topic Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values? in Transportation Questions

How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Thu, 03 Nov 2016 00:47:27 GMT

I have a polyline layer for State Highways and a polygon layer of Urban Areas. I need to create a points layer where the highways intersect the boundaries of the Urban Areas.

Also, the highways layer has Postmile values in it. When I create the "boundary points" layer, I need to have updated Postmile values.

For example: If I have a Highway with Begin Postmile = 0 and End Postmile = 19, if the Highway intersects the boundary of the Urban Area at 6, then my Points layer should have fields looking like this:

BEGIN END

0 6

6 10

I have done something similar using another software but I'd like to think its simpler in ArcGIS.

Thanks,

Dan B

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

JoeBorgione — Thu, 03 Nov 2016 11:40:05 GMT

You might want to take a look at linear referencing for your highway layer.

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

Anonymous User — Thu, 03 Nov 2016 13:58:00 GMT

I think there is an easy answer to this. You can use the tool "Locate Features on Route" to generate an event table like you describe. Locate Features Along Routes—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop

After you create the event table you can render it as points using the Begin measure. You could also render it as line events using both the BEGIN and END measures.

If your polyline is not currently a route (it has measures (M values) on the coordinates) then you can turn it into a route using the "Create Routes" tool. Create Routes—Help | ArcGIS for Desktop

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Mon, 07 Nov 2016 22:34:47 GMT

Joe,

Please see attached. I was able to split segments for the Routes into

Urban and Rural sections and was able to Aggregate the Route segments, but

the problems now are how to have the correct begin/end measures at the

intersection points (created intersection points with other software).

Thanks,

Daniel Brenner

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Tue, 08 Nov 2016 20:07:55 GMT

Locate Features along Routes is manual and not efficient for what I need

help with.

If I can aggregate segments and then break them up into Urban and Rural

Segments, I am 2/3 of the way there.

What I need to do is re-calculate (Calibrate?) the routes so that the

Begin/End measures are for the segments from begin-end from Boundary

INTERSECTION POINT TO BOUNDARY INTERSECTION POINT.

How do I get the Routes layer to do this ?

When I found out how to split the lines between rural and urban areas, the

fields that came up were for the Cities boundary layer or ? and not for the

Polyline layer (postmiles).

Thanks,

Daniel T. Brenner

RESEARCH ANALYST I (GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS)

DIVISION OF RESEARCH, INNOVATION, and SYSTEM INFORMATION

Highway System Information and Performance

1120 N Street MS 38

Sacramento, CA 95814

(916) 657-4277

(510) 593-7547 cell

daniel.brenner@dot.ca.gov

“Consider the unconsidered.”

“Certainty is not a sure thing!”

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

JoeBorgione — Tue, 08 Nov 2016 21:12:07 GMT

I'm a little confused here: You say you have created intersections with another software package. Since I have no idea what that package is, I'm not able to comment, but if you have the points, they can become events along your route. Do you want the start the counter over again every time a route passes from urban to rural etc? If that's the case, I guess you would need to consider each segment (rural, urban, rural, urban etc) it's own route and calibrate it as such.

I'm no expert on Linear Referencing, but the cool thing about routes is you don't have to physically split it at various locations, you just keep the route flowing, and calibrate it as needed.

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Thu, 10 Nov 2016 08:12:02 GMT

Tom,

Thank you for this, I will give it a try, but the heart of the matter is that once I was to/would be able to create new routes based on this tool, how can I get the correct Postmile Values at where the line intersects the boundary of the polygon?

(imagine 5 and 10 as polygon borders)

BEG END

0 5

5 10

10 15

0----------------------------------5\---------------------------10\------------------------15

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

Anonymous User — Mon, 14 Nov 2016 14:45:32 GMT

Daniel,

That's where the Locate Features along Routes tool comes in. Check out the documentation on it in the link from my previous post. It does exactly what you are looking for. At lest I think it does.

Tom

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Mon, 14 Nov 2016 18:42:57 GMT

Tom,

I know you're doing what you can, but for now look at my attachments again:

Forget that I used another software to create a Points layer of boundary

points (where the polyline intersects the polygon boundary).

The illustrations show the differences between what I have right now (a

polyline layer with a number of segments with individual measurement

values) and what I need (a polyline layer of one segment length.

For now, I have used Linear Referencing tools but I am only getting the

current begin and end points of each segment; I need to have the values

based on where the polyline intersects the polygon boundary---ideally with

an automated procedure.

I essentially have a 3 part procedure for a segments layer that has 2500

segments:

1) A polyline feature that has segments with measurements. I need to

aggregate the segments into one segment with a total length of X?

2) Break the newly aggregated polyline find the (new) point measures for

where the new polyline segment intersects the boundary of the polygon .

3) My points layer database needs to have fields indicating the prior

segment's Begin Point and the End point values.

*****************

I have tried the tools in Linear Referencing, but haven't been able to find

the tool/tools that work. For example, the one tool that aggregates the

segments doesn't give me the fields I need--Begin and End point measures

for the segments, just the ID fields for the polylines (??).

Hope this helps.

Daniel Brenner

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Mon, 14 Nov 2016 18:48:21 GMT

Joe:

I know you're doing what you can, but for now look at my attachments again:

Forget that I used another software to create a Points layer of boundary

points (where the polyline intersects the polygon boundary).

The illustrations show the differences between what I have right now (a

polyline layer with a number of segments with individual measurement

values) and what I need (a polyline layer of one segment length), and then

creating new measurement values based on the new segment.

I have a polyline layer with 2500 segments; Locate Measures is a manual

procedure that is very time consuming. I need an automated procedure.

For now, I have used Linear Referencing tools but I am only getting the

current begin and end points of each segment; I need to aggregate the

current measures into one composite measure and then create a layer of

points with measurement values based on the new segment's values.

1) A polyline feature that has segments with measurements. I need to

aggregate the segments into one segment with a total length of X?

2) Break the newly aggregated polyline find the (new) point measures for

where the new polyline segment intersects the boundary of the polygon .

3) My points layer database needs to have fields indicating the prior

segment's Begin Point and the End point values.

*****************

I have tried the tools in Linear Referencing, but haven't been able to find

the tool/tools that work. For example, the one tool that aggregates the

segments doesn't give me the fields I need--Begin and End point measures

for the segments, just the ID fields for the polylines (??).

Have you used the Linear Referencing tools?

Thanks,

Daniel Brenner

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

JoeBorgione — Mon, 14 Nov 2016 19:22:48 GMT

See my post from 11/8 in particular the line that states : I'm no expert on Linear Referencing....

No I haven't used the tools. I can't answer your questions; I only was able to offer you the (free) advice at the very beginning. I think Tom has provided you with some solid information as well. If you need specific guidance and help with this project, I suggest you contact ESRI Tech Support.

Best of luck.

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

Anonymous User — Wed, 16 Nov 2016 14:19:00 GMT

Daniel,

I have looked at your illustration again and I am sticking with my recommendation. Here is the process I recommend.

1. Create Linear Referencing routes out of your segments. Use the Create Routes tool that I mentioned before for this. For the "measure_source" you will use the TWO_FIELDS option and specify the two fields in your segments that have your from and to measures. This will produce a linear referencing routes where the coordinates have the measure values (x,y,m). Your measures will not be displayed in fields like they are in the segments because they are stored on the coordinates. You can use this route layer for other linear referencing functions.

2. Use the Locate Features Along Routes tool to overlay your Polygons onto the routes you created in step 1. The polygon layer will be your "in_features" and he route layer will be your "in_routes". The result of this will be a table that has the route ID as well as a From and a To measure field. The From Measure field will have the first measure where the polygon touches the route and the To measure will be the second.

3. In ArcMap or ArcGIS Pro use the Make Route Event Layer tool. For your route features you will use the routes you created in step #1 and for the Input Events you will use the table that was created in step #2. You will create point events using the To Measure field that you specified in step #2. The result will be an point layer that will have the measure that the polygon instersected the routes as well as a From Measure (Begin Point) where the polygon first intersected the routes. If you want an actual point dataset you can export this layer out to a new feature class.

Another option is to render the events as lines with the from and to measure but that is not what you originally asked for.

I hope this helps.

Tom

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Thu, 17 Nov 2016 18:41:47 GMT

Joe:

It is 10:40 am PST as I write and I will be in the office in the next hour

or so. What Time Zone are you in?

Daniel Brenner

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Thu, 17 Nov 2016 18:42:59 GMT

Tom:

MANY APOLOGIES as I have had another GIS person named JOE who has given

feedback on my problem as well!

It is 10:40 am PST as I write and I will be in the office in the next hour

or so. What Time Zone are you in?

Daniel Brenner

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Fri, 18 Nov 2016 02:11:46 GMT

TOM:

I tried your procedure on both a 'segmented' layer and an 'aggregated'

layer (each segment is one whole line, although the Begin Measures = 0

aren't always correct for a SHS System), and long story short, the best

result was when I used the Segmented layer and came up with the segments

that you see in the jpg.

1) Why is it there are only segments on the inside for the Events layer

and not on the outside?

2) Why is it that if there is a gap between polygons, the beginning value

of one segment is NOT = value of the last segment?

I should say that the values for the segments that are in polygons next to

each other are nice to see, although I am curious if the values were

calculated against the Odometer values and not the Postmiles?

I might be able to edit the values in the segments layer but I'd like to

think I wouldn't have to?

Dan

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

Anonymous User — Fri, 18 Nov 2016 14:46:38 GMT

1. The tool is designed to create events where the routes intersect polygons. So you won't get events where you don't have polygons. I didn't realize that your polygons had gaps in them. One way to get the result you want is to create events that cover the full extent of routes and then overlay the events (using the Overlay Route Events tool) that you have here (just under the polygons) with those events. I created a simple tool that creates events that cover routes here: http://www.arcgis.com/home/item.html?id=61ac9c2b884244ef8499049f6e3cac52 . Check out the tool "Create Events Covering Routes".

2. I think this has to do with how you calibrated your routes. The events that get generated are going to equal the measures you have on the routes at those locations.

Your last question is about Odometer or Postmile. I have worked with the postmile system and it is a different animal from an LRS perspective. To use these tools with Postmile measures you have to generate Route IDs that mimic the prefix and suffix values that you have in your measure fields. So instead of route 1 from 13r to 15r you might have 1r from 13 to 15. Then after you generate your new event tables that have 1r from 13 to 15 you could calculate them back to route 1 from 13 to 15. I'm not sure what your approach here. I'm just trying to give you some suggestions that might help.

Good luck.

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Fri, 18 Nov 2016 20:39:45 GMT

Tom:

Thanks again and again for all your time on responding to my questions. I

do want to emphasize that I appreciate it and given what I am learning

makes me have an appetite for Application Development, which is something I

don't normally embrace.

For now:

What do you mean by being uncertain of what my approach is? Do you mean

how to determine the Postmile prefixes and suffixes for the Postmiles at

the intersections?

Because they aren't a part of the calculations, I have an icky feeling that

determining prefixes and suffixes might be manual?

**********************

IS there a particular Directory location I should put the Tool in for

installation? I will try to run the tool from my Project folder but I have

a sense I should have it in my ESRI folder?

RE: Postmiles: The values that I saw for them were smaller than Odometer

measures, so initially the end results seemed higher (Odometer values) than

Postmiles so that was where my concern was.

I did the procedure again and the values looked slightly better but if

you're saying there is a way to get the correct measures that are Postmile

based then I am open to it.

Would it help if I sent you the data sets I am working with?

Daniel Brenner

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Fri, 18 Nov 2016 23:03:50 GMT

See attached.

Please clarify.

Thank you.

Daniel Brenner

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanielBrenner — Fri, 18 Nov 2016 23:11:36 GMT

See attached.

I am curious if this is equivalent to the new Begin and End values after a

polyline layer's segments have been aggregated?

And also, if a polyline begins with a measure other than 0, is it possible

to maintain that as a beginning value?

Thanks,

Daniel

Re: How do I create a boundary points layer with updated Highway Postmile values?

DanPatterson_Retired — Fri, 18 Nov 2016 23:33:12 GMT

The error message is for the field name being too long. Is the destination file a shapefile by chance?