If you park in bus lanes to make quick stops, you may want to think again.
Some of the largest transit systems in the U.S. are using AI-powered cameras to spot cars illegally blocking bus lanes. These cameras, developed by a company called Hayden AI, are mounted inside buses to monitor traffic and identify vehicles that shouldn’t be stopped there.
According to Charley Territo, Chief Growth Officer at Hayden AI, the system’s main goal is to change driver behavior, not issue tickets. It’s already in use in cities like New York, Washington, D.C., Oakland, and Los Angeles, with pilot programs in Seattle and Denver.
Transit agencies report that these cameras are making a difference. For example, New York’s MTA says buses are running 5% faster on monitored routes, and accidents have decreased by 20%. However, expanding the program hasn’t been without issues.
In New York, hundreds of drivers received incorrect tickets due to a programming error. George Han, a Manhattan resident, received multiple mistaken tickets despite parking legally. The MTA apologized and voided the incorrect tickets, blaming the problem on setup issues rather than the AI itself.
While these systems aim to improve bus reliability and reduce traffic, they highlight concerns about how AI is implemented and monitored. Mistakes like these remind us that even advanced technology needs oversight to ensure fairness and accuracy.
Transit advocates believe these cameras can help make buses faster and more reliable, encouraging more people to use public transportation. But incidents like erroneous tickets raise questions about accountability and the readiness of AI systems for large-scale deployment.
Source: npr
