• Bryan Gonzalez
• Apr 10, 2026

Senior computer science major Benjamin Mingst checks data from a car-mounted prototype device on March 25 at a parking lot on North Alafaya Trail. The prototype is designed to collect traffic information and other road data from nearby intersections.

Bryan Gonzalez

As pedestrian safety concerns persist around campus, UCF student Benjamin Mingst is taking matters into his own hands, using a car-mounted camera to collect traffic data and pinpoint dangerous intersections.

“The goal of the project is to improve the response time to hit-and-runs and to pedestrian collisions,” Mingst, senior computer science major, said. “Because when a hit-and-run happens, 911 isn’t often called for hours, and that can leave someone stranded.”

The device is a prototype that uses cameras, a LiDAR scanner and two thermal scanners to collect various data sets. Mingst said the technology works similarly to a self-driving vehicle, where multiple components combine to create a 3D map of the surrounding environment.

Although the technology is still in development, Mingst hopes to transform the class project into a company.

“Over the next few months we are going to turn what you see here into a pilotable version; which means no stray wires out and make it look like a nice little box,” Mingst said

LABBRA Systems, a startup company created by Mingst, is an acronym that represents the names of six students and pedestrians killed near the UCF campus, according to its website.

According to data from the Florida Highway Patrol, Orange County reported 732 pedestrian crashes in 2025, up about 7.5% from 2024.

Pushes to improve pedestrian safety are not new for areas around UCF. Last year, The Charge reported that Orange County spent $13.2 million to install pedestrian signals and sidewalk railings on University Boulevard.

In Orlando, broader initiatives to improve pedestrian safety — including the city’s Vision Zero plan — are part of an international movement aiming to reach zero traffic fatalities by 2040, according to the city of Orlando's website.

Laura Hardwicke, a safety mobility manager for Orlando, said technologies like cameras can help improve safety at intersections, but no single solution can address the issue on its own.

“I think if there were one solution, it wouldn’t be as hard of a problem to solve as it is,” Hardwicke said. “I’m very excited about what technology can do for traffic safety, but it can’t just exist on its own.”

Hardwicke said the Vision Zero plan incorporates technology as part of the safe system approach to improving traffic safety, a strategy adopted nationwide to reduce roadway deaths and serious injuries.

Since the creation of the Vision Zero plan in 2021, Hardwicke said Orlando has implemented projects such as enhancing street lighting and installing new crosswalks to improve safety.

“Over the course of the past five years we have seen a 40% reduction in serious injury, and fatal crashes in the City of Orlando,” Hardwicke said.

Mingst said he hopes to see the system on the road within the next two years and was inspired to take on this project based on his own experience walking to campus.

“I think more needs to be done, and I’m trying to do something about it,” Mingst said.