Slotting into the future city with smart intersections
Andrew Lee, Octo Telematics
Andrew Lee, the head of Market Intelligence and analysis at Octo Telematics examines worsening road congestion and the possibility of using wearable technology to integrate everyone using the roads to create a smooth traffic flow.
It’s been over 100 years since a Detroit policeman invented the basis for traffic lights throughout the world – an electric light with two colours: green and red. Since then, motoring has moved on to futuristic technology such as the driverless car, telematics and GPS to provide advanced driving data. By contrast, the only advancement for the traffic light since 1912 has been the addition of the colour amber. However, we are still relying on the traffic light to manage the roads.
The problem is that there’s a lot more traffic on the roads in 2016 than there was in 1912 and the trusty old traffic light is struggling. Shockingly, in the UK alone, traffic congestion is expected to cost around £300 billion pounds over the next 16 years. We need a better way to manage traffic and telematics could be the answer. By equipping cars with technology that can monitor road conditions, as well as analyse and receive information to control their movement, we could increase the efficiency of our roads and traffic flow.
This is where so-called Smart intersections come in. MIT has been working on a ‘slot’ traffic management system similar to airplane traffic control. The system would produce a ‘just-on-time’ flow of traffic and would eliminate queues and delays to reduce petrol consumption and gas emissions. It needn’t be expensive or require an overhaul of current manufacturing as many modern cars are already equipped with the GPS and communications equipment that would be necessary for communicating with road management systems. This is especially true for driverless cars. Any automated car will already have advanced telematics to make sense of road conditions for safety. These same safety features can, of course, also be used to ensure a steady and smooth flow of traffic.
However, these systems may be great for cars, but what about other road users? While motorbikes can have the tech built into them in the same way as cars, most pedestrians or even cyclists don’t generally come equipped with modern communications equipment as standard. Here’s where wearables may also play a role. With smartwatches and wristbands, it could be possible to use an app to further communicate with the intersections and other vehicles to provide an extra level of safety. The app would be able to transmit a signal to the intersection and then slot the pedestrian or cyclist into the system. In the event of a device failure, sensors and cameras integrated with the crossing can provide a backup.
Fully integrating pedestrians into the road ecosystem can lead to less disruption. While one person is trying to cross the road, the system could also be searching for other pedestrians nearby. Changing the lights would then be delayed until there is a ‘critical mass’ of people waiting to cross and avoid stopping cars too often. At the same time, the intersection would detect when everyone is safely across the road, ensuring that there’s no time wasted allowing cars to carry on, while also making sure that slower walkers have plenty of time to cross. But finding ways to incorporate non-drivers into the system needn’t solely be limited to pedestrians. The ‘bus lane of the future’, for example, could be created by giving right of way to buses with large numbers of passengers. This could be detected through a hybrid of data from multiple wearables on the bus or the bus’ own telematics system.
There’s still a lot of work to be done in developing and trialling smart intersections, However, it is clear that something needs to happen to reduce traffic congestion and pollution in the urban environment. What’s important is to design a system that can take into account the large number of cars in the road and manage it successfully and safely. Smart solutions from the IoT such as this can save you money, as well as potentially save your life. Most traffic accidents take place in built-up areas where congestion leads to frustration and the increased risk of a collision. With the advent of the smart intersection, this pattern could change, and cut the costs to urban motoring for both drivers and insurers.