A new report conducted by barrier firm ATG Access has found that a majority of the UK’s city dwellers would welcome increased smart traffic measures in their area.
65 per cent of city residents in the UK expressed frustration at traffic congestion levels in their city, rising to 76 per cent of Londoners; with city dwellers in the UK’s South East and South West close behind at 74 and 68 per cent respectively. 74 per cent of respondents said that smart traffic measures would be the most effective way to address issues of congestion and pollution in their cities.
Traditional or analogue traffic calming methods received the lowest support from those surveyed, with 37 per cent expressing support for increased parking restrictions on busy roads and 40 per cent advocating dedicated lanes for buses and cyclists during peak traffic hours. By comparison, 75 per cent supported the implementation of smart traffic measures such as smart traffic lights, which would receive data in real time to enable them to guide traffic; and 67 per cent were in favour of more responsive traffic light controls in general. Meanwhile 57 per cent of urban British residents surveyed said they would by happy to see a portion of their tax contributions go towards implementing smart traffic lights in their city.
Gavin Hepburn, managing director at ATG Access, said: “Our research has found a clear public desire for smart traffic measures, which could ease the daily commute for millions of travellers every day. Smart city concepts such as responsive traffic flow measures – ranging from smart traffic lights, to programmable smart bollard systems which control traffic – can drive efficiency and drastically cut commuter times. Not only does this have the potential to save the economy £9 billion a year, measures such as these can also dramatically improve a cities’ level of air quality.”
