The Transit Tech Lab (TTL) is excited to announce that 13 companies that were selected to participate in last year’s program will continue to work with our regional transportation agency partners in larger-scale pilots to demonstrate how their technology can improve transportation and deliver essential services more effectively. These companies were initially chosen from 150 global applicants to conduct a minimally viable proof of concept (POC) that addressed a top priority for one or more of the agency partners (see results from the POCs here).

The 13 companies below set out to use their technology — ranging from artificial intelligence, robotics, and LiDAR — to address the 2024 TTL challenges: improving customer experience by better communicating services changes, reducing delays, and augmenting safety and cleanliness initiatives; building a more resilient and adaptive transit system; and, maximizing the city’s curb space to serve the multiple and varied needs of New Yorkers. During the pilot, these 13 companies will demonstrate how their technologies can scale with our agency partners, which include the MTA, NJ TRANSIT, NYC DOT and the Port Authority of NY and NJ.

The Transit Tech Lab, one of three challenge-based public sector innovation programs run by the Partnership Fund for New York City, gives public agencies exposure to innovative technology and new ways of working on an expedited basis. Entrepreneurs gain exposure to New York City’s public agencies, mentors and investors – and an opportunity to demonstrate their solutions at scale.

See below for more information on the participating companies who will further demonstrate the value of their technology via a larger-scale pilot.

Customer Experience Challenge

BusPas (Montreal, Québec) – Provides next-generation wayside signage that delivers real-time, ADA-compliant passenger information. The company also uses AI and Computer Vision to provide decision-making insights (e.g., shelter cleanliness). During their proof-of-concept, Buspas integrated NJ TRANSIT real time bus schedules (GTFS-RT feeds) at the West Bradford Avenue bus stop outside NJ TRANSIT Headquarters. In addition, the company developed a pilot scope outlining how their smart bus stop can improve bus service planning and customer experience at six locations.
Partner Agency: NJ TRANSIT

Convo Communications (Austin, TX) – Transforms interactions for deaf sign language users into seamless experiences, ensuring communication autonomy with mobile devices. During their proof-of-concept, Convo Communications installed QR codes to enable real-time ASL translation for Deaf customers at multiple MTA and Port Authority locations.
Partner Agencies: Metropolitan Transportation Authority, NJ TRANSIT, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

GoodMaps (Louisville, KY) – Utilizes LiDAR and advanced computer vision to create accurate digital maps, precise indoor positioning, and inclusive turn-by-turn navigation without installation of equipment or hardware. During their proof-of-concept, GoodMaps completed a LiDAR scan of the Hoboken Terminal which is shared by the PATH, NJ Transit and NY Waterway to support the development of a customized, accessible indoor navigation tool in the GoodMaps app. In addition, the company delivered point cloud imagery and an initial CAD drawing of Hoboken Station.
Partner Agencies: NJ TRANSIT, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

Urban Solar Inc. (Beaverton, OR) – Provides ultra-low power displays that deliver ADA-compliant real-time information and messaging to transit users at bus stops with <10 second latency content updates and dusk-dawn screen illumination while operating solely on battery power for up to 5 years between battery replacements. During their proof-of-concept, Urban Solar partnered with NYC DOT and NJ TRANSIT to demonstrate how its battery-powered bus signs can provide real-time information at two bus stops, and the company integrated real time bus schedules (GTFS RT data feeds) from 16,000 NJ TRANSIT and 14,000 NYCDOT bus stops.
Partner Agencies: NJ TRANSIT, NYC DOT

Velocia (Toronto, Ontario) – Enables clients to incentivize, subsidize and reward pre-defined rider behaviors based on a pay-for-performance model once a designated behavior has been achieved and validated. During their proof-of-concept, Velocia worked with the Port Authority to establish a trucker ambassador program and worked with New York City Transit (NYCT) to simulate how its survey and rewards platform could change behaviors among employees and riders.
Partner Agency: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

Resilience Challenge

Cascara Energy (Toronto, Ontario) – Develops an innovative cooling system that extracts heat from NYC subways, providing high-efficiency cooling to the transit system while repurposing the extracted heat to supply low-carbon hot water or steam to nearby buildings, offsetting natural gas usage. During their proof-of-concept, Cascara modeled 12 technical scenarios and performed an economic analysis of its cooling solution at the MTA's Third Avenue Subway Station on the L line. Their analysis found that they could theoretically reduce platform temperatures at the Brooklyn Third Avenue Subway Station and sell $171,000 worth of recovered heat annually.
Partner Agency: Metropolitan Transportation Authority

CloudMonitoring/REMS Plus LLC (Queens, NY) – Provides real-time tracking, AI-driven insights, and predictive data to improve maintenance of critical equipment. During their proof-of-concept, CloudMonitoring installed 16 sensors across 12 locations within New York City Transit (NYCT), Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), and Metro-North Railroad (MNR) facilities to deliver comprehensive analytics on temperature, humidity, and water intrusion.
Partner Agency: Metropolitan Transportation Authority

FLX Solutions (Bethlehem, PA) – Manufactures the FLX BOT handheld robot that enables maintenance in hard-to-reach locations, reducing costly downtime of key equipment. FLX Solutions worked with 28 MTA and NJT employees to understand which maintenance tasks the FLX BOT is best suited to augment. After shadowing 13 tasks across eight different locations, the team identified two use cases where the FLX Bot could have the strongest ROI: aiding in track-adjacent maintenance work and replacing ladders.
Partner Agency: Metropolitan Transportation Authority

Intelligent Security Systems (ISS) (Woodbridge, NJ) – Provides under-train and vehicle surveillance systems for automated visual inspection of all types of rail car and vehicle undercarriages. ISS worked with the Port Authority to demonstrate how their under-vehicle inspection tool (UVSS) could improve the current security checkpoint process for cars entering the World Trade Center
Partner Agency: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

QEA Tech (Markham, Ontario) – Conducts building envelope audits using AI and drones to quantify energy loss and recommend targeted retrofits that maximize energy efficiency and return on investment. QEA Tech worked with the Port Authority and the MTA to conduct a building envelope energy audit of the Port Authority’s Holland Tunnel Admin Building and LIRR’s Garden City Facility
Partner Agency: Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

NYCDOT’s Curb Activity Challenge

AIWaysion (Seattle, WA) – Provides an integrated camera, edge computing board, and communication module within one unit to monitor curb parking events. AIWaysion partnered with NYC DOT to create a pilot scope of work outlining how its proprietary edge AI sensor could continuously monitor and analyze curb activity in real-time.
Partner Agency: NYC DOT

AppyWay Ltd (London, United Kingdom) – Utilizes LiDAR imagery and existing curb data to provide a comprehensive digitized curb inventory, enabling municipalities to fully manage curb regulations, parking permissions, and payments, and unlock net zero mobility. AppyWay developed a pilot scope of work by assessing 12 existing New York City open data sets, holding three discovery sessions with curb data managers, and completing an in-person practical walkthrough of the Upper West Side Smart Curbs Pilot area.
Partner Agency: NYC DOT

Populus (San Francisco, CA) – Provides a digital curb management software enabling municipalities to better understand curb demand, inventory and manage curb regulations, and actively manage new curb use cases with hardware-free smart zones. Populus integrates data from parking meters, sensors, cameras, and mobile pay, along with curb regulation inventories into a robust platform to improve curbside safety and efficiency in cities. Populus conducted a thorough review of NYC's existing systems and processes by evaluating 12 curb-related datasets, interviewing key stakeholders and users of current curb data systems, and touring the Upper West Side Smart Curbs Pilot zone.
Partner Agency: NYC DOT