapping platform Mapillary to turn street-level images into detailed virtual road networks.

The system’s “open data format” allows users to contribute or download images from any device at any time, giving it more up-to-date information than other platforms, according to the council.

It can also identify features such as pavement, kerbs and channels, signs, footpaths, lights, line markings and guard rails.

Already, the council has uploaded 4.4 million images to the site, covering over 2250 km of the city’s sealed roads.

Logan City Council Acting Roads Director Daryl Ross said it was an efficient way of capturing and examining large amounts of data.

“Logan City Council handles a vast local road network,” Ross said.

“This system is another tool we can use to track any issues that arise and use resources where needed."

Council staff will continue uploading data to Mapillary using vehicle-mounted cameras.

The system publishes content after blurring any private information that may have been captured, including faces and number plates, the council said.

Image: Logan city's virtual road network. Courtesy: Logan City Council via Mapillary.