SEPTA found more than 20,000 violations in a study on blocking bus-only lanes and bus stops

Seven SEPTA buses outfitted with AI-driven cameras have been monitoring bus lanes and stops along two Center City routes for illegally parked vehicles since late April, documenting an average of 4,000 blockages a week during a test of the enforcement technology, transit agency officials said.

No tickets or warnings are being issued as a result of the images captured on Routes 21 and 42. SEPTA is partnering on the study with Hayden AI, a Silicon Valley start-up that has installed its artificial intelligence cameras on buses in several large transit systems, including in New York and Washington.

“SEPTA is really excited about the possibility of improvements for our passengers: safety at bus stops, safety on the bus lanes, and then [reduced] congestion on the corridors so that we can get our buses moving more reliably,” said Matthew Zapson, SEPTA’s project manager for transit priority, which refers to strategies and technologies that enable transit vehicles to avoid congestion.

Routes 21 and 42 use bus-only lanes on Chestnut and Walnut Streets and travel through Center City and West Philadelphia. Bus lanes also run from 20th to 15th Streets on the eastbound side of Market Street and from Juniper to Sixth Streets in both directions.

Buses navigating Philadelphia traffic average a speed of 8 mph, SEPTA says, slower than the national average of about 14 mph. Every year, congestion in Center City causes 1.7 million hours of passenger delays and adds $15.4 million to the transit agency’s operating costs, according to a 2019 Econsult Solutions study commissioned by SEPTA.

SEPTA is in the midst of a comprehensive redesign of its bus network with the goal of improving reliability and shortening travel times. Blockages of bus lanes and stops are among the challenges facing the so-called Bus Revolution.

Zapson said the Hayden AI cameras, positioned in bus windshields, observed 2,300 bus-lane violations and 19,000 incidences of vehicles blocking bus-stop zones from the start of the test through June 2. He noted that likely means fewer vehicles were involved, since the test buses circulate in a larger fleet, and each car or truck may have been observed more than once.

The AI software activates the cameras to record the date, time, precise location and license plate numbers of vehicles only when it detects a violation, which it recognizes because it has mapped and learned the lanes and road-markings along the routes, Zapson said.

When cars or trucks park in bus-stop zones, the buses can’t get close to the curb so passengers have a clear, safe path to board their ride, Zapson said.

“We’ve been able to see some of the actual footage and you see people in wheelchairs who have to go into the parking lane to get onto a bus,” he said. “You see people squeezing between cars to get on and off ... by keeping the bus stops clear, we’re going to do a huge service for our riders to make sure that their trip is accessible and comfortable.”

Images of vehicles parked in bus-stop zones alerted SEPTA that many no-parking signs in West Philadelphia were removed for construction and never put back, or were not installed in the first place, Zapson said.

The pilot program is scheduled to be finished by the end of the month. Then SEPTA will assess the data and the experience other cities have had with this technology and decide whether to establish an enforcement program, Zapson said.

He said he’s been impressed with how it is working in Philadelphia so far and with results the MTA has reported in New York: big increases in travel speed on some routes and a 30% drop in bus crashes on one major route because operators don’t have to swing into the traffic lane to avoid obstacles as often.

To begin a formal program, City Council would have to authorize the camera enforcement of parking violations in bus lanes and at bus stops, SEPTA officials said.

“Bus service should be rapid, accessible, and safe to board, but illegal parking in dedicated transit zones makes this impossible,” Chris Carson, CEO and cofounder of Hayden AI, said in a statement.

“We’ve seen our technology help keep bus lanes clear for buses in New York and are excited to assist SEPTA,” Carson said.