Skip to main content

Ireland to deploy ITS technology to save lives

In the wake of the European Parliament’s approval of the mandatory installation of automatic emergency phones in all cars and vans by 2015, the Irish Times says Ireland’s National Roads Authority (NRA) is to deploy a range of intelligent transport systems to improve travel times, warn drivers of weather, dangers and delays ahead and automatically notify emergency services in the event of crashes or even the potential for crashes. The NRA has developed a motorway traffic control centre, based at the Dubli
March 18, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
In the wake of the European Parliament’s approval of the mandatory installation of automatic emergency phones in all cars and vans by 2015, the Irish Times says Ireland’s National Roads Authority (NRA) is to deploy a range of intelligent transport systems to improve travel times, warn drivers of weather, dangers and delays ahead and automatically notify emergency services in the event of crashes or even the potential for crashes.

The NRA has developed a motorway traffic control centre, based at the Dublin Port Tunnel offices, to monitor more than 65 million journeys a year made on the motorway network.  Managed by port tunnel operator 7319 Egis, the control centre will supply information to the NRA phone app which gives motorists route information including about weather, travel time, crashes, road conditions and potential diversions. The app also links to CCTV cameras based on the main inter-urban routes.

The NRA plans to test Bluetooth-enabled traffic monitoring, where Bluetooth devices in passing vehicles automatically provide data to roadside sensors, feeding into the control centre’s information on travel times.

The control centre is also developing systems that can detect the speeds of slowing traffic slowing and interpret whether this is caused by increasing traffic volume, or the possibility of a crash. The systems will also detect and warn operators of wrong-way drivers and cycles or pedestrians on a motorway.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Automated enforcement tames speeders in Chicago’s Children’s Safety Zones
    November 20, 2013
    Chicago is installing automated enforcement after pilot schemes indicated that one in 10 motorists exceed the speed limits in Children’s Safety Zones. Each year in Chicago there are around 3,000 incidents of pedestrians being struck by a motor vehicle - and about 800 of those casualties are children. In an effort to improve child safety the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) has established Children’s Safety Zones around schools and other areas where children congregate. These zones allow the impos
  • Aimsun assesses Spain V2X impact
    June 21, 2022
    An Aimsun project with C-Roads Spain to assess the impact of Day 1 V2X services has been completed: Aimsun senior transportation modeller Laura Torres explains some of the results
  • State of the art ITS technology for Doha tunnel management system
    January 31, 2012
    Husam Musharbash, Traffic Tech Group, talks about tunnel management system implementation on the new route between Doha and the soon-to-open New Doha International Airport. The new Ras Abu Aboud Tunnel in Qatar, which opened to traffic in January of this year, will serve the New Doha International Airport once the latter opens in 2011.
  • Intelligent intersection control
    April 12, 2013
    Intelligent intersection control systems have a growing role to play in making urban traffic more efficient. Robin Meczes reports. The idea of every traffic light turning green as you approach it has long been a dream for many an urban driver – and none more so than those driving heavy goods vehicles (HGVs), which are slow and difficult to bring to a halt and then accelerate back to normal travel speed. But that dream has become a reality for some drivers in a small number of cities around Europe in the las