Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pennsylvania have been awarded a $3.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation in order to develop technologies that will make transportation safer and more efficient.
The grant, titled Technologies for Safe and Efficient Transportation (T-SET), will establish the collaboration between the two universities as a University Transportation Center.
The grant was announced last week by Senator Bob Casey.
“I’m pleased that two of Pennsylvania’s finest research institutions will help tackle the nation’s transportation problems by finding ways to improve safety, upgrade infrastructure and ensure that the best new technologies come from American companies,” Senator Casey said in a statement.
CMU President Dr. Jared Cohon said the award will allow the two universities to bring to bear a great wealth of computational technology talent to Pennsylvania’s and the nation’s transportation sector.
“Further, it will pave the way for new career paths in intelligent transportation that will have a transformative impact on the transportation industry,” he said.
Get There PGH is advancing a plan to bring Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) to Pittsburgh, a mode of transportation that has emerged in recent years in part due to advances made in efficiency technologies.
Court Gould, executive director of Sustainable Pittsburgh, says his organization is interested in BRT because it utilizes such technological improvements, allowing for increased transit access, reduced congestion, and greater service to riders.
Gould believes the grant will allow CMU to continue work it has already begun, citing the earlier development of an iPhone app by the university, which allows riders to track busses with real-time information.
Gould says matching CMU's information technology prowess with the needs of transportation efficiency in the region is a win for the Pittsburgh area.
Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Ken Walters, CMU; Court Gould, Sustainable Pittsburgh