Green lights all the way? How AI could create commuter heaven in Glasgow
Bus passengers could see journey times cut in half as artificial intelligence turns the lights green
Do traffic lights always turn red just at the wrong moment? Frustrating, isn’t it? Enough to make you dream of possessing a secret device to ensure green lights all the way.
While this may sound fanciful, it’s actually not – but only if you are a bus passenger in Glasgow. The council is to trial using artificial intelligence to monitor the movements of traffic along Kilmarnock Road and Pollokshaws Road in order to enable the lights to be green – for the buses. A small pilot last year found that journey times were reduced by up to an impressive 50 per cent.
Given getting stuck in traffic is normally a hazard of catching a bus – helping to explain the popularity of trams – it could have a transformative effect. More people on buses should mean fewer cars and fewer traffic jams, a win-win for all. And if you still find yourself afflicted with the red-light curse, you know what to do: follow a bus.
Seems the wonders of AI may never cease (unless of course it actually does end up destroying us all...)
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.