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MODERATO smart signals could cut Bengaluru traffic congestion by 30%! What are they?

If you've ever found yourself sheepishly glancing around after cutting a red light or using your phone while driving, only to relax because "no cops in sight," think again! In <keyword id="19895037" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bengaluru" source="keywords">Bengaluru</keyword>, the traffic police have gone tech-savvy, and they're now leveraging AI to keep an eye on you – whether or not there’s an officer standing by. <h2>Bengaluru’s AI revolution in <keyword id="22205047" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="traffic-enforcement" source="keywords">traffic enforcement</keyword></h2>Bengaluru, the tech hub of India, has pioneered the use of AI-based enforcement in its bustling streets. "At present, we use AI-based cameras to enforce seven violations," said MN Anucheth, Joint Commissioner of Police (Bengaluru City Traffic) in an interview with Moneycontrol. These violations include overspeeding, using mobile phones while driving, not wearing seat belts, riding without helmets, triple riding on two-wheelers, red-light jumping, and stop-line violations. But it doesn't stop there! The city is expanding this AI-driven system to detect 13 different <keyword id="19948114" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="traffic-violations" source="keywords">traffic violations</keyword> — up from the existing seven. Among the new additions are wrong-side driving, illegal number plates, overloaded goods vehicles, broken or folded door mirrors, and illegal parking. Bengaluru’s streets are about to get even more monitored, and the number of fines is expected to rise. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="113150608" title="Nothing to wear? Bengaluru-based startup promises to deliver clothes in just 60 minutes. Here’s my experience!" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>Already, 97% of traffic violations in Bengaluru in 2023 were caught through this contactless mode. With 330 AI-powered cameras watching over 50 junctions, the city's roads are becoming some of the most tech-supervised in India. "We will soon expand to cover 13 types of violations," Anucheth added, hinting at an even more stringent road regime. <h2>Eyes in the sky</h2>With a road network stretching over 14,000 km, more than 12 million registered vehicles, and around 40,000 traffic intersections, Bengaluru’s streets can get chaotic. To tackle this, Bengaluru’s AI system is leaving nothing to chance. The AI can do more than just catch rule-breakers; it can even detect waterlogged areas, cattle on the road, potholes, and unattended objects, ensuring smoother traffic flow. What’s more, these AI-based systems are equipped with <keyword id="22598445" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Automatic-Number-Plate-Recognition" source="keywords">Automatic Number Plate Recognition</keyword> (ANPR) and can process video feeds from multiple sources, including surveillance cameras, body-worn cameras, and even social media feeds. So, even if you're accidentally caught on a neighbour’s camera violating a traffic rule, you could still be fined. “Instead of procuring additional cameras, we decided to obtain AI-based automatic violation detection licences to utilise our existing infrastructure for traffic enforcement and management," Anucheth explained. That means the city is becoming smarter without splurging on extra gadgets. <h2>Expect more fines</h2>In 2023 alone, <keyword id="21352185" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bengaluru-traffic" source="keywords">Bengaluru Traffic</keyword> Police booked nearly 90 lakh cases and collected a record Rs 185.1 crore in fines. With the expanded AI system, these numbers are expected to soar even higher. Commuters along major arterial roads such as the Electronics City Elevated Expressway, Mysuru Road to Goraguntepalya, and Bellary Road should be particularly mindful. Cameras on these routes have been instrumental in spotting violations like speeding and improper lane usage. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="113459399" title="Should you rent or buy a home? Here’s how much rental pricing has gone up compared to ownership cost in major Indian cities" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>The introduction of AI is already having a significant impact on the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway, where 60 cameras caught more than 12,000 violations within just two weeks of installation. And the fines? They’re sent directly to your phone. "No violation can escape the hawk eyes of our powerful cameras," said Karnataka’s Additional Director General of Police, Alok Kumar, after catching a bus driver talking on his phone while driving. <h2>Management, not just enforcement</h2>But Bengaluru’s AI isn’t just catching violators — it’s also helping ease the flow of traffic in a majorly congested city. AI is playing a crucial role in optimising <keyword id="21296378" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="traffic-signals" source="keywords">traffic signals</keyword> to reduce congestion and manage traffic patterns. With its Automatic Traffic Counting and Classification (ATCC) feature, these <keyword id="21635811" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="AI-cameras" source="keywords">AI cameras</keyword> will help monitor the types of vehicles clogging up different junctions, offering better insights for road management. To that end, Bengaluru has also introduced AI-powered traffic signals, which automatically adjust the timing of traffic lights based on real-time traffic conditions. This system, deployed across many important junctions in the city, monitors vehicle flow and helps reduce bottlenecks by adjusting traffic lights dynamically. In an ideal world, this will mean that there would be no more sitting at a red light when the road ahead is empty. With over 9,000 cameras being installed across the city under the Safe City project and access to 4,600 body-worn cameras, Bengaluru’s traffic police are bringing in a new era of high-tech enforcement. Hopefully, this will help with better <keyword id="20413755" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="traffic-management" source="keywords">traffic management</keyword> in the city — a problem that needs to be solved at the earliest.

Hopping signals or using phones when cops aren’t there? You’re still going to get instant-fined, thanks to Bengaluru’s new AI cameras

If you step out into <keyword id="19895037" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="bengaluru" source="keywords">Bengaluru</keyword> traffic these days, there’s a good chance you’ll discover a bulky water tanker spearheading the all-too-familiar clog in traffic. Amidst the ongoing <keyword id="6355836" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="water-crisis" source="Orion">water crisis</keyword>, India’s Silicon City has mobilised thousands of tankers that zip, almost heroically, across the city, rescuing parched residences from the metro’s urban planning crisis. Bidding to reduce their reliance on the exorb<keyword id="6354185" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="it" source="Orion">it</keyword>ant tankers — a necessary step after the exhaustion of half the city’s groundwater-fed borewells — many residential societies have begun innovating water-saving techniques, with varying degrees of success. However, for the several businesses and industries littering the metropolitan town, it seems like dark days are looming. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="IT in turmoil" comment="subhead" text="IT in turmoil">IT in turmoil</cmsannotation> Hosting over 1,400 tech companies that employ tens of lakhs of employees, Bengaluru has certainly earned its title as India’s ‘Silicon Valley’. Not only has this driven a rapid boom in economic, infrastructural and industrial development, the city has acted as a magnet for people looking for attractive employment opportunities. Unfortunately, this success has also resulted in <a href="https://bpac.in/bangalore-population-growth-consequences-and-possible-solutions/" data-type="tilCustomLink">population levels haphazardly spiking</a> from 2,900 people per square kilometre in 2001 to 4,300 within a single decade. Estimates suggest that this figure may have breached 8,000 by now! In addition to deterring water-cooler conversations, the lack of water in their workplaces have led to several companies already urging employees to work from home. Echoing a growing sentiment among the city’s techies, <a href="https://m.economictimes.com/news/india/it-companies-in-bengaluru-urged-to-give-15-lakh-employees-wfh-option-as-city-grapples-with-water-crisis/articleshow/108761390.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">ex-Chief Justice K Sreedhar Rao also pleaded</a> for temporary remote arrangements for migrant IT workers to depopulate Bengaluru till the water crisis is dealt with. However, many such multinational employees have already begun to preemptively take matters into their own hands by temporarily or permanently moving to other cities, such as the nearby Mysuru. Needless to say, this has disrupted operations for many companies, including some of the top IT firms in Bengaluru. In a surprising turn of tragic events, senior personnel at <keyword id="19969515" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="dell" source="keywords">Dell</keyword> have begun skipping meetings to prioritise their procurement of water, reported the Deccan Herald. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Real estate rates to fall; restaurants forced to adapt" comment="subhead" text="Real estate rates to fall; restaurants forced to adapt"><keyword id="6354553" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="real-estate" source="Orion">Real estate</keyword> rates to fall; restaurants forced to adapt</cmsannotation> With pleasant weather the year round, Bengaluru has proven itself time and again as an excellent place to settle down and relax. The city’s diverse population is a testament to its uncanny ability to draw people from all over India, even before the city’s notable IT boom. Real estate has now hit an all-time high, with high demand and attractive financial options helping the sector grow exponentially in the past few decades, reportedly recording a staggering nine-year-high 54,000 housing units sold in 2023. However, the city’s recent water woes have left potential property investors second-guessing. According to a recent Deccan Herald poll, around 60% of the respondents noted that they have postponed their move to Bengaluru due to the ongoing shortage, while a similar number of people have also begun evaluating investment options in other cities. Homebuyers have also begun to diligently inquire into <keyword id="55273" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="groundwater" source="Orion">groundwater</keyword> borewell depths and water-saving technologies when consulting developers. While <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/bengaluru-water-crisis-alarms-property-investors-dh-poll-2930539" data-type="tilCustomLink">many contractors remain firm</a> that these reactions are not representative of a long-term trend, some experts have predicted that a fall in property prices may become inevitable. A <a href="https://www.republicworld.com/business/real-estate/bengaluru-water-crisis-property-prices-in-peenya-hsr-layout-marathahalli-to-fall-15-say-experts/" data-type="tilCustomLink">Republic report</a> explains that house rates could fall up to 10-15% in the most water-stressed regions of East and Central Bengaluru, including HSR Layout, Marathahalli, Rajaji Nagar and Peenya. Needless to say, the crisis has also taken a toll on Bengaluru’s various hotels and eateries, many of which are severely dependent on tanker water for cooking, cleaning and drinking purposes. Krishna Raj, owner of the popular <keyword id="21126683" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="nisarg-grand-hotel" source="keywords">Nisarg Grand Hotel</keyword>, <a href="https://www.livemint.com/news/india/bengaluru-water-crisis-news-hotels-disposable-utensils-shortage-lok-sabha-polls-karnataka-dk-shivakumar-congress-bjp-11710055127680.html" data-type="tilCustomLink">explained</a> that they might have to begin serving food in disposable utensils if the trend continues into the summer months. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Industrial district parched" comment="subhead" text="Industrial district parched">Industrial district parched</cmsannotation> Located in Northwest Bengaluru, Peenya is home to thousands of industries of varying sizes, producing a host of electronics, textiles, packaging, machines and other consumer items. However, being one of the largest industrial areas in Asia hasn’t protected its businesses from the ongoing crisis. In an <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/industry/news/bengaluru-water-crisis-to-impact-local-industries-in-coming-weeks-experts-124030601026_1.html" data-type="tilCustomLink">interview with Business Standard</a>, <keyword id="21126682" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="peenya-industries-association" source="keywords">Peenya Industries Association</keyword> President H. M. Arif explained that the area’s micro-industries are strained to the point that many could be forced to close soon if the water crisis continues unmitigated. Many such sectors have also become hopelessly reliant on tanker water, and the associated rising costs have begun to bottleneck the manufacturing process. Prices of several commercial products could go up soon if this trend continues. “Many from the hosiery or garment sector need water for processing,” Arif explains. “You need water for workers as well as other needs. The government is saying it will source recycled water for the industry. But for that, there is a tendering process and at this rate, we will not get water this season.” <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Solutions and cautious optimism" comment="subhead" text="Solutions and cautious optimism">Solutions and cautious optimism</cmsannotation> This is not to say that the government isn’t taking measures to tackle the crisis. After ordaining centralised control over water tankers and actively regulating prices to ensure the city’s water isn’t hoarded solely by the rich, officials also placed bans on recreational water use. In addition, initiatives are underway to “inject” 1,300 million litres of purified water into the city’s drying lakes per day, which the officials allege will help restore local groundwater levels. <keyword id="19927086" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="bwssb" source="keywords">BWSSB</keyword> has also announced plans to build an array of next-gen water treatment plants near restored lake beds to purify and deliver water wherever required. Addressing the harsh summers ahead, Karnataka government officials have expressed optimism that the completion of the Cauvery Five — a massive array of treatment plants that will treat sewage to produce 100 million litres of water a day — will help make up for any deficits by July. Meanwhile, many large corporations, including Microsoft, have begun utilising water-saving tap aerators to control water flow in the Bagmane Business Park offices. The city’s water board, the BWSSB, has also launched four mobile apps to help tackle the city’s water crisis. Attempting to bridge a gap between the water department and the citizens it serves, these apps will help residents book water online, apply for borewell permissions, report water misuse and more. At 24% of its total capacity, reservoirs across Karnataka are also drying up. Despite growing shortages, the state government has assured that the Cauvery River reservoir that supplies water to Bengaluru holds sufficient water levels to last at least until June. After that, the pre-monsoon and monsoon rains are expected to replenish the water resources. However, the supply remains much lower compared to the demand, and the only way to survive this summer could be to adopt drastic water-saving measures and a few good spells of pre-monsoon showers.

Water crisis affects businesses across Bengaluru; Is there room for cautious optimism?

You Searched For "Bengaluru traffic congestion rains" and got 3 results

MODERATO smart signals could cut Bengaluru traffic congestion by 30%! What are they?

Ankush Banerjee

Hopping signals or using phones when cops aren’t there? You’re still going to get instant-fined, thanks to Bengaluru’s new AI cameras

Ankush Banerjee

Water crisis affects businesses across Bengaluru; Is there room for cautious optimism?

Ankush Banerjee

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