Bay Area town employs AI to ease traffic

"Now, the town is rolling out the technology for all of its traffic lights, with the help of a grant from the Transportation Authority of Marin. Assistant Public Works Director Scott Schneider said the technology can see up the road and determine the speed and position of vehicles in real time, and adjust the traffic signal accordingly. This reduces wait times and increases safety. Typical detection cameras can only identify if there is a vehicle at the light."

""The Hub, because it's so complex, we've never been able to synchronize it," Public Works Director Sean Condry said. "You can't synchronize the Hub in any one direction or else you create problems in another direction." The Hub is considered the most congested intersection in Marin, according to the town. A traffic study of the area was completed in 2023, Schneider said. The adaptive technology was recommended as a short-term solution until longer term fixes, like a multi-lane roundabout, could be explored more in depth."

San Anselmo installed an AI-based adaptive traffic signal system at the Hub intersection in August and is expanding the technology to all 12 traffic lights with a $250,000 grant from the Transportation Authority of Marin. The system detects vehicle speed and position in real time and adjusts signal timing to reduce wait times and improve safety, unlike typical detectors that only sense vehicle presence. The Hub was previously unsynchronizable; a 2023 traffic study recommended adaptive signals as a short-term measure while longer-term solutions such as a multi-lane roundabout are evaluated. Initial analysis shows over 30% peak-hour wait reduction, and reported savings of 90+ hours per day for 65,000 vehicles, though the town is refining comparative data.

Read at The Mercury News