Researchers from the University of Massachusetts Amherst are using drones to examine the crash risks between cars and bicycles in Somerville.
Last week, three UMass students and a university drone instructor launched four drones from Conway Park. Their mission: collect video footage of a roughly one-mile stretch of Beacon Street. The project began amid calls for better bike safety following a fatal crash in Cambridge earlier that week.
Although the research was planned prior to the crash, Eleni Christofa, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at UMass, said the location was chosen because Somerville has invested in bike lanes and signage aimed at improving safety and comfort for cyclists.
"There’s a lot of bicycle traffic here compared to other places," said Christofa, who is leading the research effort. Two drones and a control rest on a cement bench in Conway Park in Somerville. Umass researchers are using the drones to collect video of traffic that will be analyzed to determine the safety of existing bike infrastructure and potential risk of collisions with cars. Andrea Perdomo Hernandez/ WBUR The drones will capture video over the course of several days, collecting data to help the research team understand how drivers and bicyclists behave around different types of bicycle infrastructure, Christofa said.
The footage will be analyzed by a Swiss startup company, MobiLysis , which uses drones and a type of artificial intelligence called machine learning, which seeks patterns in data. The company uses the technology to identify and recommend solutions for transportation-related problems, such […]
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