Skip to main content

Qatar tests overheight vehicle detectors

The first over-height vehicle detection system (OVDS) in Qatar has been launched at the Duhail intersection in Doha. The new system will help provide greater control over trucks and protect bridges and tunnels, the Public Works Authority (Ashghal) said yesterday. The system is operated and controlled by the traffic signal control room (TSCR) at Ashghal. The OVDS uses integrated sensors or height detectors, electronic message board and CCTV, to detect vehicles that violate the maximum permitted height of
January 6, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
The first over-height vehicle detection system (OVDS) in Qatar has been launched at the Duhail intersection in Doha.  The new system will help provide greater control over trucks and protect bridges and tunnels, the Public Works Authority (5840 Ashghal) said yesterday.

The system is operated and controlled by the traffic signal control room (TSCR) at Ashghal. The OVDS uses integrated sensors or height detectors, electronic message board and CCTV, to detect vehicles that violate the maximum permitted height of 5.5 metres before entering tunnels, or passing under bridges. In the event of any over-height vehicle trying to enter the interchange, the system will alert the vehicle through a siren audible at the site, followed by a multi-lingual text message that appears on the electronic board at the site.

At the same time, the traffic signal at the approach will be changed to red by the control room to prevent the vehicle from entering the interchange. If the vehicle ignores the warnings, the control room will immediately contact the traffic department to take steps to prevent the vehicle from entering the interchange.

Ashghal’s Road Operation and Maintenance Department is looking at the possibility of introducing the OVDS at more intersections across Doha.

Related Content

  • Safelane automates work zone perimeter guarding
    June 12, 2015
    The safety of workers during road closures and working alongside, or above, live lanes is becoming an automated process. Ten workers suffered major injuries while working on or near motorways and major A roads in England in 2013, and between 2009 and 2013 eight had been killed. It was against that background that the first commercial application Safelane, the automated traffic management system designed to detect work zone incursions, was carried out during the temporary closure of a motorway.
  • Putting a stop to intersection indecision
    March 9, 2015
    David Crawford takes a look at innovations to reduce crashes at rural intersections. Intersection crashes continue to represent a worryingly large share of deaths and serious injuries across US highway networks. Statistics from the US Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration show that an average of 21% of road traffic accident deaths occur at crossings. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) calculates that intersection crashes account for 48% of all injury-related i
  • Jenoptik supplies sophisticated multi-section control project
    November 17, 2014
    Efficient speed enforcement in the most highly frequented tunnel in Austria on the A7 near Linz. The Bindermichl-Niedernhart tunnel complex on Austrian highway A7 connects the major east/west A1 route from Vienna/ Bratislava to Munich/Salzburg with the A7/ E55 running south from Prague in the Czech Republic. This happens right in the middle of the city of Linz, Austria.
  • Enforcement comes in many guises
    June 22, 2016
    Colin Sowman looks at some enforcement case studies from around the world. It is a sad fact of life that unenforced laws are not adhered to by a sometimes sizable proportion of the public and once enforcement is seen to be lacking, some drivers can take this to extremes and authorities must decide how to regain control.