AI on the roads: “smart signs” will detect drivers violating traffic rules
Pilot versions of smart signs with a specially developed program use infrared and microwave technology to detect distracted driving and speeding.
Smart signs can detect whether a driver is speeding, not wearing a seat belt, or using a phone. In each case, the sign will remind the driver of this, encouraging him or her to drive safely.
The technology is being tested in various locations across the United States, including Seattle and Washington, D.C. At the same time, the signs cannot collect personal data and do not issue receipts for the payment of fines.
In the first versions, the portable signs showed drivers a digital reading of their speed and informed them of the need to slow down if they exceeded it. Now the program has improved and signs advise drivers to put their phones down if they are holding them. On the other hand, people who do not violate anything are greeted with a smiley face.
Tim Hogan, CEO of SaferStreet Solutions, the company that makes the signs, said the technology can reduce distracted driving by 40 percent if left in one place for a month. Any improvement in driver concentration is positive.
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According to a recent report by Cambridge Mobile Telematics, a company that tracks driver behavior for insurance companies, there has been an alarming increase in phone use while driving.
“By almost every measure, distracted driving is the most common on U.S. roads. Drivers are spending more time on their phones while driving and doing so on more trips. Almost 58 percent of trips in 2022 involved drivers interacting with their phones,” the company wrote in its latest report.
Community organizers such as the Washington Traffic Safety Coalition hope that these signs, which do not use cameras or collect personal data, will act as a reminder to drive safely. As a result, the company has launched a pilot program using four smart signs that will rotate in 12 locations, including Seattle, Algona, King County, and more for eight weeks.
