New digital CCTV system to monitor traffic flow in Aberdeen

A new US$386,000 (£300,000) network of digital CCTV and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras, including automated alert systems, are being installed on key routes around Aberdeen, Scotland to monitor traffic flow and journey times.
May 31, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
A new US$386,000 (£300,000) network of digital CCTV and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras, including automated alert systems, are being installed on key routes around Aberdeen, Scotland to monitor traffic 8243 flow and journey times.


The City Council’s traffic control centre will use the information gathered to respond in real time to incidents, reducing the impact of delay to road users particularly at key locations beside the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route (AWPR).

Installed by Video Watchman Systems, the system will comprise of cameras and communications, linked to a central monitoring and control system at the traffic control centre.

The camera system will provide extensive coverage of all the key routes to quickly identify congestion and allow traffic control centre operators to implement remedial measures. This could include changing traffic signal timings, issuing traffic information on electronic messaging signs, traffic bulletins to media outlets and information on travel web pages. There is the potential to divert traffic on some heavily congested routes onto less congested routes.

The 16 new CCTV cameras are located at the optimum sites on the road network for monitoring traffic conditions, primarily at the busiest junctions or junctions with the greatest visibility of the corridor and at points where incidents would have the greatest impact on traffic 8243 flow.

In addition to these CCTV cameras for traffic network monitoring, ACC also intends to install ANPR cameras on key traffic routes in and around Aberdeen for journey time monitoring. The journey time information will be used to alert operators when and where journeys are being delayed, which could indicate incidences on the roads network such as a vehicle collision, breakdown or general congestion.

Detection, Monitoring & Machine Vision Urban Traffic Control

Related Content

  • May 19, 2017
    Trials of new technologies to counter age-old work zone challenges
    New solutions are being used to improve the management and safety of work zones on roads both big and small, as Jon Masters discovers. The UK government has recently been going to some lengths to paint a picture of a nation embracing a future of digital technology – understandably given the economic concerns arising from exiting the European Union. In December last year, however, the UK National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) put down a somewhat different marker for where the UK is now in terms of mobile c
    Read More
  • April 9, 2014
    ITS homes in on cycling safety
    A new generation of ITS equipment is helping road authorities get to grips with cycle safety – and not a moment too soon as Colin Sowman discovers. Cyclists - remember them? Apparently not. At least not according to the OECD 2013 report Cycling, Health and Safety which contains the statement: ‘Cyclists are often forgotten in the design of the road traffic system’. Looking through the statistics that exist (each country appears to compile them differently) it is not difficult to see how such a conclusion cou
    Read More
  • July 9, 2013
    Siemens traffic solutions improve Amsterdam bottleneck
    Solutions supplied by Siemens are helping to improve traffic conditions at the Coentunnel, one of the most heavily used traffic arteries in the Netherlands, used by 100,000 vehicles every day. The tunnel, which links Amsterdam to the province of North Holland, has been a cause of traffic congestion and delays for many years. A much-needed second tunnel opened in spring 2013, together with a three kilometre long elevated section of freeway connecting the tunnel with the southern part of the city to relieve t
    Read More
  • October 7, 2013
    North Florida signals coordinated approach to congestion management
    David Crawford investigates innovative congestion management in Florida. The largest US city by area is well into the implementation of an ambitious congestion management system (CMS) on the scale of those of higher-profile centres such as Seattle and San Francisco. Regional agency the North Florida Transportation Planning Organisation (NFTPO) aims to ensure that commuters on major highways in Jacksonville can rely on a minimum 72km/h (45mph) driving speed in normal conditions.
    Read More

Highlighted Content