Milestone Systems collaborated with the City of Dubuque, Iowa, to enhance traffic management — a project powered by Milestone’s XProtect VMS and Vaidio’s Vision AI platform.

Dubuque sought to maximize the value of its expansive video network — over 1,300 cameras citywide. While these cameras provided extensive coverage, city officials wanted to go beyond basic monitoring to extract actionable intelligence that could improve traffic management and public safety.

Through the collaboration with Milestone Systems and Vaidio, Dubuque has deployed a smart traffic insights solution that integrates real-time video analytics with traffic signal systems. The platform enables automated traffic monitoring and incident detection, allowing the city to make data-driven decisions that enhance mobility and efficiency.

“We wanted to leverage our existing investments in video infrastructure to not only improve traffic flow but also enhance public safety and emergency response,” said

Dave Ness, traffic engineering manager for the City of Dubuque. “Milestone’s open platform video technology has allowed us to integrate cutting-edge analytics and create a truly intelligent traffic management system.”

CEO of Milestone Systems Thomas Jensen stresses that the company is committed to helping cities like Dubuque unlock the full potential of video technology to create smarter, safer, and more efficient urban environments. “Our collaboration with the City of Dubuque demonstrates how intelligent video solutions can transform traffic management and enhance quality of life for residents,” he said

The implementation of this technology has already delivered measurable benefits to Dubuque’s residents:

• Reduced Travel Times: Optimized traffic signals and real-time monitoring have led to smoother traffic flow, cutting down commute times and reducing congestion.
• Improved Public Safety: Faster emergency response times and enhanced incident detection have contributed to a safer urban environment.
• Increased Operational Efficiency: Automated processes free up city personnel to focus on high-value tasks, ensuring resources are used effectively.
• Environmental Benefits: Reduced idling times lead to lower fuel consumption and emissions, supporting Dubuque’s sustainability initiatives.

By integrating Vaidio’s Vision AI platform with Milestone’s XProtect VMS, the City of Dubuque has enhanced its traffic management system with advanced video analytics. The solution enables real-time traffic monitoring, counting vehicle volumes, analyzing turn movements, and refining signal timing for optimized flow. Automated anomaly detection helps identify wrong-way vehicles, accidents, and other hazards, allowing for quicker response.

Additionally, the system tracks pedestrians and cyclists, supporting the city's broader transportation and safety initiatives. Because Vaidio works with any camera and allows a wide variety of analytics functions to be performed on each camera, even switching between functions as needed, the City of Dubuque was able to leverage existing hardware and minimize total cost of ownership.

“Working together with Milestone and Dubuque allowed us to tailor our AI models to address the city's unique traffic challenges,” said David Jenkins, vice president of software architecture, Vaidio. “This collaboration has driven real-world improvements in how cities leverage video analytics for transportation.”

The Dubuque project has also been part of the foundation for Milestone’s Project Hafnia which was announced together with NVIDIA in March.

“The City of Dubuque’s use of AI-powered video analytics for traffic management aligns with Milestone’s broader innovation initiatives, including Project Hafnia,” said Jensen. “Project Hafnia leverages NVIDIA Nemo Curator, aiming to build next-generation AI models for transportation by curating and training on high-quality, compliant video data. Insights from deployments like Dubuque’s smart traffic system contribute valuable real-world data that can help enhance future AI-driven urban mobility solutions.”