Kozminski Techblog

With the growing amount of cars on the roads, the probability of a traffic jam increases significantly. In 2015 it was estimated that there are 1.3 billion vehicles on the public roads by 2040 this figure could go over a 2 billion mark [1]. The current traffic management system is simply not suitable for the number of cars we have today. They lack a component that would allow them to adapt to weather conditions, accidents, jams and other situations on the road [1]. Moreover, most of the present traffic lights rely on timers that tell them when to switch the light back to red or green [1]. Although the construction of modern interchanges has had a small impact on the traffic issue we can use new computer systems, AI specifically, to reduce the number of cars being stuck in a “dead” not-moving jam or remove the congestions completely. In order to, reduce the amount of traffic being stuck, we firstly should get to the core of the problem and understand how many cars are out there on each street, motorway, the direction at which they are going and so on [2]. This results in huge amounts of data that should be carefully analyzed, thankfully, the implementation of video cameras and AI systems will allow us to do that.

The Pittsburgh-based “Surtrac” analyzes surrounding at interchanges by using cameras and radars, the data then gets transmitted to the AI system which investigates the information and regulates the traffic lights to ensure the best traffic flow. The company states that they helped people to get to their destinations 25% faster, cutting over 40% of the time spent at intersections, approximately from 30-40% of stops reducing the tyre wear [3]. Moreover, the system decreased the car idling by 20% which lessened the amount of CO2 being exhausted from cars [5]. The cost of implementing a system at a single intersection is valued at $20,000 [3]. The system is realized at 50 intersections and is waiting to be utilized with 150 more on the way [3]. The system has brought several benefits to Pittsburg decreasing not only the number of traffic jams but also contributing to the reduction of greenhouse emissions. The organization currently works to minimize the waiting time for pedestrians too as well as developing a mobile application to communicate with its users. Similar projects have already seen a launch in different countries around the world [3]. For instance, Toyota Mobility Foundation is developing an AI-Powered traffic management system, smart shuttle services, park schemes alongside Bangkok’s officials to solve the traffic flow on Rama IV Road the main expressway in Bangkok [4].

The rapidly growing amount of transport on public roads worldwide requires modern solutions to ensure smooth and uninterrupted traffic flow. Today the outdated traffic systems are not capable of managing the grown amount of traffic. Future IT software is promising to find a solution to this issue. The systems will bring several benefits to the traffic management and assist big cities governments and their citizens to enjoy better traffic flow and decreased amount of pollution which severely harms the quality of air.

Works Cited

1. Baker, F. (2018, December 12). The technology that could end traffic jams. Retrieved November 24, 2019, from https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20181212-can-artificial-intelligence-end-traffic-jams.
2. Intelligent Video Traffic Monitoring for Self-Adaptive Traffic Signal Control System. (2019, March 22). Retrieved November 24, 2019, from https://www.advantech.com/resources/case-study/intelligent-video-traffic-monitoring-for-self-adaptive-traffic-signal-control-system.
3.  Snow, J. (2017, July 20). This AI traffic system in Pittsburgh has reduced travel time by 25%. Retrieved November 24, 2019, from https://www.smartcitiesdive.com/news/this-ai-traffic-system-in-pittsburgh-has-reduced-travel-time-by-25/447494/.
4.  Stone, T. (2019, November 20). Toyota Mobility Foundation supporting project to ease traffic congestion in Bangkok. Retrieved November 24, 2019, from https://www.traffictechnologytoday.com/news/congestion-reduction/toyota-mobility-foundation-supporting-project-to-ease-traffic-congestion-in-bangkok.html.
5.  Surtrac Smart Traffic Signals: Adaptive Traffic Control System. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2019, from https://www.rapidflowtech.com/.