AI Within Transportation by

Introduction!

jackdawson6 — 2025-10-09 02:19:44 UTC

AI is a growing field in many sectors within manufacturing, retail, healthcare and finance just to name a few. But what many people are overlooking is how AI is being adapted within the transportation system. Some examples that I will touch upon in this will be self-driving vehicles, how ai will be used to optimize traffic and how ai will be used to help improve public transit. Looking upon self-driving vehicles first as they are the most notable usage of AI within transportation because of media coverage and them being noticed upon the road. How they work is that these vehicles are equipped with many different types of sensors and cameras that are connected to an ai computer module, because of all the information that is being gathered from its surroundings the AI is able to drive and maintain the vehicle on the road. AI has been making a major impact on the optimization of traffic due urbanization because of this traffic has been a major issue within major population centers in which AI uses sensors and data that they gather to help make sure traffic does not get congested within areas of a city. Last but not least public transportation is also being improved with AI as the AI could get an overview on how crowded a train is or bus system is to determine whether or not more buses or trains need to be sent out to stops as well as viewing traffic conditions which can help taxis, buses and other forms of motorized transportation be able to quickly get passengers to where they need to get to. I find all of this to be very interesting and intriguing to me just because of how under the radar the AI usage within traffic management is as well as its usage within the public transportation system.

Self-Driving Vehicles 1

jackdawson6 — 2025-10-09 02:22:35 UTC

Looking more at self-driving vehicles we see that many companies are beginning to implement them one of the most notable of these companies is Tesla at its current moment it is still under supervision as this is still a new and growing evolution that took place within the industry of AI. As of October 2025, it is only available for testing under supervision within the United States, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Australia and New Zealand. One of the features that Tesla is implementing for the car to be self-driven by AI is a 360 camera. This is a very innovative idea as the camera is used to gather information of when to merge onto the other lane as well as seeing the surrounding vehicles around it as well another feature that Tesla is already known for having is a self-parking feature which will also be used within the self-driving vehicles that they are producing, in which the cameras that are placed around the vehicles detect and will align with parking spaces including parallel parking.

Self-Driving Vehicles 2

jackdawson6 — 2025-10-09 02:24:38 UTC

Another company that is implementing self-driving vehicles is General Motors. General Motors is implementing a system called “ADAS” or advanced driver assistance system, although it isn’t a fully self-driving vehicle the system does self-drive although under certain conditions such staying a certain speed with the usage of cruise control or when merging onto other lanes ADAS can be used to help drivers navigate and make sure they avoid collisions with other vehicles on the road. I believe that self driving cars are going to be a prominent part of our future within the next of decades, they are designed to make sure everyone stays safe upon the road including yourself. My issue with this is that could a hacker somehow get into the mainframe of an AI vehicle and manage to control it? Although it seems like something out of a video game a lot of technology that we do have people back then wouldn’t think would be plausible so can’t rule out that possibility.

Transportation Systems 1

jackdawson6 — 2025-10-09 02:27:04 UTC

Looking upon transportation systems there are a lot of very cool and notable features one of these innovations are portable traffic systems for construction zones on the roadway. The portable traffic system is an alternative for construction managers as instead of having flaggers on their job site they set up an automated system which is controlled by AI to control the flow of traffic within a construction zone the goal for the company that designed this called “OMJC” is to have managers allocate manpower elsewhere reducing liability within the work zone. How the portable traffic system works is that they are traffic lights on a small miniature utility trailer which is solar powered. When set up there is a sensor to detect vehicles and traffic around it allowing the AI built within the system to direct the flow of traffic within a construction zone. There are different types of traffic lights as well for roads with more than one lane making this a very proper use and to ultimately have projects move faster.

Transportation Systems 2

jackdawson6 — 2025-10-09 02:29:11 UTC

Another AI feature that I found to be very interesting for traffic management is the usage of CCTV cameras and other smart cameras to help control traffic there are two examples of this being implemented the first being the usage of footage to help alert authorities of an accident or crash. The companies ClearWay and HikVision are paving the way for this by having an AI system monitor cameras and when it detects debris from an accident or if someone is driving reckless that AI will go ahead and alert the authorities. The last example which is called the RoadEye Project uses AI monitoring cameras to detect road conditions such as icy roads or if there is a flood another feature within the RoadEye Project is its ability to as well warn drivers about impending potholes which is a very useful features to a lot of drivers as they are the main beneficiaries to most drivers getting flat tires. Looking upon this I love the idea for portable traffic systems as it would help construction zones go by a lot quicker in the long run by instead of allocating manpower to control traffic it’ll get a lot more workers on the job site to make it go a lot quicker. With AI being implemented to help traffic control through cameras I believe it’ll be a huge crucial part of law enforcement soon to help control speeding and reckless driving across communities as well as to get responders to vehicle related emergencies a lot faster than the normal response time.

Public Transportation 1

jackdawson6 — 2025-10-09 02:31:38 UTC

Looking more upon AI within the public transportation system a practice that is in play right now is the pilot project within the Golden Gate Bridge and the Transportation District in San Francisco the goal is the project is to use data that the AI gathers of traffic condition and other conditions upon the road system within the San Francisco area and surrounding Bay Area to give an accurate prediction of biking arrival and departure to and from stops. The project takes a lot of similarities off of other examples that we’ve seen in other AI implementations within transportation with the usage of cameras and sensors to help the AI determine arrival and departure time with gathering data of traffic flow to help people biking reach their destinations.

Public Transportation 2

jackdawson6 — 2025-10-09 02:33:46 UTC

Another example of AI being used within public transportation is how it benefits transportation companies as a whole looking according to the article by init “AI in Public Transit: Transforming Efficiency and Rider Experience”. The AI led transportation implementation led to a lot better services according to commuters in which said that with the data that AI has collected to determine traffic flow as well as an accurate arrival and departure time based on traffic conditions it made public transit a lot faster and more convenient for usage. Another point that the article talks about is how AI can also predict a possible maintenance for the vehicle within the transportation company and because of this saves a lot of money up to 30% for most companies resulting in them being able to invest money into other parts of their companies to make commuters experience more enjoyable. I believe that the implementation of AI within our public transportation system is a great innovation as it allows more people to use it as it becomes more convenient to them in which as a result reduces traffic congestion if more people begin to use public transportation, and because of lower maintenance budgets due to the AI suggesting when they should maintain the vehicles it could as well lower prices making it more affordable.

Future Trend and Societal Impact

jackdawson6 — 2025-10-09 02:36:15 UTC

Looking upon the trend of AI within transportation the field is going to be valued around 10.3 billion dollars in 2030 according to the article “AI In Transportation on: the Future Of Transportation”. That number is expected to rise within the coming decades. The field of transportation is going to keep expanding especially on the innovation of self-driving vehicles in which will predominantly take over most automobile industries and car dealerships. Traffic management will also get better due to AI having a system in place to help keep traffic moving as well as law enforcement using AI to have them track reckless drivers as well as people speeding. And within transportation I believe that it will become more of a used commodity in everyday life with AI being able to predict maintenance in which will save money in which should lower prices for commuters making it more widely used. With the future of AI in transportation I believe that it will keep growing but it will eventually trickle out I believe 50-60 years from now due to there not being much to be innovated on upon, unless a new transportation model comes out.

Reflection

jackdawson6 — 2025-10-09 02:37:32 UTC

I found researching AI in transportation to be very fun I learnt a lot about this field that isn’t talked about and technology that is implemented that I did not know about. I honestly didn’t encounter any challenges when researching this topic, I found a lot of good sources, and it helped me construct my research very well. I believe that the usage of AI in this field is a very good thing! I believe that it will overall help improve public transportation and help with traffic congestion especially within urban environments in which that is a major problem. One Issue I do see arising as with I've had with a lot of other AI modules is the probability that if someone were to hack into these systems such as the self-driving car for example that could cause problems as the person hacking into it is able to see what is around them due to the numerous cameras around the vehicle for the AI to see for it to be automated in which could see an uprising within reckless driving because of that so there will have to be a pretty good firewall backing it.

Citations!

jackdawson6 — 2025-10-09 02:42:21 UTC

Threewitt, Cherise, et al. “Vehicles That Are Almost Self-Driving.” US News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, 2025, cars.usnews.com/cars-trucks/advice/cars-that-are-almost-self-driving?onepage.

‌https://www.gm.com/innovation/autonomous-driving?ppc=GOOGLE_6262856748_21299052394_161647687199_13585732549&d_src=313715&d_adsrc=4137267&d_campaign=21299052394&d_site=GOOGLE&d_adgroup=161647687199&d_keyword=self+driving+cars&gclick=Cj0KCQjwl5jHBhDHARIsAB0YqjyCEZHhWlvNyz7TDMuH6Y8D7daKF8DA1I3hZDVETUyn6GTfMwtuo_YaAtBSEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21299052394&gbraid=0AAAAACpE8buSr3cqKSNi2LvsAPLUTDWMO&gclid=Cj0KCQjwl5jHBhDHARIsAB0YqjyCEZHhWlvNyz7TDMuH6Y8D7daKF8DA1I3hZDVETUyn6GTfMwtuo_YaAtBSEALw_wcB Tesla. “Full Self-Driving (Supervised) | Tesla.” Tesla, 2025, www.tesla.com/fsd.

‌ “OMJC Signal, INC.” OMJC Signal, INC, 2023, www.omjcsignal.com/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22114891672&gbraid=0AAAAADAKm1VGhIuhIN2zyBjkSM906z0gA&gclid=Cj0KCQjwl5jHBhDHARIsAB0YqjzWXQzuG7mI51YWyN3UPDwPAP7vqgJjhNY8NDD8LeDU6bxI5GT44b4aAsO_EALw_wcB. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.

‌ “UITP.” UITP, 2024, www.uitp.org/publications/ai-public-transport/.

‌ Marvin, David, and Maliya Malik. “AI Applications in Reducing Traffic and Planning for the Transportation Systems of Tomorrow • Public Works Partners.” Public Works Partners, 21 Feb. 2024, publicworkspartners.com/ai-applications-in-reducing-traffic-and-planning-for-the-transportation-systems-of-tomorrow/.

‌ “AI in Public Transit: Transforming Efficiency and Rider Experience.” Initse.com, Init, 2025, www.initse.com/enus/news-resources/blog-podcast/ai-in-public-transit-transforming-efficiency-and-rider-experience/.

‌ “Blog | AI in TRANSPORTATION: THE FUTURE of TRANSPORT | World AI Cannes Festival 2025.” Worldaicannes.com, 2024, www.worldaicannes.com/en-gb/resources/blog/ai-in-transportation-the-future-of-transport.html.

‌ AtkinsRéalis. “AtkinsRéalis.” AtkinsRéalis, 2024, www.atkinsrealis.com/en/engineering-better-future/beyond-engineering/the-power-of-artificial-intelligence-in-traffic-operations.

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