Direct Line showcases The Smart Crossing in London

In response to 7,000 incidents taking place at pedestrian crossings each year in Britain, Direct Line has unveiled the new Smart Crossing in London which has been developed by urban design technologists Umbrellium. The Smart Crossing uses research from the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL), which identified many factors that impact the safety of pedestrians on road crossings. These include, the pedestrian’s position and route as they cross the road, the influence of other pedestrians dangerously crossi
October 10, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
In response to 7,000 incidents taking place at pedestrian crossings each year in Britain, 4236 Direct Line has unveiled the new 5062 Smart Crossing in London which has been developed by urban design technologists Umbrellium.


The Smart Crossing uses research from the Transport Research Laboratory (491 TRL), which identified many factors that impact the safety of pedestrians on road crossings. These include, the pedestrian’s position and route as they cross the road, the influence of other pedestrians dangerously crossing the road and the impact of overcrowding at crossing facilities.

The Smart Crossing spans 7.5m x 22m of responsive road surface and uses computer vision technology to see what is happening around it, and an LED road surface to change its markings to keep users safe. It can pre-empt pedestrians’ movement and where the eyeline is most likely to be without manual intervention. The Smart Crossing can also widen to accommodate large groups, which could help reduce the number of crowd-related incidents outside schools or sporting events. In addition, it assists in emergency situations, such as a child chasing a ball into the path of oncoming traffic. Smart warning signals can also be used to ensure pedestrians are not hidden by high sided vehicles which can create a blind spot for other drivers. Finally, the smart crossing can use dynamic road and pavement patterns to urge pedestrians using their mobile phones to look up and focus on the crossing.

Jason Wakeford, head of campaigns at road safety charity, Brake said, “This innovative pilot is a great example of how technology can help to improve road safety. We look forward to seeing the results of this trial and hope Smart Crossings will be rolled out in towns and cities across the country."

Urban Traffic Control

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • London buses to trial speed safety technology
    June 26, 2015
    New technology that is designed to reduce speeds and increase vehicle safety will be trialled on London’s buses next month, as part of the Mayor and Transport for London’s (TfL) continuing work to halve the number of people killed or seriously injured on London’s roads. The Mayor and TfL announced today that intelligent speed adaptation (ISA), an innovative technology that ensures vehicles can’t exceed speed limits, will be trialled on 47 London buses in a UK-first. The new technology, which was outli
    Read More
  • Cognitive Technologies to develop autonomous tram in Russia
    February 14, 2019
    Cognitive Technologies has joined forces with Russian manufacturer PC Transport Systems to deploy an autonomous tram on the streets of Moscow by 2022. Cognitive says that its simplified system means autonomous trams will appear on public roads much earlier than self-driving cars. The company claims its system will detect vehicle and other trams, traffic lights, pedestrians, tram and bus stops, railway and switches and obstacles. Also, the technology will allow the tram to stop in front of obstacles a
    Read More
  • Cohda Wireless supplies OBUs for Australian connected vehicle pilot
    December 17, 2018
    Cohda Wireless has become the latest technology firm to get involved in the Ipswich Connected Vehicle Pilot in Queensland, Australia. The trial aims to allow 500 participating vehicles to communicate with roadside cooperative ITS (C-ITS) devices – and Cohda is to deploy on-board units (OBUs). Last week, Kapsch confirmed it is to deliver 30 roadside C-ITS devices for the trial, which is led by the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads. Cohda’s OBUs are expected to exchange data at high s
    Read More
  • UK readiness for AVs depends on gender, age and location, says Fujitsu
    November 27, 2018
    The UK’s readiness to use a ride from a driverless car depends on gender, age and where you live, says a new report from Fujitsu. In a study of 2,000 members of the British public and 600 senior business decision makers, Fujitsu has discovered that transport is second only to education as the sector people are most keen to see transformed by technology. Despite this, there remains some ‘discomfort’ surrounding autonomous vehicles (AV). Less than a third of respondents would be happy to be picked up by a
    Read More

Highlighted Content