Skip to main content

‘Just the beginning’ for Cyprus’ smart traffic management

Transport ministry officials in Cyprus have launched the Channel programme, a real-time traffic monitoring system that aims to alert motorists through smart technology of delays, traffic jams, accidents, road works and parking spaces. Part of the Cyprus-Greece Cross-Border Cooperation Programme 2007 to 2013, the channel programme is 80 per cent EU-funded. The objective is to improve traffic conditions on major roads in Cyprus. Drivers will be able to access the system via internet, mobile phones and t
February 26, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
Transport ministry officials in Cyprus have launched the Channel programme, a real-time traffic monitoring system that aims to alert motorists through smart technology of delays, traffic jams, accidents, road works and parking spaces.

Part of the Cyprus-Greece Cross-Border Cooperation Programme 2007 to 2013, the channel programme is 80 per cent EU-funded. The objective is to improve traffic conditions on major roads in Cyprus.

Drivers will be able to access the system via internet, mobile phones and through the radio. To begin with, the system will be installed at major junctions in Nicosia and on the highways.

The programme’s total budget comes to US$2.06 million, of which US$1.2 million will be used to complete the project in Cyprus, which began in November 2012 and is due to be completed in March.

The first phase of the programme is to create a complete online map of Cyprus’ roads, especially within towns and cities. The second phase of the project will see the installation of real-time traffic monitoring devices in order to inform drivers and the police of any traffic congestion, accidents, planned road works and free parking spaces in Nicosia. It is planned that the devices will be installed to cover other towns and cities at a later date.

“Cyprus is becoming digitised when it comes to transport and traffic management. It is a very advanced and innovative system which can have many benefits. This is just the beginning,” Mitsopoulos said.

Related Content

  • Assessing driver behaviour in work zones
    May 31, 2013
    David Crawford looks at moves to increase throughput and safety in work zones.
  • ITS Australia welcomes heavy vehicle smart technology trials
    May 10, 2013
    New funding of US$1.7 million recently announced by the Federal and New South Wales Governments for trials of Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems (C-ITS) technologies has been welcomed by Intelligent Transport Systems Australia. The Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program funds provide for pioneering projects involving heavy vehicle to infrastructure communication technologies to make roads safer.
  • Brooklyn eyes Bogota’s BRT system
    June 17, 2016
    David Crawford considers the increased interest in bus rapid transit and looks that the latest trends. Bus rapid transit (BRT) is gaining an increasingly high profile in the US public transport agenda, for two main reasons. One is the potential for ‘trains on wheels’ to save substantially on installation costs as compared with other modes such as underground metros or light-rail transit. Another, highlighted in the case of New York City, is the value of having a rapid surface-based alternative available whe
  • Bluetooth and Wi-Fi offer new options for travel time measurements
    November 20, 2013
    New trials show Bluetooth and Wi-Fi signals can be reliably used for measuring travel times and at a lower cost than an ANPR system, but which is the better proposition depends on many factors. Measuring travel times has traditionally relied automatic number plate (or licence plate) recognition (ANPR/ALPR) cameras capturing the progress of vehicles travelling along a pre-defined route. Such systems also have the benefit of being able to count passing traffic and have become a vital tool in dealing with c