The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) has been awarded a $1.3 million SMART grant from the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT).
The grant, which was awarded at the tail end of the Biden Administration, will support PennDOT’s pilot of Freight Signal Priority (FSP) technology at two high truck traffic locations in central Pennsylvania. The FSP Technology pilot’s goal is to help relieve congestion, reduce air pollution, and improve efficiency.
According to PennDOT, the technology uses real-time GPS data from truck electronic logging devices to determine a truck’s speed and location. When the truck is approaching a traffic signal, the system sends a priority request to the signal controller, causing the green light to be extended by five to seven seconds. This allows the truck to safely move through the intersection instead of stopping, which keeps traffic moving and reduces emissions produced by trucks idling.
“Efficient movement of goods is central to our economy, however truck traffic can create congestion, cause supply chain delays, and increase pollution in our communities,” said PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll. “As the Keystone State, Pennsylvania is a critical freight hub. The Shapiro Administration looks forward to piloting this technology that will help keep our trucks and goods moving while also keeping our air cleaner.”
As part of the pilot, FSP technology will be in two locations which are known as the “Miracle Mile.” PennDOT explained that the pilot locations were chosen based on the traffic signals’ efficiency along the corridors, the percentage of each location’s total traffic coming from trucks, the air quality reports from USDOT’s Equitable Transportation Community Data, and the hardware in place at the traffic signals. After the pilot period ends, FSP technology will be deployed in other high-freight areas around the state.
“Truck congestion has a significant impact on the supply chain, causing delays, increasing costs for consumers, and making the job more challenging for truck drivers,” said Rebecca Oyler, president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Motor Truck Association. “Pennsylvania ranks eighth in the U.S. for statewide costs related to truck congestion at over $3.7 billion, so we’re excited to be on the cutting edge with this pilot project. Technology solutions hold a lot of promise for helping to solve the challenging issue of truck congestion. We’re anxious to see the results of the project.
