Experiences and results from vehicle classification using infrared overhead laser sensors at toll plazas in New York City

For the first time, the operation of overhead laser sensors based on infrared technology could be evaluated under difficult traffic conditions and for a very large data volume. Evaluation of 2.3 million vehicle classifications for vehicle passages at 8 commercial toll plazas yielded a mean classification accuracy of 98.5%. The proportion of heavy traffic amounted to 12.8%. Data collection took place in November 1998 under difficult weather and installation conditions.