Cyclists and drivers are often at loggerheads over who has more rights on the road. Could an AI tool help bring peace to these warring factions?
That’s what a new program in Sacramento aims to do: By keeping parked cars out of bike lanes, the effort aims to improve the transit experience for both parties.
The city of Sacramento and the Sacramento Regional Transit District (SacRT) in December debuted an automated bus stop enforcement program using technology from Hayden AI. Now, in what officials say is a first, they’re monitoring bike lanes using camera systems that have been installed on 100 local buses.
“I think it’s a great use of the technology,” Charles Territo, Hayden’s chief growth officer, told Tech Brew. “From a safety perspective, the agency is really getting more bang for the buck. For pedestrians that are having to navigate vehicles parked at bus stops, things are going to improve. And for bike riders who have to navigate people parking in bike lanes, that’s going to change, as well. And ultimately what we’re hoping to see is a change in driver behavior.”
Change needed: Jessica Gonzalez, a spokesperson for SacRT, told us that the program has garnered overwhelmingly positive feedback.
Data from the early days of this new approach to enforcement shows the scope of the problem. Gonzalez said that when SacRT conducted a pilot program across a portion of its service area, 286 bus stop parking violations were identified in 70 days. Then, when the program officially rolled out, nearly 3,000 warnings were issued during a 60-day grace period. And in a one-month span after the city started issuing violations, 2,370 drivers were cited.
The problem, Gonzalez explained, is that when bus drivers are unable to park at a bus stop, some bus riders—for example, those who use mobility devices—may not be able to board the bus. Others may have to walk a distance. This creates issues around safety, accessibility, and reliability, Gonzalez said. And even small delays or disruptions can throw off bus routes for the rest of the day.
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“We’re hopeful that this can bring about change,” she said.
Lane open: With the bus stop enforcement program going well so far, the city of Sacramento and SacRT are now expanding the strategy to bike lanes.
The cameras use Hayden AI’s machine learning and AI technology to identify and record illegal parking violations. The system sends a video and photo of the vehicle’s license plate, along with the time and location of the incident, to the city, which then processes violations. The city is issuing warnings for bike lane violations; starting June 13, those violations will come with a fine.
“We’re proud to be the first city in the country to use this technology to help keep our bike lanes clear,” Staci Hovermale, Sacramento’s parking services manager, said in a statement. “This tool helps us enforce existing parking rules more effectively, improving safety for cyclists and ensuring everyone shares the road responsibly.”
Expanding uses: Territo said that Hayden would welcome the opportunity to apply this model in other cities, but it’s not legal everywhere. The startup will be rolling out bike lane enforcement in Chicago this summer, and hopes to further expand in the future.
The startup’s tech is being used to enforce parking violations in numerous cities across the US, including Los Angeles, New York City, and Washington, DC.
“What we’re trying to do is to give the agencies and the cities we work with a tool that can be used to solve a number of parking- or curb-related challenges,” Territo said. “And I think Sacramento is a great example of how that would work.”