NYC thinks it has found a way to speed up traffic in midtown. They use a program called “Midtown in Motion” that uses cameras and sensors to measure the traffic in real-time so engineers can adjust traffic lights wherever there are bottlenecks thus improving the traffic flow in real-time.
The program now relies on 100 sensors, 32 cameras and E-ZPass readers at more than 20 intersections between Second and Sixth avenues. The planned expansion of the “Midtown in Motion” will widen the coverage from First to Ninth avenues and speed the reaction times to manage the program more effectively. The program is now about one year old and cars are getting through midtown 10% faster.
The cities high-tech system is the wave of the future. This kind of electronic systems can be put in every city to help with the traffic jams. But it is not enough. To reform this real-time technology into a smart technology, a lot more needs to happen.
They could for example create a system where the traffic lights are automatically adjusted according to the data they receive from the sensors and cameras. This would make the real-time aspect even more efficient. And building on the use of sensors to decrease traffic jams in the cities, sensors could also be used in parking spots. A lot of people in NYC circle blocks looking for a parking spot. Sensors could pick up where a spot is free and give this data to the drivers through smartphones or other smart technologies.
In the future, a lot of new, innovative and interesting technologies will make life for people living in cities easier. And a lot of these smart, real-time technologies will have something to do with traffic and transportation, since this is a big problem in a lot of big cities.
Real Time Cities 