GURUGRAM: Commuters in the city are used to long waits at traffic signals, as the light changes to red, with each signal lasting for 30, 60 or 90 seconds, depending on density of traffic at a particular crossing All that is about to change, with the Indian venture of Japanese firm Kyosan India Private Limited introducing its state-of-the-art ARTEMIS (Autonomous and Real-Time signal control based on ‘Estimation of Traffic Demand for Minimisation of Signal Waiting Time’, an advanced system of traffic regulation whose aim is to reduce congestion by adapting signals to traffic volume.The system was launched on Wednesday.Initially, as a technology demonstrator, the company has invested around Rs 15-18 lakh in the city to automate four traffic signals, which are expected to drastically reduce waiting time. If successful, the system will be installed in other parts of the city. The automatic system has been installed at four such junctions along a 1.7km stretch from Huda City Centre till Jharsa Chowk.The signals have been installed at Kanhai Chowk, the crossing of the roads dividing sectors 30 and 31 and sectors 41 and 47, and Jharsa Chowk.Ajay Dua, former secretary to the Union ministry of commerce and industry who is now a senior advisor at Kyosan, said: “To keep a tab on real-time traffic, six cameras will monitor each traffic signal. Instead of being installed atop the signals at a crossing, four cameras are located 150m from the signal and two at 200m, to keep a tab on traffic movement.” The traffic signal works by predicting traffic flow arrival. The cameras capture traffic “demand” and send the information to a control parameter installed at the traffic signals, which directs the lights to turn green or red.In 2010, this system was introduced for the first time in the Japanese city of Shizuoka. The company claims it immediately resulted in a 35% fall in traffic jams. Tsutomu Tokodai, president and COO of Kyosan Electric Manufacturing Company Limited, said, “After Japan, this system was successfully launched in Russia. I hope it will succeed in Gurugram as well.”The traffic signal controller itself determines in real time the optimum period for the light to remain green, by means of road traffic signal controllers positioned at intersections that automatically exchange information among themselves. The controllers are waterproof and can even withstand flooding. They also have a special function that display a red light to prevent cars heading for the city centre from approaching it in the event of an earthquake.After inaugurating the traffic signal, Union minister Rao Inderjit Singh said, “This project will certainly change the flow of traffic.” Gurugram police is keeping a watch on the system to see how effective it is, and whether it can be introduced on a mass scale.

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