DAVe – Open Source Traffic Count Analysis for Modern Mobility Management

Urban mobility planning depends on reliable traffic data and intuitive analysis tools. DAVe (Database and Evaluation of Traffic Counts) is an open-source platform developed by the Mobility Department of the City of Munich to manage, evaluate, and visualize traffic counting data. The software enables municipalities, transport planners, and mobility departments to analyze traffic flows, monitor long-term developments, and support data-driven infrastructure planning.

DAVe has been designed for professional traffic engineering workflows and currently manages data from more than 2,000 counting stations in Munich. The platform supports the evaluation of all traffic counts conducted since 1989 and provides multiple visualization methods for detailed analysis.

Key Features of DAVe

Centralized Traffic Count Management

DAVe provides a unified platform for storing and managing traffic count data from temporary and permanent counting stations. New counting locations can be created directly within the application and coordinated with external counting service providers.

Interactive Map-Based Navigation

Traffic counting stations are displayed on an interactive map interface, enabling planners and analysts to quickly locate and access measurement points across the city network.

The following image shows DAVe Frontend with an overview of all available counting data.

Advanced Traffic Flow Visualization

One of DAVe’s core capabilities is the graphical visualization of turning movements and directional traffic flows through detailed intersection diagrams (“Knotenstromdiagramme”). These diagrams provide an immediate overview of traffic distribution by direction and vehicle category, supporting infrastructure planning and traffic engineering decisions.

This image shows an example for a node stream diagram for an intersection.

The system differentiates between multiple traffic participant groups including:

  • Passenger cars
  • Heavy vehicles
  • Buses
  • Cyclists
  • Additional transport categories

Temporal Traffic Analysis

DAVe also provides detailed temporal traffic analyses using line charts and time-series visualizations. These diagrams help identify traffic peaks, daily movement patterns, and long-term trends across different vehicle types.

The following diagram shows an example for a condensed traffic distribution over time and type.

Reporting and Export Functions

Analysis results can be exported as PDF reports for documentation, stakeholder communication, and planning processes. This simplifies the integration of traffic analysis into municipal reporting workflows.

Open Source Architecture

DAVe follows a modern open-source architecture and is released under the MIT license. The application is built using:

  • Java Spring Boot in the backend
  • TypeScript and Vue.js in the frontend
  • ElasticSearch for high-performance search and real-time suggestions
  • Relational databases for traffic measurement data
  • Kubernetes and Helm Charts for deployment and operations

The visualization of traffic flows is implemented using SVG-based rendering technologies to provide scalable and interactive diagrams.

Open Source Collaboration

The project is actively maintained as an open-source initiative by the City of Munich and is publicly available on GitHub. Interested municipalities and organizations can contribute feature requests, improvements, and bug fixes through the community-driven development process. DAVe is already being used beyond Munich, including within mobility projects in the City of Wolfsburg.

Benefits for Municipalities and Mobility Projects

DAVe enables cities and mobility agencies to:

  • Digitize and centralize traffic counting workflows
  • Analyze multimodal traffic developments
  • Support evidence-based urban mobility planning
  • Evaluate infrastructure measures
  • Improve transparency through graphical reporting
  • Operate a fully open-source and extensible platform

With increasing demands for sustainable urban mobility and data-driven transport planning, DAVe provides a robust foundation for modern traffic analysis and mobility management.

Further Information