Japanese traffic sensors to hit Bengaluru roads in 2020

BENGALURU: Vehicles commuting along infamous traffic bottlenecks can expect some relief as Japanese technology will be adopted for signals. However, the system will come into place only next year. The tenders for the Advanced Traffic Information Management System, funded by Japanese International Cooperation Agency for `72 crore, will be called in another two to three weeks by the Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT), the nodal agency for implementing the project.

As per the system, queue-length measurement sensors (QMS) will gauge the traffic density on a particular road stretch and accordingly assign the green signal.  This is unlike the current system where the signals are pre-set, no matter how many vehicles are piled up one after the other.

“The tender will be made open to participation for Japanese companies only. Seventy-two dynamic sensors will be placed at 13 junctions along MG Road, Old Madras Road and Hosur Road to maximise green signal time. Signals will also coordinate with each other to ensure free flow of traffic continuously. They will be placed between 300-600 metres distances from each other,” said Murali Krishna, special officer, DULT.

The area-based junctions are mapped and real-time data will be sent to a central server, after which the queue length will be gauged and traffic signal changed accordingly. The second aspect of the project is variable message signs (VMS).“Three VMS boards will be placed at Old Madras Road, KR Puram and MG Road. They will indicate traffic patterns ahead, giving the commuter alternative options they can take to avoid upcoming traffic jams,” he added.

The tender process will take two months, and DULT aims to commission the project in 2020. This will mean a red signal may go on for as low as 20 or 30 seconds, if the traffic density is high. Some of the QMS systems will be placed on the traffic signal poles and others on the side of the road.