Covid recovery and sustainability challenge finalists named
Companies in the Transit Tech Lab competition will test solutions over an eight-week period with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and NJ Transit.
Transit Tech Lab has named the 10 finalists for its Covid-19 Recovery and Environmental Sustainability challenges, a global competition calling for technologies to improve public transit safety and meet clean energy objectives.
Selected from nearly 150 applicants, the finalists’ solutions will use emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer vision and lidar to improve the public transportation experience for millions of people in the tri-state area.
Test period
The companies chosen will test their solutions over an eight-week period with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and NJ Transit.
“Public transit is the backbone of the tri-state economy, and its efficacy, safety and resilience are of paramount importance,” said Natalia Quintero, senior vice president of innovation at the partnership for New York City.
“The Transit Tech Lab is committed to providing cutting edge tools to restore riders’ confidence and support a sustainable future. Previous winners have deployed tools that improve service and the customer experience. We look forward to seeing the results of this year’s programme.”
“Public transit is the backbone of the tri-state economy, and its efficacy, safety and resilience are of paramount importance”
The first Covid-19 response challenge was launched by the MTA and Transit Innovation Partnership in 2020 and led to eight productive collaborations with the MTA, the Port Authority and NJ Transit.
The call for applications for this year’s challenges was launched in January 2022, with the goal of ensuring customers and employees feel safe, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and making transit more responsive to the needs of New Yorkers.
The 2022 Covid-19 recovery challenge finalists are:
Company: Blyncsy (Salt Lake City, Utah)
Technology: Catalogues roadway infrastructure and conditions, including pavement markings, obstacles, and roadway deterioration to facilitate maintenance.
Primary partner agency: PANYNJ, NJT
Company: Clarifai (New York, NY)
Technology: Uses machine learning and computer vision software to identify track intrusions, unsafe behaviour in stations, and passenger flows.
Primary partner agency: PANYNJ, NYCT
Company: Invision AI (Toronto, Canada)
Technology: Uses existing cameras and AI vision systems to create real-time 3D digital twin of transit stations.
Primary partner agency: NJT
Company: Quanergy (Sunnyvale, California)
Technology: Uses lidar hardware paired with analytic software to provide a digital twin of any space. The digital twin can report unsafe behaviour, offers object detection and passenger flows.
Primary partner agency: NYCT, MNR
Company: Zensors (San Fransisco, California)
Technology: Uses artificial intelligence to capture actionable data from existing hardware and cameras to provide operations visibility and address problems that range from overcrowding to fare evasion.
Primary partner agency: NYCT, MNR
Company: GridMatrix (San Francisco, California)
Technology: Uses software to interpret video footage on roads, enabling agencies to understand traffic patterns, unsafe intersections, and emissions.
Primary partner agency: PANYNJ
Company: Microgrid Labs (Boulder, Colorado)
Technology: Enables planning for a fast, smooth and cost-effective transition to electric fleets through SaaS-based modelling, simulation, and optimisation software, EVOPT.
Primary partner agency: NJT
Company: Runwise (New York, NY)
Technology: Uses wireless technology and web based software to operate heating and water systems more efficiently and help cut utility costs.
Primary partner agency: PANYNJ, MNR
Company: StormSensor (Seattle, Washington)
Technology: Provides cost-effective stormwater/climate-data and analytics to prevent flooding, simplify monitoring, and streamline maintenance and response.
Primary partner agency: PANYNJ, MNR, NJT
Company: The Mobility House (Belmont, California)
Technology: Enables intelligent integration of electric vehicles with the grid while minimising charging costs.
Primary partner agency: NYCT
“We are thrilled to once again be partnering with Transit Tech Lab to test out innovative and sustainable technology across our facilities,” added Robert Galvin, chief technology officer at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
“As the first transportation agency to embrace the 2018 Paris Climate agreement and the first to commit to net zero emissions by 2050, we are eager to work with these finalists to pilot new technologies that will not only enhance travel for our customers, but will help to modernise our infrastructure processes and contribute to our overall environmental goals.”
The Tech Lab programme is part of the Transit Innovation Partnership, which yielded the award-winning MTA Live Subway Map and was established by the MTA and the Partnership for New York City to bring private sector innovation to improve public transit.
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