Oh by gosh, by golly, the U.S. Department of Transportation and billionaire Paul Allen are offering $50 million to the winner of a Smart City competition intended to solve traffic problems with high tech solutions.

$50 million!

The USDOT competition is aimed at midsize cities. Yes, with a population greater than 200,000, Spokane is eligible for the contest.

The goal, as the transportation department says, is create a "fully integrated, first-of-its-kind city that uses data, technology and creativity to shape how people and goods move in the future. The winning city will ... implement bold, data-driven ideas by making transportation safer, easier, and more reliable."

DOT will give the winning city $40 million, and Allen's company, Vulcan, will supply $10 million.

Wired credits the oddly cool government contest driving innovation to Anthony Foxx, the department's leader.

"The challenge represents a new way of working for the DOT, one tailored to a rapidly changing world," the magazine reports. "That shift is largely the work of Anthony Foxx, President Obama’s secretary of transportation since July, 2013. His job—make the US transportation system as safe and efficient as possible—is the same given to his predecessor."

City officials say they're looking into what the contest requires, but I say let's get the ideas rolling.

What sort of data-driven transportation improvements can be done?