Dubai taxi
RTA intends to improve compliance, as well as enhance road safety with this initiative. Credit: 2020 Roads and Transport Authority.

Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has started deploying artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to assess on-road conduct of taxi drivers.

To implement the initiative, the authority entered into a partnership with Acacus Technologies, which delivered the smart cameras installed on-board Dubai’s taxis.

The move is expected to enable RTA to identify and alert drivers who breach traffic rules and regulations and subject them to rehabilitation courses in the case of repeated violations.

With the step, RTA intends to improve compliance, as well as enhance road safety.

In addition, the use of AI technologies will help the authority to make decisions by considering the associated factors which may have led to the violation, such as bad road conditions.

RTA Public Transport Agency director of transportation systems Khaled Al-Awadhi said: “Unlike surveillance cameras fitted to taxis to verify complaints from passengers, this technology is a proactive measure to know the driver’s on-road behaviour on the spot.

“Through this technology, we can figure out the performance of the driver on the road in a continuous manner. It helps us to send alerts to drivers or subject them to rehabilitation courses in case of repeated violations such as speeding, sudden stopping or unnecessary use of brakes.”

The AI systems are capable of capturing and transmitting images about driver’s on-road behaviour at a quality as high as 99.92%.

Currently, RTA is working with Acacus to increase the quality of such images to 99.98%.

Acacus Technologies founder and CEO Talal Ben Halim said: “Taxis are a means of transport that have to maintain privacy and deliver high-level safety and quality services in line with RTA’s vision of “Safe and Smooth Transport for All.

“This technology will also help us in monitoring the conduct of drivers and riders as regards to the compliance with the precautionary measures in place to fight the coronavirus such as the physical distancing and the wearing of face masks.”