The North Carolina Turnpike Authority (NCTA), in partnership with Valerann, is launching a pilot of Lanternn by Valerann™ on the I‑485 Express Lanes in Charlotte, reinforcing the agency’s commitment to innovation, roadway safety, and future-ready transportation operations.

The initiative aims to enhance real-time awareness of roadway conditions and support operators in maintaining safe, efficient travel along one of the region’s most active corridors.

The pilot focuses on identifying roadway impacts such as crashes, stopped or slowed vehicles, pedestrians on the roadway, wrong-way drivers, and other abnormal conditions that disrupt traffic flow. Lanternn gathers and analyzes real-time data from NCTA’s existing traffic camera network, navigation platforms, and additional third-party sources.

This automated approach detects incidents earlier, verifies them faster, and reduces reliance on continuous manual camera monitoring. Today, operators must scan multiple camera feeds to spot potential issues; Lanternn accelerates this process and improves accuracy by automatically identifying potential or verified impacts.

For example, if traffic begins to slow, the platform proactively searches for contributing factors and delivers earlier alerts to operators.

“This pilot on the I-485 Express Lanes reflects our commitment to practical, innovative solutions that improve visibility along the corridor, strengthen roadway safety, and help our operations teams respond quickly to incidents while keeping traffic moving efficiently,” said J.J. Eden, Executive Director of the North Carolina Turnpike Authority.

Lanternn by Valerann™ is an AI-enabled cloud platform currently used by roadway operators across the United States, Europe, and Latin America. Its deployments have earned multiple industry recognitions, including awards from IBTTA and the European Commission for advancements in intelligent transportation technologies.

(Picture: Valerann)