How Hong Kong can cut traffic congestion: invest in smart technology

Winnie Tang says Hong Kong needs to jump on a booming market in hi-tech city services, such as smart traffic lights, that can make commuting easier and boost livelihoods

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Traffic is gridlocked in Hung Hom. The implementation of smart traffic technology in Hong Kong would benefit people’s livelihoods and allow the city to share in a huge market. Photo: Nora Tam

Published: 2:00pm, 8 Oct 2017Updated: 6:37pm, 8 Oct 2017

When you’re driving and in a hurry, every red light can leave you more and more frustrated. According to a Texas A&M Transportation Institute report, in 2015 congestion caused Americans to spend on average 48 minutes on a drive that should take 20 minutes. In 1982, average road delays amounted to 18 hours in a year, and by 2014 it had more than doubled, to 42 hours.

The institute estimated that the US used 3.1 billion gallons of gasoline and lost 6.9 billion hours due to congestion, resulting in costs of up to US$160 billion. Furthermore, from 2013 to 2014, 95 of America’s 100 largest metro areas saw increased congestion. In the previous year, the figure was 61, so the problem is getting worse.

Decentralise Hong Kong’s business districts to ease traffic congestion

A lack of real-time information means many people, enterprises and even governments cannot fully or effectively use public facilities. Recently the US Department of Transportation introduced smart traffic lights and adaptive signal control technology to collect real-time traffic data through roadside sensors to adjust the lights. The department says this can cut travel time by more than 10 per cent, saving fuel and improving air quality.

A smart parking system in operation in one garage in Wuzhen township, Tongxiang City, in Zhejiang province, last November. Photo: AFP

Much to be done for Hong Kong to become a true smart city

Hong Kong came 44th in the 2017 global congestion ranking for cities by TomTom, the Dutch traffic navigation service provider, while in 16th was Hangzhou, where the “Hangzhou City Brain” initiative has been launched, a collaboration between Alibaba’s AliCloud and the local government to alleviate congestion. [Alibaba is the owner of the South China Morning Post]. Through the use of big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and image recognition technology, plus 50,000 roadside cameras for real-time control of traffic lights, driving time has been reduced by as much as 11 per cent. Places like Macau introduced similar technology in August.