smart traffic
City-dwellers in the UK demand implementation of smart traffic solutions to avoid traffic jams. Credit: David Dibert on Unsplash.

Nearly 74% of UK residents have demanded smart traffic solutions to cut travel time and reduce congestion, according to a report by security firm ATG Access.

Residents are experiencing substantial traffic congestion due to an ever-increasing number of vehicles on the UK’s roads. According to an estimate, around 37.5 million vehicles were registered on UK roads in 2017.

The research has been conducted as part of ATG’s ‘Smart cities: Turning the dream into a reality’ report. It highlights urbanisation problems that could be solved through the adoption of specific smart city concepts.

Nearly 76% Londoners were the most frustrated with traffic levels, followed by residents of cities in the south-east (74%) and the south-west (68%), according to the report.

Three-quarters of those who participated in the study would like to see the implementation of smart traffic lights to respond in real-time to the volume of traffic on the roads.

In the report, 67% said that they want better traffic light control measures during peak hours.

“Not only does this have the potential to save the economy £9bn a year, measures such as these can also dramatically improve a cities’ level of air quality.”

The study suggests that the UK’s urban infrastructure needs to be upgraded in order to meet the commuter requirements.

Just 37% of those polled said that they want to see more parking restrictions on busy roads, while 40% sought provisions of dedicated cycling and bus lanes during busy times.

More than 57% of people asked said that they would want their tax contributions to go towards smart traffic lights in their city.

ATG Access managing director Gavin Hepburn said: “Our research has found a clear public desire for smart traffic control 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 £9bn a year, measures such as these can also dramatically improve a cities’ level of air quality.”