Category: C2SMART Spotlight

Read about research developments, student and faculty initiatives, and spotlights on achievements by C2SMART affiliates.

C2SMART-NYCDOT Connected Vehicle Research Breaks New Ground To Improve Mobility and Ensure Accessibility For Pedestrians with Vision Disabilities in NYC

MollyLeave a Comment on C2SMART-NYCDOT Connected Vehicle Research Breaks New Ground To Improve Mobility and Ensure Accessibility For Pedestrians with Vision Disabilities in NYC

As part of USDOT’s Connected Vehicle Project, C2SMART researchers at New York University – in collaboration with NYCDOT and industry partners JHK and Harman – recruited volunteer participants with vision disabilities via local and national organizations to help conduct field tests of a phone application, PED-SIG, which could improve mobility of pedestrians with vision disabilities to navigate safely and independently through New York City.

FloodSense Project Helps Target Flood Response

Molly

The FloodSense alert system generates emails and telegram messages at the detection of a flood that exceeds 5 inches, and there are early indications that these warnings were received prior to warnings from other city detection systems.

Smart Cities and Open Streets Enforcement

Ann Too

Cities around the globe are using the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting shelter-in-place orders to explore pedestrianizing streets. Strategies on which streets to open to communities and how to do so vary widely between municipalities. In some cities, busy streets considered too vital to close entirely are required to remove parking lanes to expand pedestrian space. A growing number of cities, including New York City, have developed plans to close parking lanes on several miles of street to provide more outdoor seating for adjacent restaurants and cafes. Many cities have also provided extra space in front of grocery and large chain stores to give lines of customers room to distance themselves. Cities such as Burlington and Providence have reduced speed limits in large portions of their downtown areas, and specifically in Burlington, the new lower speed limit was implemented citywide to try to mitigate pedestrian fatalities. Seattle has reserved many of its core streets for “local traffic only”, reducing congestion within certain neighborhoods, and improving street safety in high-density residential areas.