Jakarta plans to use AI to ease traffic congestion - ANTARA News

A view of a traffic snarl here on November 17, 2022. According to the global city road congestion rating agency Tomtom International BV, the traffic congestion rate in Jakarta stood at 34 percent in 2021. (ANTARA PHOTO/Darryl Ramadhan/hp/FR)

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Jakarta Transportation Office is planning to utilize artificial intelligence (AI) technology to control traffic volume and ease vehicle congestion, head of the office’s traffic control system management unit, Emanuel Kristanto, has said.

For the effort, the Jakarta Transportation Office will cooperate with a major search engine company to implement the AI technology at a number of crossroads in the capital city, he informed here on Friday.

Later, the AI will recommend optimal green flash time for traffic lights at the crossroads to the office.

"The data will be delivered to the Transportation Office and we will implement them on the field," he said.

The cooperation between the Jakarta provincial government and the company is expected to help reduce traffic congestion, which has been a frequent source of complaint among Jakarta residents, especially during rush hours.

However, Kristianto said he could not provide a detailed explanation since the AI's operation falls under the search engine company Google's authority.

Handling the congestion in Jakarta was one of the tasks assigned to the Jakarta provincial government, which President Joko Widodo emphasized to acting governor Heri Budi Hartono.

The Jakarta Metropolitan Police have previously said that the volume of traffic in Jakarta has reached an uncomfortable level.

Traffic director of the Jakarta Metropolitan Police, Commissioner Latif Usman, on Tuesday informed that the congestion in Jakarta has reached around 48 percent.

Therefore, the police have introduced a number of initiatives, such as regulating office hours for workers in Jakarta, to reduce congestion.

Meanwhile, global city road congestion rating agency Tomtom International BV informed that, in 2021, the congestion rate in Jakarta stood at 34 percent.

The figure was lower compared to in 2020, when it was recorded at 36 percent, according to the agency.