Sidewalk Labs announced that it is building “Flow,” a digital platform that seeks to address the real-time transit problem and more. Flow will aggregate and analyze mobility data from a great number of sources—including Google Maps, Waze, municipal data, and eventually, remote traffic sensors—to identify what’s causing congestion and which areas need what kind of service. This won’t just be software for transit officials to lord over, though. Flow will also have a public, outward-facing element in the form of digital kiosks that provide real-time transit information and wifi, similar to those currently in beta testing by Link NYC. That way, “citizens without a smartphone or data plan use new dynamic mobility services”. The kiosks will also include remote sensors that anonymously gauge parking availability, traffic flow, and rider demand. Eventually, those sensors could be used to test and regulate autonomous cars.

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