Smart Traffic Lights Could Cut Harmful Car Emissions

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By Kevin Payravi [CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], from Wikimedia Commons

Tired of wasting precious time at traffic junctions? Things are going to change soon. A new breed of smart traffic lights is being developed that may bring an end to stop-and-go driving.

This innovative technology could slash the amount of time you spend waiting for a green light. The signals will advise motorists about the speed they should drive in order to arrive at the next set of lights as they turn green.

More efficient driving will help in reducing vehicle emissions and cut congestion

U.S.-based engineering firm AECOM is developing this concept. It will be tested in the U.K., using a simulation model of the A59 road in York.

This concept is one of five shortlisted entries in a competition launched by the National Infrastructure Commission, Highways England, and Innovate UK for creating roads for driverless cars.

AECOM principal consultant Heather Hawkins said, “We are excited and are eager to get started so we can better understand the potential impact of vehicle-to-infrastructure technologies on our local road network in York.”

“We are fortunate to be living and working in a city which has chosen to be an early innovator, deploying and testing these technologies on-street through existing research programs. It’s truly inspiring and we are grateful to be a part of it.”

Nidhi Goyal