New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) Commissioner and Chair
Meera Joshi, City Council Member and Technology Committee Chair James
Vacca, and City Council Member and Transportation Committee Chair Ydanis
Rodriguez today announced the launch of the TLC’s Vehicle Safety Technology
(VST) Pilot Program, an extension of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Vision Zero Action Plan.
The TLC is one of three agencies taking lead on Vision Zero, alongside the NYC
DOT and the NYPD. The VST pilot’s goal is to explore the ways that in-vehicle
technology may be employed to improve driver safety.
Data recorders, also known as black boxes, capture and record information on
vehicle dynamics such as speed, acceleration, braking, and abrupt turns. Driver
alert systems notify the driver when the system detects unsafe driving factors.
Testing these types of high-tech systems in TLC-licensed vehicles enables the TLC
to evaluate the practical applications of the technology and its effectiveness in
promoting safe driving practices. Another of the pilot’s benefits is that it will allow
the TLC to evaluate the unique driving conditions found in urban settings such as
New York City, and their effects on driving for-hire.
“The VST Pilot Program will give us a bird’s eye view of what is actually happening
on the road and the mere presence of a black box will keep drivers mindful of the
responsibility they have behind the wheel,” said Commissioner Joshi. “The data
collected by this piloted technology will help the TLC and our industries reinforce
good driving practices that will ultimately keep drivers, passengers, pedestrians and
cyclists as safe as possible. Vision Zero’s mission of eliminating traffic fatalities
challenges us to explore every option at our disposal to ensure the safety of our shared streets.”