New York and New Jersey regional transportation agencies announced they are partnering to launch a transit competition to improve public transit.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, NYC Department of Transportation (NYC DOT) and Partnership Fund for New York City recently launched the annual Transit Tech Lab competition that will harness the expertise of local and global tech companies to improve infrastructure management, modernize data and update workflow for regional public transit agencies.
In its eighth year, the Transit Tech Lab will select a number of companies to conduct proof-of-concept over an eight-week period of collaboration with agency partners. After the competition period, the partnering agencies may choose to further test the technology through a longer-term pilot.
“While MTA customers enjoy record or near record levels of service and on-time performance, the MTA is always looking for ways to become more efficient,” Jon Kaufman, MTA Chief of Strategic Initiatives, said. “The development of behind-the-scenes tech solutions to problems, even small ones, is a key tool to pursue the dual goals of improved customer experience and increased productivity. Our collaboration with the Transit Tech Lab helps us bring in new, cutting-edge technological solutions and we’re thrilled to see the creativity that folks inside and outside the agency will bring to bear.”
To date, nearly 60 companies have been selected to participate in yearlong pilots. This year’s competition focuses on two challenges – the Advanced Infrastructure Challenge to assess how public agencies can better monitor and manage infrastructure to improve asset performance, resilience, and lifecycle cost; and the Data and Workflow Modernization Challenge which addresses how public agencies can consolidate data and apply analytics to improve service or workforce productivity.
Interested companies can submit proposals through Feb. 27.