Baton Rouge is one of 77 cities competing for up to $40 million in federal transportation dollars that would be used to implement data-driven ideas to make transportation safer, easier and more reliable.
The cities, including New Orleans and Shreveport, are taking part in the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Smart City Challenge.
The goal of the competition is to create an innovative, fully integrated model city that “uses data, technology and creativity to shape how people and goods move in the future,” according to the department.
“Cities understand that in order to plan for tomorrow, they need to embrace technology and innovation,” says U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx in a statement. “This challenge is going to do more than just help one city adopt innovative ideas. Instead, it will serve as a catalyst for widespread change in communities across America.”
The five finalists will be announced at SXSW in Austin on March 12. Each finalist city will be given $100,000 to fine-tune its proposal. The final selection process will begin in June.
According to the statement, billionaire Paul G. Allen’s Vulcan Inc. also intends to award up to $10 million to the challenge for the winning city to support electric vehicle deployments and strategies to reduce carbon emissions.
Tech company Mobileye also plans to outfit the winning city’s public bus system with its Shield+ driver-assistance safety technology, a collision avoidance system available for trucks, buses and commercial vehicles.
The challenge was developed as a response to trends identified in the February 2015 Beyond Traffic draft report, the statement says.
The report revealed that the nation’s aging infrastructure can’t meet the demands of a growing population and highlighted a need to increase mobility options in developing megaregions, a challenge for midsize cities.
