Traffic congestion is a major problem in most cities due to increased population and vehicle usage resulting in roads quickly becoming incapable of managing the traffic. Advanced road traffic management systems, or SMART traffic management systems, are now being developed to ameliorate the safety and efficiency of transportation infrastructure.

Smart Cities Do More With Less

We are all aware of the issues affecting our roads and highways.  Delivery delays and missed productivity are bad for business. Bottlenecks cause emergency vehicles to move more slowly, potentially endangering lives. And all of it reduces the standard of living in the city.

While this is happening, cities, civil engineers, and highway maintenance personnel. Innovative cities, or “Smart Cities,” utilize a coordinated array of hardware, software, and cloud solutions to boost traffic flow and enhance safety in the face of these obstacles. Intelligent Transportation Systems.

These systems can use sensors, cameras, routers, cellular technology, and freeway on-ramp meters to dynamically change control mechanisms like traffic signals, highway message boards, bus rapid transit lanes, and even speed restrictions in order to improve safety and traffic flow.

Special Importance

Traffic congestion charges due to peak/off-peak volumes and is a recurrent concept drift whereas an accident or breakdown is a non-recurrent concept drift. Special importance is placed on identifying non-recurrent concept drifts as they could affect the entire road network. Therefore, the SMART road traffic management system collects and analyses data. This in turn can be relayed back to the motorist as information on Variable Message Signs(VMS). An example of this is the new road traffic management system recently introduced on the M50 between Palmerstown and Finglas junctions. When a breakdown or accident occurs, traffic controllers have the ability to advise motorists of the appropriate safe speed to travel and to inform them of which lanes are blocked ahead, diverting them into alternative lanes as necessary. The ‘Smart Traffic Management Platform’ (STMP) is an expansive intelligent traffic data integration and analysis platform, which integrates heterogeneous traffic data sources. The purpose of this type of system is to predict such non-recurrent events and bottlenecks and put in place control measures to counteract them.

Another example of a similar SMART traffic management system can be found in the UK where the hard shoulder can sometimes be used to accommodate vehicles in peak traffic flows. The use of the hard shoulder lanes is governed by arrows on VMS above each lane combined with advisory speed limits. There are some safety concerns over this system as the hard shoulder is designed for emergency use and breakdowns only and when that refuge is taken away and the lane fully opened to all vehicles, vehicles that break down are stranded in ‘live’ lanes of traffic.