5 Recent, Big Transit Moves in America That Are Worth Talking About

Over the past year we’ve reported on stories about the global rise of startups like Uber and Lyft to the feasibility of driverless cars in the near future. While cities nationwide continue to innovate new ways of revitalizing transit and technology brings transportation into a new realm of possibility, CityLab’s Eric Jaffe takes a look back at some of the most recent highlights:
Self-driving car takes on the city
Last April, Google’s famed autonomous car progressed from driving on simple highways to the twists and turns of city streets. In late May, the company also unveiled a compact version of its self-driving car with a goal on the horizon of testing it in California. With such progress in one short year, Google is on track to bring those cars to a city near you.
U.S. embraces high-speed rail
Super fast trains made a splash this year after California’s state budget made room to break ground on its longstanding plan for high-speed rail between Los Angeles and San Francisco, receiving 25 percent of California’s cap-and-trade revenue each year moving forward. Some reports estimate between $3 and $5 million in funding annually. The state also announced a winning bid and set a groundbreaking date next month on Jan. 5, 2015. That’s a big commitment to moving forward. But elsewhere in the country, high-speed rail projects have gained traction including a Dallas to Houston line and the beginning of construction on the Miami to Orlando route.
Say Aloha to driverless transit
The Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation is blazing the trail in the U.S. for the first wide-scale urban transit system that is automated. While driverless transit has popped up in cities throughout the world, Honolulu is the first American city to begin soliciting bids for nine stations, including designs for one at its airport. The concept, as experts point out, enables trains to run closer together and provides many safety advantages.
Bicycles go electric
Municipalities have made major advances on enhancing roads to include safe bike paths, and in Cambridge, Mass., a bike company has made strides on creating a new type of bike that could transform the industry. The Cambridge-based mobility company Superpedestrian developed and began taking pre-orders on its Copenhagen Wheel, which turns existing bikes into electric-power bicycles. As CityLab reports, experts estimate the product has the potential to put the U.S. as one of the world’s top e-bike markets within the next two decades.
New York’s “Vision Zero” safety plan
The Big Apple took a page out of Sweden’s playbook earlier this year when Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Vision Zero, a plan to bring the city’s traffic-related death and injury statistics down to zero.  The city has rolled out several regulations as a part of the plan, including reducing speed limits to 25 miles an hour. San Francisco is also pushing a similar strategy.
MORE: New York City Looks to Stockholm for a Traffic Blueprint

These Solar-Powered Roads Transmit Helpful Information onto Your Windshield

With several interstate highways intersecting in the state, it’s obvious why Indiana has been dubbed the crossroads of America.
The state itself is committed to that role and to further its reputation, Indiana is considering ways to revolutionize transportation.
In a recent Statehouse presentation, Gov. Mike Pence presented ideas outlined by a panel commissioned to prioritize state transportation needs, including everything from building a second beltway around Indianapolis to promoting driverless cars and solar-powered roads.
The panel, helmed by Lt. Gov. Sue Ellspermann and Langham Logistitcs head Cathy Langham, produced a 73-page report full of recommendations on where the state should focus its resources, such as designating high-occupancy-only lanes for carpooling as well as improvements for air, truck traffic and rail, the Indianapolis Star reports.
The governor intends on sharing the report with state agencies, which may inspire future transportation planning in Indiana.
But perhaps the most interesting aspect of the report is the four pages on innovation. Some suggestions include promoting and allowing driverless cars (once the technology is acceptable) as well as building lanes that charge electric cars while they’re moving. The solar-powered roadbeds would be heated to help melt away snow and the smart roads, or “iWays,” would be able to transmit information to drivers about the road conditions, possible safety hazards or weather conditions by projecting messages on windshields.
These concepts are not out of reach. As the Wall Street Journal reports, big tech companies like General Electric and International Business Machine Corp. (IBM) are already collaborating with city planners to invest in smart infrastructure.
In fact, IBM is testing software that can predict traffic jams up to 45 minutes before they actually clog the roadways by examining current traffic patterns. The software has proven to be about 90 percent accurate in predictions in the central business district of the pilot city Singapore. The data collected is then utilized in coordinating 1,700 sets of traffic lights to help adjust the traffic pattern.
Additionally, in Minneapolis, government officials have made bridge safety a priority since the collapse of the I-35 structure in 2007. A new bridge was designed with more than 300 sensors to track changes in temperature, corrosion and effect of winter weather. Researchers at University of Minnesota are using the data to inform how to build better bridges in the future, according WSJ. 
For now, Indiana’s transportation priorities lie with adding lanes to the central highways that pulse through the state, I-65 and I-70, as well as a bridge to connect I-69 over the Ohio River and a new partial beltway to loop around Indianapolis. But as technology continues to influence and advance our infrastructure projects, building solar-power roads may not be too far off.
MORE: Public Transportation Is Getting a Major Makeover