DHAKA: When Dhaka authorities linked traffic cameras to artificial intelligence, the goal was to contain the Bangladeshi capital’s notorious road-rule offences. Two months on, police say the pilot system has not only done that but is also unclogging some of the city’s busiest intersections.
Dhaka’s chronic jams, chaotic driving and road fatalities have been sparking mass protests and challenging successive administrations for decades.
Despite numerous attempts to address the problem, the city of more than 22 million people still relies on traffic officers who often have to stop vehicles with ropes or their own bodies when traffic lights turn red.
But since April, the situation appears to have improved, as Dhaka police linked traffic cameras to AI software designed to automatically detect violations.
“Our software is entirely homegrown, and it can now detect five types of violations: running red lights, blocking the left lane, driving on the wrong side of the road, stopping in non-designated areas, and picking up or dropping off passengers in random places,” Anisur Rahman, additional police commissioner for traffic, Dhaka Metropolitan Police, told Arab News.
