Transportation companies Waymo and Waze have announced a new pilot program to improve pothole repairs, leveraging their vast data base to map areas that need maintenance.
According to the website Mashable, the program will use perception systems and physical feedback integrated into Waymo’s autonomous taxi fleet to detect the location and condition of potholes across cities.
This data will then be sent to city and state Departments of Transportation through the free Waze for Cities program, which provides real-time road data to partners.
Through the app, Waze users will also be able to access and verify the collected data. This feature will first be available to passengers in Los Angeles who use Waymo services.
Waymo will begin the partnership by collecting and sharing data in five cities: San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Austin, and Atlanta. In the future, the company plans to expand to cities with more complex transportation conditions, including harsh winters and freeze-thaw cycles.
According to the company, they have already identified 500 potholes that need to be repaired. Waymo also stated that the partnership with Waze “will help fill reporting gaps and support city efforts to keep streets safer.”
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Photo: Unsplash. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
