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Smart cities are on the rise and efficient traffic and parking solutions are necessary for their development.
FREMONT, CA: According to studies, by 2030, approximately 5 billion of the world’s total population will live in urban areas. With urbanization, managing cities will be a challenge that will make building smart cities crucial. To handle mobility with the increased population in a smart city, the authorities must implement quick traffic and parking solutions. Proper parking planning can reduce traffic congestion and carbon emissions. On a completely different note, more than 90 Americans lose their lives every day in road accidents. Communities have to take concrete steps when it comes to traffic and parking safety. New York City is putting its best foot forward to manage the traffic, but still, the congestion on the roadways is leading to more pollution, accidents, and fatalities.
Organizations such as Vision Zero—a multi-national road traffic safety project—are tackling the problem head-on. The project aims to achieve a highway system with zero fatalities or serious injuries. Vision Zero has identified communities of concern where more than 70 percent of accidents occur. To reduce the number of injuries and deaths, it is essential to solving parking and traffic challenges in these communities. The communities of concern include areas with older adults and adults without vehicles, people with disabilities, children and school areas, chronic health conditions, impoverished areas or those with lower educational attainment, and safety concerns due to speed limits and crashes.
The majority of the departments of transportations (DoTs) are overburdened. Technology has impacted traffic deeply, but future promises such as self-driving cars are still farfetched. To make the roadways safe, these departments have to deal with issues with managing transportation in a better way. The infrastructure advances are outpaced by transportation options, and most of the transportation offices are understaffed. Technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT) enable administrators to update people about the upcoming traffic or danger quickly is a better way to manage transportation issues. Whenever a citizen drives a car or any other vehicle, it is uncertain what might happen. Governments, communities, and organizations have the power to put programs in place that can save lives. As the cities develop in the future, efficient traffic and parking solutions will become a necessity.