The City of London is going through an unprecedented combination of challenges to traditional policy making, including a rapidly changing vehicle mix, the highest petroleum prices on record and a well publicised walking and cycling revolution requiring greater consideration of non motorized users amongst motorized modes. London is the largest single authority using SCOOT – the world‟s leading adaptive signal control system developed by TRL, the UK‟s Transport Research Laboratory. With 2000 intersections in London under SCOOT control and a program to increase this number to 3000 by 2014, SCOOT is one of the single most important congestion relief measures that Transport for London have under their control. But SCOOT is more than just traffic control; it now aligns with new policies by allowing much greater consideration of pedestrian needs. Dynamic demand of pedestrians wishing to cross at SCOOT controlled intersections is now possible with the latest release of the SCOOT kernel, giving operators a much required platform to ensure all road users are catered for equally. Providing first hand information from London, this paper will explore the potential for existing traffic control technology in North America to learn from international experience of multi-modal decision making, whilst also giving due consideration to traditional aims of transport policy including smoothing traffic flow, reducing CO2 emissions and improving safety at intersections.
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