Improving transportation infrastructure has become a top priority in most countries’ agenda, especially since the number of vehicles is constantly rising. In the past decade, governments across the world have manifested a great interest towards finding and investing in solutions that help improve traffic management and bring benefits to both the private and public transport.
And since digital transformation has proven to revolutionize most industries, why would transportation be any different? By means of new technologies like deep learning and internet of things, and tools such as computer vision, intelligent transport systems have taken the transportation sector by storm and have changed our lives for the better. How? Let’s take a look.
Benefits of intelligent transport systems implementation.
The concept of intelligent transportation system is not new, it has been around since the 70s, but it isn’t only until relatively recently that it has gained quite a bit of popularity. As the transportation sector has had to face increasingly complex challenges, implementing intelligent transport systems has become a necessity; and for good reason, since it offers undeniable advantages to both transportation operators and travelers.
One of the most important benefits of intelligent transport systems is safety-related; drivers and pedestrians can enjoy safer roads, due to the real-time information that they have access to. In this sense, data is collected through sensors and cameras, passed on instantly to a traffic management center, where it is filtered and analyzed, and from where it is transmitted to the driver. The gathered data undergoes this complex process in order to transform itself into intelligent information such as that related to incidents, changes in routes, weather conditions or driving time.
By having this type of real-time information at their fingertips, whether they learn about it from specialized radio stations or through various digital channels, drivers can avoid delays in their travel time, benefit from advance warnings, and have an overall improved driving experience. Consequently, the number of road accidents is reduced, traffic flow is smoother, and response time in case of incidents is shortened.
But road users and transportation operators are not the only ones who benefit from the use of intelligent transport systems, the environment does too. Pollution is reduced due to a more efficient use of resources, noise can also be limited, and the population can enjoy a healthier environment.
Intelligent transport trends.
Some of the most popular trends in intelligent transport systems are closely related to new technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine and deep learning. Although already used in the transportation sector, these technologies will continue to revolutionize this segment, as governments have started to seriously invest in this direction.
By means of AI and collected data, public transportation will be improved, predictions of pedestrians’ or cyclists’ routes will be possible, the number of incidents will be reduced, and road networks will operate more efficiently.
Another trend that is becoming increasingly visible in the intelligent transport field is that associated with automated vehicles. No longer present only in fiction movies, automated vehicles are already being put to use in public transportation and are set to take over this segment.
But it is not the only domain that will reap the benefits of driverless means of transport, agriculture will benefit from automated vehicles too; self-driving tractors can handle difficult tasks and can relieve workers of tiring duties.
Smart cities.
The concept of smart city cannot be separated from that of intelligent transport. The two are in close correlation, as smart cities are all about mobility and innovation. And just like intelligent transport systems, smart cities make use of collected data and information to make decisions.
London, Paris, Singapore, Seoul or Barcelona are some of the smart cities that have been using technology to improve infrastructure, and that are on the road to complete digital changes in this sector. Automated and electrical vehicles, the use of 5G technology in the public transport segment along with sensors, and connected cars are just some of the smart solutions that these cities have already adopted or are looking to integrate, in order to achieve intelligent traffic management.
Conclusion
Implementing intelligent transport systems in the dynamic industry that is transportation, is crucial in today’s global context. With more vehicles being driven on the road day by day, technologies such as artificial intelligence, the internet of things, big data or deep learning must be leveraged in order to smooth traffic flow, optimise transportation-related operations, enhance road safety, and even achieve economic growth.
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