Summary of the Conference

The ITS Arizona Annual Conference was held on October 8–9, 2025, bringing transportation professionals together for two days of focused discussion and knowledge sharing under the theme “AI in Transportation Now!”

The conference opened with ITS Arizona’s Day-One Workshop, which convened industry leaders, researchers, and practitioners to examine how artificial intelligence is being deployed in transportation today. The workshop featured five presentations: Smarter Signal Optimization with Flow Labs, AI Object-Based Tracking Data for Traffic Signal Operations, AI-Enabled Traffic Asset Management, Driving Innovation: Strategies for Sustained and Responsible AI Deployment, and Painting a Picture of Roadway Events: AI-Powered Dashcam Insights.

The day also included a panel discussion featuring Aviral Shrivastava (Arizona State University) and Bharat Kumar Pathivada (University of Arizona), who shared academic and research perspectives on AI adoption, challenges, and future opportunities in transportation. Additional case studies highlighted AI-powered roadside asset inventory efforts with Pima County and the University of Arizona, adaptive signal optimization by NoTraffic, and advanced roadway monitoring by Iteris. Flow Labs demonstrated its Flow Platform, showcasing the application of Geospatial Artificial Intelligence (GeoAI) to support data-driven transportation decisions. The day concluded with a networking reception.

Day Two began with a keynote address by Douglas Nicholls, Mayor of the City of Yuma, titled “Yuma Spaceport: Where Gravity Gets Optional.” The keynote provided a forward-looking perspective on innovation, infrastructure, and emerging mobility concepts in Arizona.

Following the keynote, attendees participated in 25 technical presentations spanning a wide range of transportation topics, with strong emphasis on artificial intelligence and emerging technologies. Attendees also engaged with conference sponsors and exhibitors throughout the day. During lunch, the Past Presidents’ Awards were presented, highlighting the excellent work being done in the region. In addition, the ITS Arizona Member of the Year was announced, the Graduate Student Paper Award was presented and the results of the elections for the 2024 ITS Arizona Board of Directors were announced.

The 2025 ITS Arizona Annual Conference continued the organization’s tradition of strong attendance and industry engagement, reinforcing ITS Arizona’s commitment to advancing innovative and responsible transportation solutions across the region.

Final Conference Program | Download Here

Day 1 Workshop: Autonomous Vehicles AV Summit

Workshop Moderator: Jeff Jenq, Director, Advanced Mobility & TSMO, AECOM
Opening Remarks:

FEATURE PRESENTATIONS

Smarter Signal Optimization with Flow Labs, Jatish Patel, Flow Labs
AI Object-Based Tracking Data for Traffic Signal Operations, Tyler Houston, NoTraffic
AI-Enabled Traffic Asset Management, Joseph Sweet, Pima County, and James Tsai, Georgia Institute of Technology
Driving Innovation: Strategies for Sustained and Responsible AI Deployment, Morgan Fincher, ITS America
Painting a Picture of Roadway Events: AI-Powered Dashcam Insights, Masoud Hamedi, Iteris

PANEL DISCUSSION

Day 2 Presentations

SESSION 1A— ITS Performance Measures (CRISMON / SIRRINE ROOM): Moderator – Arthur J. Dock, City of Apache Junction

– ITS Tool Box, John Hansen, Olsson

– Evaluating and Evolving the MAG Traffic Signal Optimization Program (TSOP) to Meet Future Regional Needs, Yongzhao Peng & Justice Berumen, MAG

– Network-Level Vehicle Delay Estimation at Heterogeneous Signalized Intersections OR A Domain Adaptation Framework for Turning Movement Count Estimation with Limited Data, Xiaobo Ma & Hyunsoo Noh, PAG

SESSION 1B— ITS Applications to Improve Safety (POMEROY/ ROBSON ROOM): Moderator – David Lucas, MAG

– ADOT Wrong-way Detection Cameleon Dashboard Upgrade, Joan Lovell & Kendra Johnson, ADOT

– Automated Intersection Safety and Conflict Analysis Navigator Tool (AI-SCAN), Omkar Nitin Chorge, NAU

– Advancing ADAS and ADS for Safer Roads, Seth Chalmers, Dibble

SESSION 1C— Traffic Management & Improving Operations (CONFERENCE THEATER): Susan Anderson, ADOT

– Perception-Based Adaptive Traffic Management, Jamie Mackey, Olsson

– How AI-Driven Signal Operations Improve Seasonal Traffic in Page, AZ, Joe Marioni, Western Systems & Prachi Dalal, Currux Vision

– Camera Analytics Part 2: A(Eye), Kendra Johnson & Steven Cheshko, ADOT

SESSION 2A— Improving Safety with ITS in Rural Environments (CRISMON / SIRRINE ROOM): Moderator – Kiran Guntupalli, City of Surprise

– Getting from here to there safely a review of feature panel at ITE/NRITS 2025 Conference Rural safety/ITS: Kevin Elliot, National Center for Rural Road Safety, Jatish Patel, Flow Labs & Blake Hansen, Olsson, Alex Clegg, USDOT & Jeremiah Pearce, Caltrans and Western States Rural Coalition

SESSION 2B— Innovative Traffic Signal Operations (POMEROY/ ROBSON ROOM): Moderator – Sanjay Paul, Mobility Matrix, LLC

– Revolutionizing Emergency Preemption in the City of Surprise, Carter Liu & Ethan McDaniel, Kimley-Horn

– How Connected Signals Save Seconds—and Lives—in Phoenix, Donald Wang, Western Systems, Nitkita Singh, Yunex Traffic

– Controller Changes for Light Rail Operations for the City of Mesa, Steve Hall & Micah Henry, City of Mesa

SESSION 2C— Improving ITS Safety (CONFERENCE THEATER): Moderator – Sarah Schmid, WSP

– Improving School Zone Safety with ITS: Results from a Variable Speed Limit Implementation, Denise Baker, Y2K & Austin Kennedy, City of Peoria

– Designing Intelligent Roadside LiDAR: Resolution-Aware Perception and Scalable Deployment for Traffic Safety, Dajiang Suo, ASU

– Generative AI for Vulnerable Road Users, Ahmed Darrat & Nat Gale, INRIX

SESSION 3A— ITS Public Outreach and Regional Partnerships (CRISMON / SIRRINE ROOM): Moderator – Helayne Dominguez, City of Scottsdale

– Portable Traffic Signals and Pedestrian Crossings for Complex Urban Work Zones: A Case Study from Scottsdale, AZ, Brady Markell, Street Smart

– I-10 Broadway Curve: Managing Construction in “Real-Time”, Michael Washowiak, Iteris, Inc.

– Construction Partnership Program: Leveraging Technology and Interagency Cooperation, Dan Nall & George Villarreal, AtkinsRealis

SESSION 3B— Improving Safety with ITS (POMEROY/ ROBSON ROOM): Moderator –Amr Shafik, U of A

– Evaluation of Yellow Change and Red Clearance Intervals on Arizona’s State Highway System, Felipe Ladron De Guevara, Kittleson & Associates, Bill Stone, ADOT

– Deep Learning Computer Vision to Improve Detection Performance, Christopher Cassani, Miovision

– Yellow Interval Adjustments and Their Safety Impact: Data-Driven Insights from Before–After Analysis, Simon Ramos, City of Phoenix & Pouya Jalali Khalilabadi, U of A

SESSION 3C— Expanded ITS Applications (CONFERENCE THEATER) Moderator – Deanna Haase, Kimley-Horn

– Connected Vehicle Acceleration Zone: Advancing CV Use-Cases Through Large-Scale Deployment and Testing in Maricopa County, Joe Cottrell, MCDOT, Virginia Lingham, WSP

– Building the Future of V2X: Phoenix Region Activities Supporting the CV Pooled Fund Study, Christopher Toth & Frank Perry, WSP

– From Big Data to Smart Decisions: Using Connected Vehicle Data to Power Regional Transportation Systems, Yongzhao Peng & Wang Zhang, MAG