The sixth annual Transit Tech Lab challenge has been announced. The Lab is a program of the Transit Innovation Partnership – a public-private initiative formed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Partnership for New York City with the mission to make New York City the global leader in public transit.
“A thriving public transit system means a thriving New York, and that’s why we are so excited to help put innovative technologies to work to improve the rider experience,” said Stacey Matlen, vice president of innovation at the Partnership for New York City. “We are looking forward to yet another year of impactful collaboration between transit agencies and tech innovators, who will be working together once again to help ensure our public transportation can quickly adapt and respond to 21st century challenges.”
The competition is has three challenges:
- The customer experience challenge – that asks how customer experience can be improved by better communication of service changes, reduction of delays, and augmentation of safety and cleanliness initiatives;
- The resilience challenge – seeking ways to build a more resilient and adaptive transit system; and
- NYC DOT’s kerb activity challenge – that will look for ways to maximize the city’s kerb space to serve the multiple and varied needs of city residents.
Representatives from four New York transportation agencies – The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, NJ TRANSIT, and the NYC Department of Transportation (DOT) – as well as from Partnership for New York City will evaluate applications based on the technology’s impact and the applicant’s product, team, and overall value proposition. Finalists will advance to conduct a proof-of-concept over an eight-week period, and the companies demonstrating the technologies that align with the agencies’ objectives will have the opportunity to secure a year-long pilot.
“The Transit Tech Lab continues to be a significant incubator of innovative solutions for the most pressing transportation challenges the MTA and other regional transportation agencies face,” said Jessica Mathew, senior advisor for special projects at MTA. “We look forward to seeing the next set of proposed technologies that will strengthen the MTA’s ongoing resiliency efforts and further the authority’s mission to improve the customer experience for transit riders.”