The Abu Dhabi Department of Transport (DOT) has announced that its Traffic Management and Technology Division (TMT), which is based at the Traffic Management Center (TMC), has completed the implementation of its Traffic Counting System (TCS) project in the Emirate. The project is one of the DOT’s most important strategies and has involved the deployment of more than 190 advanced traffic counting stations across all main roads in the cities of Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, and the Western Region (Al Gharbia). The AED9m (US$2.45m) project provides raw traffic data, such as the average vehicle volume, size, speed and classification, in addition to creating a central traffic database for the whole Emirate. The collected data will contribute to the country’s strategy for Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS), and also provides the necessary information for the DOT, which will help in the design, planning and management of main roads according to the best international standards, and in line with Abu Dhabi Vision 2030 and the Surface Transport Master Plan (STMP). The DOT hopes that this will eventually lead to the establishment of an integrated and sustainable infrastructure for the country’s transport network.
The DOT’s objective is to ensure the application of minimum operating and maintenance requirements, as well as evaluating the level of service provided to road users, through acquiring precise and clear information on roads and vehicle usage, including the most used and congested routes. The data was collected in order to be studied and analyzed by transport specialists to help the DOT in calculating commuting times and managing traffic and accidents. The data will enable the DOT to design strategic plans for the development of infrastructure and road networks in the emirate, and will be shared with strategic partners, such as Abu Dhabi Police, Municipalities of Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Western Region, and other government entities, as well as private sector developers and consultancy companies.
One of the most important features of the Traffic Counting System is its ability to collect the data from various sites using cutting-edge radar stations that can detect and measure traffic on the road network in all weather conditions. The system has minimal energy consumption costs as it relies on solar-powered traffic counting stations, which uses wireless communications to transmit data from the sites to the control room in the Traffic Management Center. The stations have been designed for long term use, and as their installation did not require road closures, future operation and maintenance can be carried out without affecting traffic flow. The DOT is also using a number of mobile traffic counting stations that enable engineers to obtain the necessary traffic data easily from any location that is not covered by the fixed stations.
