Highways set to get ‘smart’

Large LED displays will be set up on highways to notify road users about changes in road and weather conditions, including traffic congestion, accidents and foggy atmosphere. They can also get the information through a mobile app and a dedicated website.

Speed and other vehicular metrics will be detected using a specialised piece of equipment. In case vehicles over-speed, the incidents will be automatically reported to relevant authorities for action.

All these are features of the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) that the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) is set to introduce for the first time in the country.

On pilot basis, ITS will be introduced on a 40-kilometre section of Dhaka-Mawa Expressway, under a Tk 115-crore proposed project. Korean International Cooperation Agency (Koica) will provide Tk 77 crore as grant and technical support.

RHD authorities are expected to start operation of the pilot project within September this year.

An inception ceremony of the project, titled "Improving the reliability and safety on national highway corridors of Bangladesh by introduction of ITS", was held at a hotel in the capital yesterday.

Under ITS, modern information and communication technologies are used to facilitate transport infrastructure and vehicles to improve traffic management and safety, as well as reduce traffic jams and road maintenance costs, engineers said.

After attending the ceremony, Nazrul Islam, secretary of Road Transport and Highways Division, said ITS is being used for traffic management and is ensuring road safety in developed countries.

The government has built the country's first expressway on Dhaka-Mawa-Bhanga route and is expanding all major highways connecting Dhaka to six lanes, he said.

"In line with the development and practices of developed countries, we are going to introduce this system on a pilot basis for better road management and safety," he told this correspondent.

RHD Chief Engineer AKM Manir Hossain Pathan said after successful completion of the pilot project, they will replicate the system on other major highways.

Lee Jang-keun, Korean ambassador to Dhaka, and Doh Youngah, country director of KOICA, also spoke at the programme.

THE PILOT PROJECT

An RHD official, who is aware of the project's plans, said they have already sent the project proposal to the Planning Commission for approval.

Apart from implementing the system on pilot basis, a master-plan for ITS will be developed under the project, he said, wishing not to be named.

Eight sets of variable message signs (VMS) will be installed on the 40-km highway, which will display various messages, the official continued.

A website will also be developed, from where people will be able to know all the relevant information. Besides, people can also get the information by using a mobile app, he added.

Besides, 60 vehicle detection systems (VDS), 24 sets of CCTV cameras and eight sets of speed enforcement equipment will also be installed on the highways, he informed.

The information from these devices will automatically be transmitted to the traffic management centre (TMC), to be established at RHD's headquarters, he added. The information will then be relayed to highway police for the next course of action.

This means that authorities can get information about accidents as soon as crashes take place, while the system can help take quick measures.

Another RHD official said the equipment has already been prepared in South Korea, as the country will provide them as a grant. Project authorities have already submitted an application for advance procurement.

"It will not take long to do these preparatory works. So, we're hoping to start operation of the pilot project within September, given the project is approved soon," he added.