Siemens Mobility launches first-ever mobile bus lane enforcement solution in New York

Siemens Mobility has announced a successful launch of an Automatic Bus Lane Enforcement (ABLE) solution in New York City, with this being the first application of this technology to be mounted on buses.

The ABLE systems are installed on M15 Select Bus Service buses that operate on bus lanes benefitting more than 44,000 daily customers. The technology is playing a key part in New York City’s drive to improve bus speed and efficiency and to keep traffic moving on the city’s congested streets, according to the company.

 A camera mounted directly on an operating bus immediately captures violations where vehicles are stopped in the bus-only lanes that would have otherwise required substantially more surrounding static camera infrastructure in order to capture the same information.

“The great transit agencies in the world continue to take advantage of cutting-edge technology, to keep improving the reliability and sustainability of their fleets -- and New York’s [Metropolitan Transportation Authority) continues to be a leader in this,” said Marc Buncher, CEO of Siemens Mobility for North America.  “New York City challenged us to combine and adapt GPS, geo-fencing and ALPR (Automated License Plate Recognition) into a directly mounted, more efficient solution.  It’s a solution that is helping the city become more intelligent and ultimately deliver less congestion for all road users, not to mention the millions of people who benefit from the optimized travel time and improved passenger experience.”

This application features Siemens Mobility’s LaneWatch cameras to capture license plate details of vehicles that obstruct bus lanes, together with advanced video capabilities that record photographs, videos and location information. Motorists who block a bus lane are subject to a fine.