No Citations via This Method Are Happening Yet
Santa Monica is one of a few Los Angeles locations where Metro could soon begin using new A.I.-powered cameras aimed at ticketing illegally parked cars.
The cameras, which are mounted on Metro bus windshields, will be used to monitor vehicles parked on bus lanes and bus stops. If an illegally parked car is detected, footage will be sent to LADOT where a human will make the final call as to whether a ticket should be issued.
But no citations via this method are happening yet.
After a public outreach campaign, the program is set to go live before the end of the year. During a 60-day warning period, citations will act as information notices and won’t result in violations.
15 cameras have been placed on buses that run on the 720 route; a line which runs via Wilshire Boulevard from Downtown L.A. to Santa Monica at the 5th Street and Colorado stop. Other cameras will be installed on buses that run on line 212, which goes along La Brea Avenue from Hollywood/Vine to Hawthorne/Lennox stations, and lines 910, 950 and 70 from San Pedro, Downtown L.A. and El Monte.
The program’s initiation is contingent on pending approval from the City of Los Angeles.
Benefits of utilizing such technology, according to Metro, include better bus travel times and an increase in accessibility for passengers.
The installations come a year after L.A. Metro’s Board of Directors approved an $11 million contract with Hayden AI; a Bay-Area software company that designed the technology, reported the Los Angeles Times. The agreement, under which 100 camera systems are set to roll out, began in December and is set to last about five years.
