Startup Company Targets Blocked Crossings with Sensor Network
Oculus Rail, a startup company based in Norfolk, Va., wants to cure a railroad headache: Frequently blocked grade crossings that frustrate motorists and communities alike.
The company aims to build a grade-crossing sensor network that can help reroute traffic and emergency vehicles around blocked crossings. Oculus Rail — which launched a smartphone app last week after a yearlong pilot program at 40 grade crossings in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia — says its system can monitor crossings, collect data, and provide alerts in real time.
The data also can help communities determine the most problematic grade crossings — and then find solutions, ranging from building overpasses to coordinating traffic signals so alternate routes don’t become plugged when a busy crossing is blocked.
