In this recent post from his Telling the Story blog Brian Cronin, the director of the USDOT’s ITS Joint Program Office, gives his expert insight into the Complete Streets Artificial Intelligence Initiative (also outlined in the video above). Look out for Brian Cronin on a forthcoming edition of the Transportation Podcast from Traffic Technology International.
The Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office (ITS JPO) pursues a variety of approaches to foster innovation in the transportation technology research ecosystem; such as challenges, pilots, and small business research investments. In October 2024, the US Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) awarded $2.4 million in contracts to twelve (12) small businesses as part of the Complete Streets Artificial Intelligence Initiative, a multi-phase effort that seeks to harness Artificial Intelligence (AI) to improve transportation. The goal is to develop powerful new decision-support tools for State, local, and Tribal transportation agencies that assist in the siting, design, and deployment of Complete Streets— streets that prioritize safety, comfort, and connectivity for all road users.
“Harnessing the power of AI to improve data availability and fidelity will allow communities to better plan, design, and implement Complete Streets projects across the country”
Currently, Federal Aid recipients, other public agencies, and the consultant firms that support them have identified a need for more detailed information about how their transportation networks serve people walking, bicycling, or rolling via micromobility, wheelchairs, or other devices. The Complete Streets AI initiative was created to close these gaps in basic roadway data, such as pedestrian and bicyclist volumes, the presence and condition of sidewalks or bike facilities, and the accessibility of routes for people using wheelchairs or other mobility assistance devices. Harnessing the power of AI to improve data availability and fidelity will allow communities to better plan, design, and implement Complete Streets projects across the country.
Watch Learn from the Leaders: What Is the Complete Streets AI Initiative? to learn more about the purpose behind this initiative and how existing tools and data, along with new innovations, can help improve our transportation network.
This Initiative encourages small businesses to think outside the box. The twelve awardees combine expertise in both AI and transportation. They will utilize a wide range of tools and technologies such as machine learning, computer vision, convolutional neural networks, and generative AI to transform raw data like satellite, aerial, or street-level video and still photography and 3D point cloud information into refined data layers for use in Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
Phase I funding, which launched in October, allows each awardee to create a proof-of-concept at a project pilot location. Phase II will further test and harness these methods in novel data generation and processing methods and scale them to multiple geographic areas. Phase II and III will support the implementation of Complete Streets analysis capabilities in a functioning software solution. Eventually, the software and data generation techniques that the awardees develop may be deployed on a national scale.
To learn more about the Complete Streets AI Initiative, I encourage you to visit the website at its.dot.gov/CSAI. To learn more about the twelve Complete Streets AI Initiative awardees, you can read their full project abstracts.
As AI technology continues to evolve, the U.S. DOT is working with industry leaders to ensure that AI can be safely implemented to improve our nation’s transportation networks. Together, we can advance safer and more reliable transportation for all road users.
You can also see a full list of the projects in the full version of this blog post
