Smart Transportation Systems: Recent Developments, Current Challenges and Opportunities

Abstract

The advancements in smart city technologies have shown great potential to ease traffic congestion. Although, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) were initiated in the late 1960s and early 1970s with the aim of developing ITS to enhance the safety and security of both the vehicle as well as citizens in all kinds of traffic conditions, unprecedented surge in population density, narrow roads, and loanable vehicles exacerbate the traffic conditions, pollution, and accidents in major cities. Smart Transportation System (STS) is the only solution for these conditions along with achieving sustainability in smart cities and smart villages. Numerous integrated technologies developed under ITS to resolve traffic-related issues are based on sensors, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things, Cloud Computing and Big-Data, etc. This piece of knowledge only focused on the AI techniques. This chapter focuses on the scope of ITS in solving the challenges faced by cities not only in terms of mobility and security, smart mobility methodologies, sustainable sources of energy for smart transportation and smart traffic signals, but also to solve the traffic congestion and road accidents, which occur due to human-related factors (loss of control, limited sight distance, and tiredness, etc.), vehicle-related factors (brake failure, wear & tear of parts etc.) and traffic management related factors (improper design, deficient signaling system, sluggish maintenance process, etc.). This chapter covers a case study of Indian cities to reduce traffic congestion, avoid accidents and manage the transportation systems in a much better way by using STS technologies.