Last Call From Port Authority for High Schoolers to Take the Robot Catwalk Challenge

The narrow catwalks along the Holland and Lincoln Tunnels will be resurrected for emergency response use once New York and New Jersey high schoolers have had the opportunity to reimagine how to best utilize the paths for emergency response in today's day and age. 

The narrow paths inside the tunnels have been decommissioned for a decade but were previously used by Port Authority police to respond to vehicle emergencies inside the Holland and Lincoln tunnels. 

The call went out from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, calling on regional high schools to participate in the three-month challenge to conceptualize and design a robotic machine to traverse the catwalks and serve as the first line of communication to operations staff at the tunnels. Students were invited to submit proposals that needed to include a method for tunnel staff to communicate with stopped vehicles using built-in cameras while not obstructing traffic.

The program application period will close on October 4. The selection committee will judge the students' ideas based on potential effectiveness and feasibility during a student exposition hosted by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The winning team's school will receive $750 to go toward their S.T.E.M. or robotics program, along with the possibility of the idea being adopted and built by the agency.

For more information on the application process, click here.

To download the application, click here.

Photo Credit: Port Authority of NY & NJ