Bipartisan legislation seeks to update traffic management, planning

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Bipartisan legislation recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives would modernize traffic management and planning.

The Intelligent Transportation Integration Act would create a federal program to use existing data to actively manage traffic flow and to more efficiently plan future roadways.

U.S. Reps. Salud Carbajal (D-CA) and Garret Graves (R-LA) introduced the bill.

“We are using traffic light technology from the 1800s to manage traffic in 2023,” Graves said. “Folks shouldn’t be sitting and waiting for the stop light when they are the only car at the signal. Traffic needs to be managed as a network ‒ dynamically juggling freight and commuter demands so folks can get from Point A to Point B faster, safer, and more efficiently. Our bill will deploy smarter technologies to meet these demands and ensure that data is available to our transportation planners, who can build a more efficient system for the future.”

“Efficient and safe transportation corridors are not only critical to local commerce and our national economy, but they are also one of the most bedrock parts of a working family’s quality of life,” Carbajal said.

The bill has the support of ITS America, an organization advocating for the scaled deployment of innovative transportation technology.