Ipoh City Council installs traffic lights with artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities – statewide coverage to follow suit.
Ipoh wants to be a low-carbon city by 2030, and one of the first measures taken by the Ipoh City Council to achieve this goal is to install a traffic light system with artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities.
A service subscription agreement was inked recently between Ipoh City Council (MBI) and Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM) for the AI traffic light system called STARS.
According to NST, State Youth, Sports and Multimedia Committee chairman Khairul Shahril Mohamad said for the initial stage, STARS had been placed in four locations in November last year.
He said the council, together with TM had implemented a trial period for STARS at four intersections along Jalan Sultan Idris Shah, Ipoh.
“The four locations are at intersections of Jalan Sultan Idris Shah and Jalan Laksamana, Jalan Sultan Idris Shah and Jalan Datuk Onn Jaafar, Jalan Sultan Idris Shah and Jalan Raja Musa Aziz, and Jalan Sultan Idris Shah and Jalan Raja Ekram,” he said after launching the Ipoh Integrated Operation Centre (IIOC) and 5G at Urban Transformation Centre (UTC). Present was Mayor Datuk Rumaizi Baharin.
The smart traffic lights, which would eventually be installed statewide, will help smoothen traffic flow by up to 51%, according to Ipoh Mayor, Datuk Rumaizi Baharin.
“It will help smoothen traffic flow by up to 51%, especially during peak hours, which helps save time and cost for road users.
Khairul also added that the AI traffic lights would help reduce carbon emissions by the thousands.
“The installation of STARS has indirectly had a major impact on reducing the rate of carbon emissions by 7,500kg per month,” he said.
Powered through a 5G network, the STARS system is linked to the Ipoh Integrated Operation Centre (IIOC), which is the heart of the Ipoh Smart City Action Plan.
According to MBI, Ipoh has become the first city in the northern region to get 5G access at a speed of 1 GB per second, and statewide coverage is in the works.