Category Archives: transportation safety

Lege Trend. Regulatory Trend. Procurement Opportunity. Smart Stoplights. Red Light Cameras Meet Minority Report

What are smart stoplights?

  • networked traffic lights
  • connected to video cameras
  • respond quickly to changing traffic conditions
  • prioritize signals for emergency vehicles
  • make crossings safer for cyclists and pedestrians

The Vendor: Miovision

Testing grounds: 5 intersections in Detroit

Governing | These Smarter Stoplights Could Be Lifesavers

Anatomy of the Mile High Cities Response to Electric Scooters

Denver has responded to electric scooter proliferation by:

  • removing scooters that are blocking sidewalks and other public spaces
  • developing new rules to regulate electric scooters
  • public safety is the paramount concern
  • coordination with its bike share program

Government Tech | Denver Scrambles to Respond to Sudden Appearance of Electric Scooter-Share Fleet 

Regulatory TREND. Rules for Self Driving Taxis in the Golden Poppy State. 3 Key Elements.

California Public Utilities Commission adopted new rules for self-driving taxis, and the key points are:

  • The 1st pilot program will be for at least 90 days and allow:
    • “Transportation Charter-Party  (TCP) Carrier permit-holders to add test autonomous vehiclesto their passenger carrier equipment statement, where the TCP permit-holder also holds an Autonomous Vehicle Tester Program Manufacturer’s Testing Permit (AV Testing Permit) issued by the DMV, including where the service is provided free…

Local TREND. Anatomy of a Driverless Taxi Rollout. Where. What. How.

City: Phoenix Area

Self Driving Taxi Proposal: 

  • Waymo is proposing an autonomous taxi service in 100 square miles in metro Phoenix
  • In preparation, Waymo testing has:
    • driven on public roads for more than 5 million miles
    • traveled five billion miles in computer simulation

Response to the autonomous driving fatality in Phoenix: Waymo CEO John Krafcik said his company’s technology could have avoided the incident

KTAR News | Waymo plans for 100-square-mile driverless taxi service in Phoenix…

Connecting a State's Large Cities Roads Trains and Planes. Anatomy of the Bill in the Cherokee Rose State

Georgia is considering HB 134 (2018) that will:

  • Allows voters in 13 metro counties  to vote on a 1-cent sales tax
  • Allocates $100 million to expand transit
  • Create the Atlanta-region Transit Link with a 16 member board that will:
    • Serve the needs of hardworking Georgians
    • Respond to the demands of our employers and workforce
    • Reduce traffic congestion

13WMAZ | What does Georgia’s new transportation bill mean for you? 

Repealing Vehicle Inspections. Anatomy of the Bill in the White Hawthorn Blossom State.

State: Missouri

The bill to repeal mandatory vehicle inspections: HB 1444

Missouri’s HB 1444 (2018) is authored by :  a Republican 

Opposition:  Missouri’s AAA which says inspections are a plank in traffic safety

Supporters say:  

  • 34 states do not have mandatory inspections
  • There is no causal link between inspections and traffic fatality rates

KTTS 94.7 | Bill In Legislature Would Do Away With Vehicle Inspections 

6 Points Self Driving & Auto Pilot Car Legislation

Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety are calling for self driving car/ autonomous vehicle legislation that:

  • mandatory “vision test”to test what a vehicle’s different sensors actually see
  • a bill should also cover cover semi-automated systems like Tesla’s autopilot

Other advocates are calling for legislation that also:

  • require vehicles to meet performance targets
  • greater manufacturer transparency, including data from makers and operators of the vehicles
  • increased  monitoring of and…