Skip to main content

ITS upgrade for George Washington Bridge

The electronic highway signage system and field devices that provide real-time travel information for the 300,000 daily users of New York’s George Washington Bridge are to undergo a major overhaul in a US$65.1 millio0n project. The Port Authority of New York has approved the project to replace the intelligent transportation system (ITS) which includes the upgrade and replacement of 11 existing variable message signs and the installation of seven new ones; the installation of a new overhead sign structure
June 29, 2015 Read time: 2 mins
The electronic highway signage system and field devices that provide real-time travel information for the 300,000 daily users of New York’s George Washington Bridge are to undergo a major overhaul in a US$65.1 million project.

The Port Authority of New York has approved the project to replace the intelligent transportation system (ITS) which includes the upgrade and replacement of 11 existing variable message signs and the installation of seven new ones; the installation of a new overhead sign structure; the upgrade and replacement of fixed message signs; the replacement of variable message signs, vehicle detectors, traffic cameras, travel time readers and a weather information station.

The bridge's ITS system feeds traffic data to TRANSCOM, a consortium that operates a regional traffic management system and provides information to all member agencies for radio reports, highway signs, traffic apps and other means of disseminating traffic information.

"Moving people and goods smoothly and safely through the region is our primary mission," said Port Authority chairman John Degnan. "Utilizing the latest technology to better manage traffic congestion at our bridges and tunnels plays an important part in that effort."

"The Port Authority's facilities are critical to moving people and goods throughout the region," said Port Authority vice chairman Scott Rechler. "Today's action to employ this intelligent transportation system will help move the 300,000 commuters that cross the world's busiest bridge everyday and reduce congestion throughout the region."

The project is due to begin in the fourth quarter of 2017 and be completed by the second quarter of 2020.

Related Content

  • Wireless bridges widen options for ITS upgrades
    December 9, 2014
    Antaira Technologies’ marketing engineer Brian Roth explains why the increasing capacity of wireless bridges is reducing the cost of expanding and upgrading ITS networks. With more than half of the world’s population now living in cities, the need for efficient transportation of both people and goods has never been greater and that pressure is unlikely to ease any time soon. Indeed in many regions of the world the rate of urbanisation is still increasing as the demand for rural workers continues to decline.
  • Less travel aggravation to blunt Aggieland fans’ motivation
    June 17, 2016
    Returning travel times to normal within two hours of the end of a major football game was the challenge facing College Station, Adam Lyons explains how this was achieved. College Station, TX, also known as ‘Aggieland’, is located right in the middle of the Dallas/Fort Worth, San Antonio and Houston triangle making the city accessible to over 14 million Texans within less than a four-hour drive. One of the biggest draws to this area is Texas A&M University (TAMU) and the Aggie football games in the fall, mea
  • New Port Mann Bridge opens to eight lanes of traffic
    December 6, 2012
    Canada’s British Columbia (BC) government is delivering on its commitment to reduce congestion along the province’s busiest transportation corridor, with the opening of the new Port Mann Bridge to eight lanes of traffic, which cuts commute times and allows for the first regular transit service across the bridge in twenty-five years. This is the largest transportation project in BC history and completes the first and largest phase of the Port Mann/Highway 1 Improvement Project, which includes highway widenin
  • IBTTA recognises MTA Bridges and Tunnels
    October 22, 2021
    App gives tolling customers more self-service options to manage payments