Project aims to reduce waiting time by 30 per cent

Tenders will be floated in September; only Japanese firms will be allowed to bid for the project which will hopefully be completed by December 2019

If the anarchy on the roads doesn’t drive you out by then, you’ll see Japanese efficiency at play in Bengaluru’s traffic signals by December 2019.

After helping Cambodia, Myanmar and Thailand with its traffic systems, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will inject approximately Rs 72 crore into building smart network signals in Bengaluru.

“Especially, in 2022, three years after the completion of this project, this new system will help reduce congestion length, currently reaching 550m at longest, by 30 per cent, at interchange facing heavy congestion, and contribute to enhancing the convenience of urban transportation and revitalising the local economy,” the Japanese embassy in New Delhi had said after its ambassador to India, Kenji Hiramatsu, had signed the MoU in December with Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, S Selvakumar.
Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT) will be the nodal agency for the project, which entails the following components: a) Bengaluru Traffic Information Centre (B-TIC) which will serve as the central nervous system; b) GPS probe system for BMTC buses, taxis etc which will give information to B-TIC about vehicle location and speed etc; c) Queue-length measurement sensors (QMS) which will analyse the traffic density; and d) Automatic traffic counters and classifiers which will inform B-TIC about the nature of traffic so that signals can be streamlined and made real-time.

What’s more, only Japanese companies are eligible to bid for this process. Tenders will be issued in September and the installation will be completed by December 2019. The bidder will be responsible for the operation and maintenance of the system for five years.

An official from DULT said, “We will install the QMS along 82 junctions where it will also have the CCTV cameras installed. The QMS will measure the length and size of the vehicles and it will analyze the exact number and type of vehicles. We will install these sensors for every 50, 100 and 150 meters distance of the roads so that it can analyze the actual traffic congestion and it will update the integrated traffic management centre (BBMP, BMTC and Traffic Police). Along with this, we will also install Variable Message Signs in Silk Board, KR Puram Bridge and Trinity Metro Station where it will give a heads-up display of traffic congestion and estimated travelling time for certain destinations. It will be based on real-time inputs received at the traffic management center. Currently both BMTC and traffic police have their traffic management systems but this one will be an integrated traffic management centre that will ease congestion in the city,” he said.

JICA’s Intelligent Transport Systems have helped several cities in Southeast Asia but this is the first time that MODERATO (Management by Origin-Destination Related Adaption for Traffic Optimization) systems will be installed outside of Japan, said N Murali Krishna, Special Officer, DULT. This system will be installed at 29 junctions of MG Road, and Hosur Road and will help alleviate traffic troubles by coordinating the signals and factoring in pedestrian crossing. Basically, through its various components, this system will provide a signal-less (or green) corridor to motorists at the three stretches.

“Currently, the traffic signals installed along the roads has a fixed signal timer irrespective of the number of vehicles along the roads. But with the Japanese technology, signals will automatically change according to the number of vehicles along the road in a particular junction. For example, if there is less number of vehicles on one side and more on the other side of the road, the signal will automatically give more signal time for the road that has more vehicles and less signal timing for the road that has less number of vehicles. We have identified 12 intersections in MG Road, 9 intersections in Hosur Road and 8 intersections on as they always witness heavy vehicle movement,” Krishna said.

Now if only they could bring the cherry blossoms here.

source: http://www.bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com / Bangalore Mirror / Home> Bangalore> Cover Story / by Manoj Sharma, Bangalore Mirror Bureau / July 12th, 2018