Bengaluru’s infamous traffic has once again placed the city in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons, as it is recognized as India’s most congested city by the latest Traffic Quality Index (TQI), Deccan Herald reported.
The Traffic Quality Index (TQI), as reported by DH, offers a detailed assessment of traffic conditions, with Bengaluru scoring worryingly high in the “extreme congestion” category, where scores range between 800 and 1,000.
As per the report, Mumbai follows Bengaluru as the second most congested city, with a score of 787, while Delhi and Hyderabad rank behind with scores of 747 and 718, respectively.
These findings were presented at the Mobility Symposium, hosted by Move In Sync, a provider of employee commute solutions, the report added.
New flyover brings relief
In a positive development, one of Bengaluru’s most congested areas, Silk Board Junction, has seen a significant reduction in traffic jams following the opening of a much-anticipated double-decker flyover in July. According to data from Kuldeep Kumar Jain, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic-East),, traffic snarls at Silk Board have decreased by at least 50 per cent.
Before the flyover’s inauguration, the area experienced an average of 24 daily congestion alerts, which dropped to 15 within a month. Additionally, the average length of traffic queues at the junction shrank from 19 km to 10 km, offering much-needed relief to commuters.
AI for traffic management
Bengaluru police are ramping up their AI-driven surveillance to tackle widespread traffic violations across the city. The upgraded system will now monitor 13 different types of offenses, automatically issuing fines to violators.
The AI-based cameras currently track violations such as speeding, using mobile phones while driving, not wearing helmets or seat belts, running red lights, stop line breaches, and triple riding on two-wheelers. With the recent upgrade, the cameras will also detect six additional violations, including illegal number plates, wrong-side driving, overloading of goods vehicles, damaged or broken mirrors, and illegal parking.
