DataCity – the nation’s first living laboratory for smart mobility and smart city technology R&D will soon make its debut in Middlesex County.

• The Smart Mobility Testing Ground (SMTG) proposed by Rutgers University’s Center for Advanced Infrastructure & Transportation (CAIT), in partnership with Middlesex County and the City of New Brunswick, will be the first-of-its-kind smart mobility test and data bed. The corridor will be fully equipped with self-driving-grade roadside sensors and computing devices to continuously collect vehicle, pedestrian, and infrastructure data from an urban corridor. A living laboratory will be established to convert the collected data into digital twin models and high-resolution field datasets to support R&D in self-driving, connected, and automated vehicle technologies.
• The DataCity initiative will provide the unique opportunity to study electric, connected, and autonomous vehicle technology; and its data will be available to companies nationwide. The data eco-system that DataCity establishes in the testing ground will significantly reduce the data acquisition and collection cost for startup companies and R&D teams. It will also provide a potential monetization platform for their own mobility data generated or collected mobility data.

Also, in partnership with CAIT and supported by the County, Verizon is developing an autonomous shuttle program running routes across medical campuses and communities. This bustling urban center boasts nationally recognized hospitals including Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and St. Peter’s University Hospital. It will offer Verizon shuttles the opportunity to serve nearly 56,000 residents and shape how healthcare transportation technology advances nationwide.

Training autonomous vehicles to drive more accurately than a human is a complicated, capital-intensive task. Several companies are deploying artificial intelligence, machine learning, and simulation to accelerate AV development at a lower cost, including Argo AI which has operations in Middlesex County.

Prior to establishing operations in Middlesex County, Argo AI saw the value of innovation occurring in Middlesex County – acquiring Princeton Lightwave Technologies based out of South Brunswick Township. The acquisition is one of only two acquisitions the company has made to date and signified the sophistication of research and development in autonomous technology occurring in Middlesex County. Argo AI continues to be one of the primary leaders in the autonomous technology and self-driving vehicle space, competing directly against Google’s Waymo, Uber Technologies, and Tesla. In July 2021, “Argo and Ford announced plans to launch at least 1,000 self-driving vehicles on Lyft’s ride-hailing network in a number of cities over the next five years” Argo AI - Deployment, TechCrunch. And, Argo AI and Walmart are working together to launch an autonomous vehicle delivery service — Walmart’s first multi-city autonomous delivery collaboration in the U.S.

Middlesex County is uniquely positioned to attract more autonomous technology advancements and related businesses to the County because of its ability to create an infrastructure and eco-system enabling this sector to grow and innovate.

• In 2019, in conjunction with Rutgers University, the City of New Brunswick – the seat of Middlesex County – was awarded an Innovation Hub Smart Mobility Testing Ground designation in the NJ Economic Development Authority Innovation Challenge. Funding for preliminary design and pilot testing was provided by the U.S. Department of Transportation University Transportation Center program at Rutgers Center for Advanced Infrastructure and Technology (CAIT). In 2021, Middlesex County, along with the Federal Highway Administration and the New Jersey Department of Transportation, jointly funded the initial deployment of a 2.5-mile smart mobility test corridor.
• The County’s forward-thinking leadership created Destination 2040, a strategic plan for long-term economic success, which specifically includes support for autonomous vehicle technology. To ensure success, the County is providing significant financial support and is leading the way on the planning, development, and management of this tech-friendly ecosystem.
• Maximizing its existing, deep relationships, the County is partnering with Rutgers University CAIT, the NJ Department of Transportation, and private companies in the creation of the Middlesex County smart mobility testing ground in New Brunswick.
• Argo AI, a company that develops robotics and AI solutions for self-driving vehicles; Veesag, which is innovating connected car solutions; IEEE, the largest professional association for electronic and electrical engineers. These are just a few of the technology companies that call Middlesex home.

Middlesex County’s transportation infrastructure provides access all throughout the Northeast Corridor. Amtrak and NJ Transit offer the most frequent service to and from New York City and are the backbone transporting residents, workers, and visitors efficiently, safely to and from the County – helping to fuel the regional economy.

Situated between exits 120 and 132 along the Garden State Parkway and exit 8A through 12 of the New Jersey Turnpike, Middlesex County is a short drive from New York, Pennsylvania, or Delaware and an easy trip to Newark Liberty International Airport (less than 40 minutes from anywhere in the County). Middlesex County is the most connected destination in New Jersey with major highways and roadways transporting residents, visitors, and workers to and from this region.

• The total working age population in Middlesex County is 677,993 of which the current labor force consists of 430,646 individuals.
• 26.2% of Middlesex County, NJ residents possess a bachelor’s degree (6.1% above the national average) and 18.1% of residents have a graduate degree or higher.
• Middlesex County has created the Office of Business Engagement to assist businesses in streamlining site selection and the entitlements process, incorporating technology to organize processes, and creating efficiencies for the benefit of the business community.
• The County is a leading investor in autonomous technology and is a pioneer in the development of a New Brunswick living lab in partnership with the Rutgers Center for Advanced Infrastructure and Transportation to enable this technology to thrive in a real-life setting.

New Jersey is consistently ranked #1 for public education in the nation and Middlesex County is home to the #1 public school in the state: The Middlesex County Academy for Science, Mathematics and Engineering Technologies, now known as the Edison Academy Magnet School. A diverse range of technical and vocational schools, union training programs, and leading institutions of higher education contribute to the fact that children who grow up in Middlesex County have higher GED and college graduation rates than 98% of students in the U.S. Explore stories about Middlesex County from the people who live in the County.

With over 40 languages spoken, diversity is the backbone of Middlesex County, which celebrates and takes pride in the strength of the community’s cultural life. From providing residents with experiences in the arts to programs that train students for careers in the arts, Middlesex County invests in its arts community.

Middlesex County embodies all the perks of small-town appeal with the benefits of city-living, providing residents with the perfect live-play-work balance.

See how you and your business can thrive in Middlesex County.