If you want to get more involved in local transportation planning, then look no further than TrafficCOM, a great new idea on Kickstarter. Their project creates a low cost, portable, durable traffic counter than can be deployed by individuals on local roads and bike lanes.
Why does this matter? TrafficCOM takes data that is virtually monopolized by state and local DOTs (and their contractors) and places it in the hands of individuals and local advocacy organizations. In short, it allows anyone to initiate a review of local conditions and advocate for a fix, using hard data instead of observations (e.g. this bike lane looks overtaxed or this road probably doesn't need another traffic lane). With private citizens and groups uploading data that is both open source and regularly updated, we can gain a better understanding of local and regional traffic patterns without the bureaucratic procurement processes of a DOT. That means a better understanding of where roads should or should not be widened, where traffic calming is needed, where bike lanes should be added or expanded, and where bus route can be modified to avoid bottlenecks.
No comments:
Post a Comment