Transportation authorities in Kaohsiung are developing tech-based systems to curb traffic accidents caused by pedestrian and vehicle intrusions into the city's light rail network, local officials said Friday.
Earlier in the day, a motorist was severely injured after making an illegal right turn and driving onto the light rail tracks near Ersheng Rd. before ramming into a train.
The accident was the 13th this year involving the light rail system in the southern Taiwan city, its officials said, with most of the crashes caused by illegal turns of vehicles.
The city has therefore been working with the National Development Council and Chunghwa Telecom Co. to introduce 5G and Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT)-based technology to predict intrusions.
The technology applies light detection and ranging (LiDAR) to collect traffic patterns near the light rail system to trigger alerts under certain circumstances, the city government said.
A trial project is currently in place at intersections where the light rail approaches key arteries, such as Banchao Rd., Jhongshan Rd., and Qianzhen Rd., it said.
As part of the project, electronic billboards have been installed in those areas that anticipate when drivers are likely to turn onto a light rail track and warn them not to do so, the city said.
Similarly, the trains are equipped with an onboard alert system that warns train drivers of dangerous situations as the train is moving, it said.
The city has also redesigned and reinstalled traffic lights on roads near the light rail network so that green lights have arrows showing the directions in which cars are permitted to flow, hopefully channeling them away from light rail tracks, the city said.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel