Delaware County uses AI traffic cameras to ease congestion on Lancaster Avenue

RADNOR TOWNSHIP, PA. - Radnor Township is turning to artificial intelligence to help manage traffic along Lancaster Avenue, a route notorious for daily backups.

Township officials say the newly expanded AI-driven traffic light system aims to keep cars moving more smoothly during peak hours.

Additional intersections added

Timeline:

The project, which began in 2020 with seven intersections including the Route 76 interchange, has entered its second phase. This week, seven additional heavily traveled intersections along Lancaster Avenue, including the complex six-leg Sproul Road intersection, were brought online.

What they're saying:

Township engineer Stephen Norcini told FOX 29's Shawnette Wilson that traditional solutions, like adding lanes, are difficult in the area. Instead, the AI system relies on cameras and sensors to collect real-time data, feeding it into algorithms that adjust green light timing based on traffic conditions, he said. 

"There are conflict monitors so that you don’t get green all around," Norcini noted.

Local residents, long accustomed to congestion, are hopeful. Dorothea Davis, who commutes daily along Route 30 in Radnor, said, "Traffic is crazy, especially as the weather warms up. If they can regulate the lights to keep traffic moving smoothly, I’m all for that."

Township leaders are optimistic that AI technology will provide a noticeable improvement for drivers along Lancaster Avenue in the coming months.