This abbreviation may be coming to other transit elevators if it proves its snuff in Atlanta: UDD, short for Urine Detection Device. The sensors and the camera will force offenders to find appropriate places to relieve themselves, or risk arrest.
The good news for users of Atlanta’s transit elevators can’t come soon enough, explains John Bachman of WSB-TV, Atlanta in this newscast about the new program deployed by Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA).
The olfactory problem is "about to change with first-of-its-kind technology which catches 'offenders' literally -- with their pants down," he explains in the newscast. It all comes down to the "splash factor".
credit: WSBTV - Atlanta
Standing in an elevator, MARTA Director of Elevators/Escalators Tom Beebe tells Bachman (with a straight face) how UDD works. "If somebody was to urinate in here, there's going to be a splash factor. It would splash and it [camera points to UDD in elevator] would sense," Beebe said.
Bachman explains that “if a person relieves her or himself, the sensors sound the alarm and the MARTA police will be there in seconds to catch the offender in the act.”
The pilot program has been in place for a month, and that daily problem dropped to one incident, in which an arrest was made.
The cost: $10,000 per UDD - which MARTA can probably recoup in reduced maintenance costs. But for their transit customers who use the elevators, it may be priceless if it solves the problem.
Read the full story: Urine detection system installed in Atlanta transit station elevator
Atlanta's first BRT line opens April 18
MARTA officials say the line will operate like 'rail on rubber tires' and guarantee headways of 15 minutes or less.
MARTA’s NextGen Bus System to Relaunch With Increased Frequency, New Last-mile Rideshare Program
Atlanta’s transit agency will enhance service on some routes while compensating for service cuts on others with a new on-demand service.
MARTA Streetcar Returns February 3
Streetcar service in Atlanta was suspended for five months for repairs and upgrades.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax survives legal challenge
A panel of judges found that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate injury as a result of New York City's implementation of the tax.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Seattle passes record-breaking transit services expansion
Proposition 1 will double the city’s transit tax to add 95,000 more bus trips and preserve 180,000 bus trips annually.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority