Smart City Works Announces Pitch and Pilot: Pedestrian/Bike Safety Innovation Challenge

Fairfax County, March 17, 2021 – Smart City Works Inc.’s...

April 22, 2021

Registration now open for Innovation competition focused on engaging diverse teams to develop smart city solutions.

Fairfax County, March 17, 2021 – Smart City Works Inc.’s Innovation Hub (a 501c3 organization) and Fairfax County, in partnership with Virginia’s Center for Innovative Technology (CIT), announced the launch of Pitch and Pilot: Fairfax County Innovation Challenge, an innovation competition where teams and companies propose high-impact solutions to address bicycle and pedestrian safety. The goal of the Challenge is to find, and ultimately pilot, innovative solutions to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety in Fairfax County’s increasingly multimodal transportation landscape. Registration is now open, and the competition will conclude with a public pitch contest on April 21st .

The Challenge is open to all participants who are passionate about improving bicycle and pedestrian safety in Northern Virginia (NOVA) and the greater DC metropolitan region.  All teams—from college students and start-ups to entrepreneurs and technologists, are welcome to apply. We are particularly interested in and encouraging women- and minority-led technology teams/ ventures to apply.

The winning team will be selected based on innovation, practicality, scalability, safety, and equity and inclusivity of their solution. A panel of smart city experts will serve as judges. The winning team will also have an opportunity to pilot their solution in Fairfax County, Virginia’s largest county.

“We are excited to continue to build on NOVA’s exceptional innovation ecosystem with the Fairfax County Innovation Challenge, and to help bring forth much-needed innovations to improve pedestrian and biker safety and community health outcomes for all,” said Carola Mandelbaum, Executive Director of Smart City Works, Inc.

“Innovation lives in Fairfax County.  This is an exciting opportunity for Fairfax to continue to leverage emerging technology to explore creative mobility solutions and to understand their impact in making the County safer place for pedestrians and bicyclists,” noted Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn, Chair of the Fairfax County Transportation Committee.

To learn more about the Challenge and to register, visit: https://www.smartcityworks.org/fairfax-innovation-challenge/

About Smart City Challenge Organizers

Smart City Works, Inc. is a nonprofit organization that empowers communities to solve urban challenges and improve economic growth, through technology innovation. Working with partners in government, universities, businesses, and nonprofits, welead the Northern Virginia Smart Region Initiative.  The Smart Region Initiative’s goal is to help establish Northern Virginia as a world center of excellence for urban technology innovation, and a destination for digital technology companies to build and grow their businesses. Smart City Works is a proud winner of and is supported by regional innovation and economic development grants from the U.S. Department of Commerce and GO Virginia.

Fairfax County is Virginia’s largest county with 1.1 million residents and the home of eleven Fortune 500 companies make Fairfax the go-to for smart technology. Professional, scientific, and technical services account for 25 percent of employment in the county (four times the national average). And we are home to innovative startups, hundreds of companies from other countries, and a vibrant minority business community.

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