The Ultimate Urban Circulator (U²C) is a program to introduce autonomous vehicles (AVs) into the JTA’s transportation system. The U²C will extend reach within the urban core and into adjacent neighborhoods to support the vision of a vibrant, revitalized and better-connected Downtown Jacksonville.
Map: Bay Street Innovation Corridor
Charged with finding a long-term solution for the JTA Skyway that would address the new mobility paradigm the industry was undergoing, The JTA’s CEO and Executive Leadership Team (ELT), worked closely with the Authority’s Planning, Development and Innovation Department led by Brad Thoburn, VP of Planning, Development, and Automation, to identify a way forward. After meetings with Thoburn, the JTA proposed modernizing the Skyway by utilizing the infrastructure for autonomous vehicles. It was a bold idea. While the Skyway was automated, it was not autonomous. To build the infrastructure compatible for AVs would require years of testing and development for the vehicles. It would also require new technology systems to be installed on Bay Street, the heartbeat of downtown that the city wanted to revive. With a vision toward the future, JTA leadership set in motion plans to integrate autonomous vehicle technology using the existing Skyway infrastructure to provide both elevated and street level high-frequency transportation with fully automated vehicles and shuttles.
PHASE I
PHASE I: The Bay Street Innovation Corridor
Bay Street is a 3.5 mile corridor connecting businesses, residences, and entertainment through the heart of downtown Jacksonville. Through a partnership with the JTA, the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce, the City of Jacksonville, the Florida Department of Transportation, the North Florida Transportation Planning Organization (NFTPO), and the Jacksonville Electric Authority (JEA) Bay Street had been selected to be a “smart” corridor that connects people to places using smart technologies.
“It was that innovative brainstorming team that came up with the U 2 C program,” Ford recalled.
ULTIMATE URBAN CIRCULATOR – A CASE STUDY | 7
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