Last month, Public Advocate Letitia James and Council Member Rory Lancman, along with Transportation Alternative Executive Director Paul Steely White, and members of the Transportation Workers Union called for an implementation of collision avoidance technology in New York City vehicles.

 “From Broadway to Queens Boulevard to Atlantic Avenue-everyday New Yorkers are still at too high a risk of being killed or seriously injured by a motor vehicle, “said Public Advocate Letitia James.

Rosco’s Vision Quest bus is equipped with the Mobileye Shield+ System. This new system is the latest technological advancement for preventing collisions with vulnerable road users (VRU’s) including pedestrians and cyclists. The dynamic bus operating conditions on congested urban streets demand the highest level of visibility when operating the bus and especially when approaching VRU’s in complex bus turning patterns. Pedestrians and cyclists often are not seen by the driver due to the large blind spots when the bus is making turns on tight, busy city streets.

The Mobileye Shield+ Technology is a multi-vision-sensor solution that provides drivers with alerts when VRU’s are in a blind spot or danger zone of the bus. The unique side-sensing feature alerts the operator to pedestrians and cyclists in the bus’ path, before an incident occurs, giving the operator time to react and mitigate the collision.

“Innovative technology such as Rosco’s and Mobileye’s pedestrian avoidance system can help make our city’s streets safer, and bring us that much closer to making our comprehensive ‘Vision Zero’ strategy a success”, said Council Member Rory Lancman.  I’m proud to stand with Public Advocate Letitia James in calling for a pilot program to add collision avoidance technology to 100 vehicles in our city’s fleet, and to highlight the forward-thinking work of Rosco, a vision safety technology company based in my district in Jamaica, Queens.”

Vision Zero, is a worldwide safety initiative that has also been in the New York City Metro area, the main mission is to end traffic deaths and injuries that occur on busy intersections.

Today in New York, approximately 4,000 New York’s are seriously injured and more than 250 are killed each year in traffic crashes* Pedestrian Detection Technology, like Mobileye’s Shield+ is a life saving device, if implemented, can make New York City a leader in pedestrian safety.