San Jose bus speeds improved by 20 percent after the city deployed a traffic signal prioritization system developed by the tech firm LYT.
The system predicts the timing of when vehicles will approach an intersection and manages signals to keep them moving.
The system is in use in other cities as well.<\/p>\n
Buses are moving faster through the streets of San Jose after the city adopted a traffic signal prioritization tool developed by an area tech company.<\/p>\n
The product, called LYT.speed, optimizes traffic flow for the Santa Clara Valley Transit Authority by monitoring the movement of buses and giving them green lights before they approach an intersection. A pilot program on two bus routes in 2023 cut red-light waiting times in half, according to a city press release. The city has since expanded the program to all of its bus routes, resulting in 20 percent faster travel times. The outcome is evidence that \u201clocal government can deliver results where it matters most,\u201d San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said in a State of the City address earlier this year.<\/p>\n
Traffic signal prioritization systems have been around for decades. Basic systems allow buses or emergency vehicles to switch traffic lights when they approach, using loud sirens or flashing lights as the trigger. The San Jose system, developed by the firm LYT<\/a>, based in nearby Santa Clara, is more sophisticated. The program tracks the movement of buses using transponders that are already installed on the vehicles. It predicts their approach to traffic lights and automatically operates the signals to help them keep moving. Timothy Menard, LYT\u2019s CEO, compares it to air traffic control.<\/p>\n \u201cOur system is set up like a huge regional operator,\u201d Menard says. \u201cWe\u2019re able to see all the transit vehicles, where they\u2019re going, and we also know the bus route \u2014 where the bus stops are. We have an understanding of the full picture.\u201d<\/p>\n The system uses artificial intelligence tools to analyze real-time data and historical data and predict buses\u2019 location two minutes in advance. That allows it to adjust signals and keep all traffic moving more smoothly, where traditional signal systems would trigger a green light for vehicles only when they were already close to the intersection. It minimizes disruptions for other drivers and pedestrians.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople don\u2019t even realize that the streets of San Jose are now completely calibrated to the needs of transit,\u201d Menard says.<\/p>\n LYT developed the system for the city and the transit authority, initially pitching them a product that would predict when traffic lights would change. The transit authority said it would be more useful to actually operate the traffic lights instead. The tech doesn\u2019t require the installation of any additional hardware.<\/p>\n Stephen Caines, San Jose\u2019s chief innovation officer and budget director, credits a \u201cspirit of open collaboration\u201d among public and private entities in Silicon Valley for developing tools that help the government work better. The back-and-forth between government agencies and tech providers has helped refine tools like LYT\u2019s traffic signal prioritization system. In recent months, the city has experimented with a different way of procuring tools to solve city problems. While cities typically issue requests for information (RFIs) from vendors as a first step in acquiring new products or services, San Jose has begun holding \u201cpre-conferences\u201d with past vendors to talk informally about what the government needs and what the vendors might be able to provide.<\/p>\n As the chief innovation officer, Caines says he often acts as a \u201cfilter\u201d for tech leaders that want to offer products to the city. \u201cIf I think there\u2019s value and we can afford it, I\u2019ll pass you on to the right person. If not, I\u2019ll thank you for your time,\u201d Caines says.<\/p>\n San Jose has used AI tools to address other challenges as well. One, called CivCheck, is meant to speed up the development process<\/a> for accessory dwelling units by making sure homeowners\u2019 permit applications are complete before they\u2019re submitted, cutting down on processing times. Another, called BurnBot, helps manage brush<\/a> to prevent and mitigate wildfires. With LYT, the city is hoping to not just speed up the buses but improve traffic generally and make public transit more appealing.<\/p>\n \u201cIs it possible to enhance the bus-riding experience and encourage other folks who may not otherwise have considered [riding the bus]?\u201d Caines says.<\/p>\n San Jose was LYT\u2019s first client. But Menard says the company has now deployed its traffic signal prioritization tool in most major metro areas on the West Coast, along with Nashville, Boston and other cities. Portland, Ore., reduced wait times for some of its buses by 80 percent<\/a> after implementing the LYT tool. Public agencies are using AI tools to solve other transportation-related problems too, like automating enforcement of parking violations<\/a> in bus lanes. Menard says after emergency vehicles and buses, the next step is to work with commercial and delivery fleets for signal prioritization, which would have further benefits for the flow of traffic.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s like building a layer cake,\u201d he says. \u201cOnce the foundation is set correctly, you can bring in the next one and the next one.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"San Jose bus speeds improved by 20 percent after the city deployed a traffic signal prioritization system developed…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":196028,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[88,90,89],"class_list":{"0":"post-196027","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-jose","8":"tag-san-jose","9":"tag-san-jose-headlines","10":"tag-san-jose-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196027","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=196027"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196027\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/196028"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=196027"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=196027"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=196027"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}