US Ignite and Spectrum Award Grant to the State of Ohio to Advance Smart Transportation Initiatives

In Partnership with InnovateOhio and DriveOhio, the Project Seeks to Improve Traffic and Safety at Railroad Crossings in Lima

US Ignite, a nonprofit organization that helps communities accelerate smart city initiatives, and Spectrum announced that they have awarded a multi-year grant and resources to the State of Ohio for designing and implementing smart transportation initiatives. The first project underway is in Lima, where smart technology solutions are being explored to improve traffic and safety at numerous railroad crossings throughout the city.

Spectrum and US Ignite also are partnering with DriveOhio, the state’s center for smart mobility, and InnovateOhio, a state organization that is focused on using technology to improve people’s lives and transform services.

“The primary goal Governor DeWine and I envisioned when creating InnovateOhio was to use technology to improve the way Ohioans live their lives,” said Lt. Governor Jon Husted, Director of InnovateOhio. “This is a great example of a private-public partnership where technology is being used to create a better transportation system. We will continue to seek new ways to use technology to improve the quality of life for Ohioans, and we look forward to collaborating with DriveOhio on this smart transportation initiative in Lima and beyond.”

Lima, and any future cities chosen for smart transportation projects through the collaboration, will receive tailored guidance and tools to help harness smart technologies to solve local challenges and make their cities better places to live, work and play. A specialized Spectrum Smart Cities team will help ensure that city officials are effectively leveraging Spectrum’s high-speed network infrastructure, wireless capabilities, technical expertise and smart city partner ecosystem for technology deployments and data analysis.

“As an experienced and innovative network and technology partner, Spectrum is teaming with leading organizations to help the State of Ohio and the City of Lima to design smart city solutions for the betterment of citizens,” said Satya Parimi, Group Vice President, Enterprise Data Products and Spectrum Smart Cities, Spectrum Enterprise. “As a trusted advisor, we look forward to developing a proof of concept that uses sensors, devices, analytics and software to help make Lima’s railroad crossings safer and local roads and routes more efficient for residents and visitors.”

In Lima, this grant and resources will be used to develop efficient ways to advise drivers about train schedules and wait times at railroad crossings, while also providing alternative route suggestions to save time. For a city with approximately 40 railroad crossings, this is a significant undertaking.

“For the past four years, we have been making a shift in how we deliver services to citizens by leveraging technology to make data driven decisions,” said Lima Mayor David J. Berger. “This collaboration comes at the right time, and our city is thrilled and grateful to be selected as the first city in the state of Ohio to roll out this initiative. The freight railroad system is a significant part of our city’s economy and infrastructure, but we know that the sheer number of crossings causes real inconveniences and impacts everyday travel for thousands of residents and visitors. We’re excited to have this collaboration and resources available to us to help advance smart transportation strategies that will deliver safer and more efficient travel for everyone in the community.”

Spectrum will provide all network connectivity and leverage its smart city partner and vendor relationships to develop a proof of concept that uses smart devices (e.g., sensors), collects data and delivers insights to enable greater situational awareness for city drivers and provide real-time navigation assistance.

“We’re delighted to be working with InnovateOhio, DriveOhio and Lima as part of our Smart Gigabit Communities program,” said William Wallace, Chairman of US Ignite. “It’s a robust partner ecosystem that makes it possible to address a city’s challenges, and we’re pleased to help convene and foster these strong public-private collaborations. Smart city solutions not only require a breadth of solutions working together, but also a breadth of partners.” 

Category: AUTONOMOUS, Driver Stuff, Electric Vehicles, Featured, General Update, News, Safety, Transit News