Tampa, Florida, is one year into a high-tech transportation experiment to connect drivers and cars to real-time data and move them more safely and efficiently along roadways.
The city of Columbus embarks on a similar pilot program in February, when it begins recruiting hundreds of drivers who will test whether cars and devices can successfully communicate. That happens this summer. A regional effort with Dublin, Marysville and Union County will eventually extend the test corridor along U.S. 33.
Such technology - using wireless communication, navigation and sensors - is the first step in devising a Smart City, where everyone - from pedestrians to drivers, to buses - is eventually connected to each other and with the devices that regulate traffic.
Tampa’s program has drawn interest from places like Columbus to Denver and by countries from Japan to Israel.
Guests:
- Drew Harwell, tech reporter, The Washington Post
- Robert Frey, director of planning and innovation, Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority
- Mandy Bishop, project manager, Smart Columbus
- Russell Holly, contributing editor, Android Central