December 23, 2019 – There are over 530,000 people who live in the Region of Waterloo, Ontario, and the Region includes prestigious universities, innovative businesses, and thriving urban centers—all connected by a high-quality transit system and the scenic Grand River.
Waterloo Region began installation of the EMTRAC system in 2012, continuing to expand the system in the following years.
Waterloo Region successfully executed interagency cooperation, with different departments purchasing and installing the EMTRAC system for their specific area of responsibility.
The Region began by deploying the EMTRAC system, starting with installation at intersections and on EMS vehicles. Grand River Transit, which is the Region’s public bus service, began installing the EMTRAC system on buses in 2013, allowing for Transit Signal Priority (TSP).
The Region’s 11 Paramedic Service Stations, as well as the Grand River Transit garages, are equipped with EMTRAC vehicle interrogators. The interrogators wirelessly transfer detailed activity data from equipped vehicles, and they also upload vehicle-configuration changes as needed.
Region of Waterloo’s Traffic Systems Management Centre displays real-time activity for all equipped intersections and vehicles.
Each year, the Region of Waterloo and Grand River Transit continue installing EMTRAC system equipment at additional intersections, on ambulances, and on buses. Equipped buses are able to request Transit Signal Priority (TSP) at all equipped intersections. For cases where an equipped ambulance and bus simultaneously request priority through the same intersection, the ambulance is granted priority.