The success of the AI-powered Bus Lane Enforcement program has been formally expanded to two new cities, with violators currently facing the possibility of a fine of nearly $300 per citation.
As of Tuesday, the program is active and has a warning period in effect on vehicles blocking offenders blocking Lametro Bus Lanes and bus stops along North Lovelair Avenue in West Hollywood, as well as Big Blue Bus Lane in Santa Monica.
In West Hollywood, the Enforcement Zone includes both sides of Lovelair, between Fountain Avenue in the North End and Romaine Avenue south of the 212 Bath Line. La Metro has already carried out a violation on that route on the streets of the city of Los Angeles.
Drivers will block bus lanes and suspend face tickets for $293 for each violation, Metro said. The warning period will remain until September 2nd.
Earlier this year, La Metro began using AI-powered camera systems in certain neighborhoods and began issuing tickets for Lawbreakers automatically.
The footage provided by Hayden AI shows live scans of the road from a camera mounted on the bus.
The LA Metro System is part of a five-year pilot program between the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Agency and high-tech company Hayden AI. The first rollout features 100 camera systems on the bus, which scans the license plates of parking criminals and sends that information to dadot. It uses humans to check the information and issue tickets via email.
The LA Metro and the Los Angeles Department of Transport have agreed to a 75/25 split with quote fees that have been rolling at historic rates since the system was launched.
So far, the system has proven advantageous, with nearly 10,000 tickets issued over the first two months of the program.
Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus also uses the same enforcement technology, taking part in the 2023 pilot program using Hayden AI, detecting nearly eight violations per bus per day, resulting in a total of over 600 violations over 45 days.
According to the Santa Monica Daily Press, the Big Blue Bus System serves 13.3 million riders each year in a 58-square-mile service area.
Santa Monica also offers a 60-day grace period for offenders, but will begin issuing citations along West Hollywood on September 2nd.
Santa Monica Big Blue Bass is shown in this dateless promotional image. (Business Wire)
AI camera enforcement is being deployed throughout LA County to improve local bus reliability and reduce delays. Dedicated bus lanes are one of the gridlock solutions for busy traffic corridors, but the benefits are greatly hampered when lanes are blocked by vehicles.
“Santa Monica and West Hollywood are leading the way in which transformative technologies can be adopted to make public transport safer and more reliable,” says Charlie Territ, chief growth officer at Hayden AI. “Our bus-mounted camera platforms help Southern California cities eliminate obstacles to smoother bus operations.”
Culver City has launched its own camera-powered bus enforcement system with a fee structure similar to the LA Metro. Culver City’s 60-day warning period ended in May.
The Lametro Line, registered in the Bass Lane Enforcement Program, serves Lovelair Avenue between Hawthorn and Hollywood, 212, 720, serving Wilshire Boulevard and J Line Bus Rapid Transit Line from Downtown LA to Santa Monica, and serves 910 and 950 of the J Line Bus Rapid Transit Line.
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