YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The first of two Western Reserve Transit Authority buses to be equipped with advanced technology to help drivers avoid accidents was unveiled during a Tuesday morning news conference at a parking lot behind Stambaugh Auditorium.

WRTA, along with Stark County Regional Transit Authority, Butler County Regional Transit Authority and NEORide, a consortium of 30 transit systems in 11 states, were awarded $1.8 million through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Smart Grant program. The funds were awarded to equip six 35-foot buses with state-of-the-art driver assistance and accident-avoidance technology.

Dean Harris, CEO of WRTA, was joined at the event by federal, state and local officials, including Shaz Umer, director of strategic initiatives for the U.S. Department of Transportation; Preeti Choudhary, executive director of DriveOhio; Gerry Noirot, District 4 deputy director of the Ohio Department of Transportation; and Mayor Jamael Tito Brown.

WRTA will equip a total of two of its buses with Perrone Robotics’ TONY/MAX system under the demonstration project, Harris said. The first bus, which was used for the demonstration Tuesday, is expected to be in service sometime over the next month. The second is still being equipped with the technology.

“This project embodies USDOT’s core mission, prioritizing safety, our foremost responsibility,” Umer said. “As we like to say at the Department of Transportation, safety is Job One. Every day we come to work with a singular focus on finding ways to help people and goods move around safely. Today, we’re making an important step in that mission.”

Specifically, the grant will equip buses here with state-of-the-art collision-avoidance technology using “cutting-edge LiDAR” – or light detection and ranging – technology, advanced radar, cameras and sensors to detect and alert drivers to potentially dangerous situations, he said.

“These are the same types of sensors enabling autonomous cars and trucks on our roadways today,” he continued.

“We have very good drivers, but everything we can add to make the buses safer is a bonus,” he said. “We like to be known as the safest option for being transported, and we’re proud to be leaders in new technology.”

The project “perfectly aligns with DriveOhio’s mission of fostering the development and implementation of smart mobility technologies that increase safety, enhance mobility, expand access and support Ohio businesses at DriveOhio and ODOT,” Choudhary said.

“We are particularly interested in promoting and expanding the type of connected vehicle technology that will be demonstrated here, because we know it will improve and enhance Ohio’s transportation system,” she continued.

Everything ODOT does is “first and foremost about safety,” and vehicle technology can be part of the safety solution. But engineering alone isn’t enough, according to Noirot.

“We must think about how we can apply technology to make our roadways safer, reduce crashes and save lives. That’s exactly what this project will do. It will deploy technology designed to assist dedicated transit operators to improve safety on the road,” he said.

The new technology represents another example of how Youngstown is “focusing on a brighter future for the next generation,” Brown said. 

“The work we do now will not only safeguard Youngstown but will also serve as a model for the nation,” Umer said.

Participants who successfully complete the 18-month first stage of the grant will have the opportunity to compete for the next round, up to $15 million over 36 months, allowing for longer-term deployment of the technology, he said.

If the first stage of the deployment is successful, Harris said he would like to equip the remaining 45 buses in WRTA’s fleet with the technology.

“We’ll probably look next year, somewhere near the end of next year, to start going after the second grant, because we’ll have enough data under our wings to show that it’s worth doing the rest of the fleet,” he said.

Pictured at top: From left are Preeti Choudhary, Greg Noirot, Shaz Umer, Dean Harris and Mayor Jamael Tito Brown.