Reader's Response Draft 1

-

According to Tay’s “Tapping Tech for Smoother Traffic” article (2018), Singapore faces the perpetual challenge of balancing density with liveability due to limited land. More advanced traffic management measures are required for Singapore to manage the increasing vehicle population and a greater and more complex road system. Tay also states that Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) launches The Intelligent Transport System (ITS) to process and gather data automatically. Not only does ITS boost traffic coordination and control, but it also gives real-time traffic information to assist users in smoother journeys. The implementation of ITS boosts Singapore’s traffic safety and efficiency and allows Singapore to top the 2017 Global Smart City Performance Index by Juniper Research. Moreover, transport technology in the city-state is constantly upgraded for better equity and efficiency with the improvement of traffic lights and satellite ERP system (Tay, 2018).

With the implementation of the Intelligent Transport System (ITS), Singapore’s traffic flow and parking systems have become smoother, safer and more efficient. However, a great invention comes with a price.    

For Land Transport Authority (LTA) to improve Singapore’s traffic flow, Intelligent Transport System, also known as ITS, was launched. “Over a 160km network of expressways and road tunnels, hundreds of gadgets, sensors and cameras gather data on traffic flow, travelling times and road demand to gives you the information that helps you make decisions on how you get to places.” (LTA, 2021). ITS makes use of sensors, traffic and control systems, and data analytics, to fully utilise the network efficiency capacity of the road, track and control traffic flow and make Singapore roads safer (LTA, 2021). Some of the developments under ITS would be Expressway Monitoring and Advisory System (EMAS), Green Link Determining System (GLIDE), Junction Electronic Eyes, Parking Guidance System, TrafficScan and Traffic Message Channel to provide instant traffic information to the public (LTA, 2021). On top of all these, Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system is one major development that happened in 1998 (Tay, 2018).

Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) was invented to take the place of Area Licensing Scheme (ALS) (Tay, 2018). According to Sustainable Urban Transport (n.a.), ERP uses a continuous monitoring feature to recognise the vehicles going through its sensors, which are located on overhead gantries across the road. There will be an automatic deduction of tolls from smart cards fixed on each in-vehicle unit (IU) once a vehicle passes the ERP gantry. This ERP system saves the effort of vehicles slowing down or stopping to pay tolls and is able to capture vehicles at the speed of more than 120km/h. With this smart system, roads are less congested and the average speed of traffic has been increased from 30 to 35 km/h under ALS to 40 to 45 km/h under ERP (Debnath, Haque, Chin & Yuen, n.d.). Another smart technology system invented is the Expressway Monitoring Advisory System (EMAS). EMAS is a smart incident management tool, that oversees the traffic along the expressways. It recognises accidents, breakdown of vehicles and other incidents with the help of cameras. With EMAS, recovery crew is able to attend to the situation immediately to recover the traffic flow (LTA 2021). Statistics show that the road accident fatalities yearly have been reduced from approximately 210 in 2000, to 122 in 2017. Break down of vehicles are able to be resolved and clear out of the road within 15 minutes (Tay, 2018).

Parking Guidance System is also one of the developments under ITS. It provides information through 29 roadside electronic information panels, allowing motorists to know the carpark availability while driving (LTA, 2021). With the parking system, there is a decrease in the rate of circulating traffic looking for available parking in central business district and major shopping areas. This in turn reduces the traffic flow and time taken for vehicles to be parked (Debnath, Haque, Chin & Yuen, n.d.).  Motorists are able to make proper decisions and fully utilise the parking facilities (LTA, 2021).

With all the great developments of ITS, they come with a costly maintenance fee. ERP, EMAS and Parking Guidance System make use of sensors and electronic information panels which requires regular maintenance that are not cheap. Maintenance costs for these systems can be overwhelming (Software Advisory Service, n.d.).

All in all, Intelligent Transport System (ITS) has improved the transport system in Singapore greatly and efficiently. Traffic flow is smoother and less congested, with car travelling at an average speed of 27 km/h (C40, 2013). Vehicles are also able to find parking efficiently.

 

References

C40 Cities. (2013, September 23). Singapore: Intelligent Transport System. https://www.c40.org/profiles/2013-singapore

Debnath, A. K., Haque, M. M., Chin, H. C., and Yuen, B. (n.d.). Sustainable Urban Transport. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.3141/2243-05

Land Transport Authority. (2021, January 22). Intelligent Transport System. https://www.lta.gov.sg/content/ltagov/en/getting_around/driving_in_singapore/intelligent_transport_systems.html

Land Transport Authority. (2014). Smart Mobility 2030. https://www.lta.gov.sg/content/dam/ltagov/getting_around/driving_in_singapore/intelligent_transport_systems/pdf/smartmobility2030.pdf

Software Advisory Service. (n.d.). 6 Common ERP Challenges in 2019. https://www.softwareadvisoryservice.com/en/blog/6-common-erp-challengesin-2019/

Tay, Q. W. (2018, July). Tapping Tech for Smoother Traffic. https://www.clc.gov.sg/docs/default-source/urban-solutions/urb-sol-iss-13-pdfs/11_case_study-singapore-intelligent-transport-systems.pdf

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Formal Letter

-
Subject: Self Introduction Dear Professor Brad Blackstone, Thank you for taking the time to read this letter. I would like to formally introduce myself as Chuan Tin San, from Effective Communication tutorial class 5. The purpose of this letter is to enlighten you about myself. I am in my first year, studying Sustainable Infrstructure Engineering (Land). In 2020, I graduated from Ngee Ann polytechnic with a Diploma in Sustainable Urban Design and Engineering, specialising in civil engineering. My father, a construction engineer, brought me along for site visits during my childhood, which cultivated my interest in Civil Engineering. It was an eye-opening experience for me as I got to witness how a foundation of a building looks like, how the walls of a building are built up, etc. However, my mindset changed in Polytechnic. I was given the opportunity to do my internship at LTA, where I was exposed to Singapore’s land transport system. I was intrigued about how the system works. T...
Read more

Task 3: The Importance of Communication Skills for Engineers

-
On my first lesson of Effective Communication, I got to learn the quote: "While all engineers should have good communication skills, global engineers face additional challenges, making effective communication an imperative."  Debra Kraft, Careers Content Writer, Demand Media (2016) Debra Kraft states that while having good communication skills is essential, effective communication skills is now an imperative as global engineers face new challenges. Effective communication skills consist of how to present themselves, how to listen to others, how to make use of their body language, etc. It is important for global engineers, coming from different bakgrounds, to understand and have these skills so work can be carried out effectively, and with more harmony.
Read more

Draft 1: Proposal for the Integration of the Speed Limiter with the New On-Board Unit (OBU)

-
  1. Background  In recent years, the frequency of speed-related accidents in Singapore has increased. According to the Channelnewsasia (2021), speeding is Singapore's most committed traffic offence. Despite the installations of speed cameras, speed traps and the speed limits of 40km/h in School Zones and Silver Zones, 80km/h to 90km/h on most expressways, and 50km/h in most country areas unless stated otherwise, errant drivers are still negligent on the road as they refuse to adhere to the limits imposed (LTA, 2021). A recent case to illustrate how fatal speeding-related accidents can be is the Tanjong Pagar incident on 13 February 2021. The driver drove at an approximate speed of 200km/h on the narrow roads of Tanjong Pagar, which had a speed limit of 40km/h. The accident was a confluence of many factors, but an apparent cause was the nature of the road, which was not suitable for driving at such high speeds. The driver's negligence led to the death of 5 people, including hi...
Read more