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How much does a traffic count cost? Manual counters vs. AI video
Enter how many intersections and hours you need to count. You will see right away what it costs with counters in the field and what it costs with video analysis.
What a manual traffic count costs
A manual count is priced by person-hours, so its cost grows with every hour and every counter. Typical prices for a turning movement count in the United States:
| Count | Typical price |
|---|---|
| One intersection, 2-hour AM and 2-hour PM peaks | USD 250 to 450 |
| One intersection, 12 hours | USD 500 to 900 |
Source: Aptocoiner, How much does a traffic study cost? (updated August 2026)
With two counters on a four-hour count, that range works out to about USD 30 to 55 per counter-hour, which is where the calculator's default of USD 42 comes from. The same four hours of video cost USD 28 with YOAO, and a 12-hour count costs USD 84. Video analysis costs the same per hour whatever the count length, so the gap grows with every hour you add.
Manual count vs. counting from video
| Manual count | AI video count | |
|---|---|---|
| Field staff | One or two counters per intersection for the whole period. | One fixed camera, drone or phone recording each location. |
| Cost | Person-hours in the field plus office time. | USD 7 per hour of video, with no fixed fee or minimum. |
| Verification | Only the counter's sheet or board file. | Annotated video with every vehicle marked, so anyone can audit it. |
| Intervals | Whatever was set before going to the field. | Every 5, 15, 30 or 60 minutes, or per signal cycle. |
| Vehicle classes | The ones the counters can tell apart in real time. | The classes your study needs, defined by you. |
| Deliverable | Count sheets to clean up and reconcile. | Excel, CSV and an executive PDF with charts and origin and destination. |
What traffic studies use video counts for
Traffic impact studies, signal timing, pedestrian and public space counts, bike lanes, drone surveys and before and after measurements around a construction project. The analysis runs on YOAO, Robotipy's video analysis platform: you upload the video, mark the approaches and get counts by movement and vehicle type. If you count manually today, our guide on how to do a traffic count explains the format and the peak hour factor, with a free Excel template.
Frequently asked questions
What is a turning movement count?
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It is a count of the vehicles that enter an intersection, split by approach, by movement (left, through or right) and usually by vehicle type, in 15-minute intervals. It is the basis of traffic impact studies, signal timing and intersection design.
How much does a manual traffic count cost?
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It is the sum of every counter's hours in the field plus the office time to clean up the data and build the report. Industry guides put a turning movement count at one intersection, with a 2-hour AM and a 2-hour PM peak, at USD 250 to 450, and a 12-hour count at USD 500 to 900. With YOAO you pay USD 7 per hour of video analyzed, with no fixed fee, and you only need to record.
What video works for a traffic count?
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Video from a fixed camera, a drone or a phone, in MP4, MOV, AVI or MKV. You mark the approaches and the movements to count on a frame of the video, with no coding. High-altitude drone video and live streams cost USD 14 per hour.
What do I get from a video count?
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An annotated video with every vehicle marked, counts every 5, 15, 30 or 60 minutes or per signal cycle with the peak window, an origin and destination matrix by movement, counts by vehicle type and reports in Excel, CSV and PDF.
Can I use my own vehicle classes?
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Yes. Each vehicle is classified from its image, and you can define the classes your study needs, for example school buses, taxis or local bus types, instead of a fixed list.
How do I check that the count is right?
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Every vehicle is marked in the annotated video, so you can review any interval and compare it with the count. A manual count only leaves the counter's sheet, with nothing to audit.
How is YOAO billed?
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With credits: 1 credit is 1 minute of video and a pack of 60 credits costs USD 7. High-altitude drone video and live streams use 2 credits per minute. There are no licenses, installation or monthly fees, and prices are before taxes.
Keep going
- How to do a traffic count
Format, peak hour factor and a free Excel template for turning movement counts.
- Computer vision for businesses
Queues, parking, yards, safety and custom projects with your cameras.
- YOAO: AI video analysis
Robotipy's platform for vehicle and pedestrian counts from video.