Dive Brief:
- StreetLight Data, a subsidiary of Jacobs, announced Thursday a technology and data partnership with map and location data company TomTom.
- TomTom’s data — including anonymized speed data from more than 600 million connected devices — will be incorporated into StreetLight’s cloud-based transportation data platform, according to a StreetLight press release.
- The partners state that the collaboration will create an analytic platform “that empowers planners and other transportation professionals with data driven insights to inform transportation and infrastructure projects of any size and scope.”
Dive Insight:
Cities and transportation agencies face a myriad of issues in the post-pandemic environment, including reduced transit ridership, financial concerns and equity questions. At the same time, federal funding from the 2021 infrastructure law and other programs create opportunities and mandates to redress legacy inequalities and meet climate goals.
“Infrastructure is what drives social outcomes over the long term, whether it’s carbon or equity or convenience or economic development,” said Streetlight Founder and CEO Laura Schewel in a 2022 interview with Smart Cities Dive. “Big data brings huge efficiencies to a lot of the planning process and the operational and management processes.”
“Transportation has big challenges, and we have big ambitions to help meet them,” Schewel stated in the Thursday press release.
TomTom’s vice president for traffic and travel information, Ralf-Peter Schäfer, stated, “By combining our data from millions of trips globally with StreetLight’s industry-tailored solutions, we enable transportation planners, road authorities and businesses to make informed, accurate decisions, thereby reducing congestion and improving mobility.”