The Innovative Corridors Initiative (ICI) is a multi-year project designed to encourage the early deployment of innovative technologies for Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) in California. ITS technologies are defined through a broad array of information and vehicle control technologies that are designed to improve traffic and transit management including safety, user choice, congestion, and incident response. For over a decade, ITS technologies have been gaining acceptance and are now utilized in every major metropolitan area in the United States to enhance transportation system management.
However, the full potential of ITS technologies to revolutionize transportation system management and enhance individual decisions remains to be fulfilled. A critical impediment to realizing the full potential of ITS is the dichotomy between the public sector owning and operating the roadways and transit systems for the public benefit and the private sector inventing and operating ITS technology and services with a profit motive. The ICI project was designed to address this separation between public sector mandate and private industry motivation by creating a forum where the mutual benefits to both sectors could be realized.