3. The Edge | 47
road safety | cover story
ITS
Qatar’s
Qatar’s road fatality rate is more than triple the rate recorded in some of the best
performing developed countries in the world. That said, the country has started
to address the road safety and transport expansion issue more seriously with
the introduction of an intelligent transport system (ITS). But Qatar still has a long
way to go to make its roads future-ready, writes SyedAmeenKader.
?
4. 48 | The Edge
T
he recent economic evolution
in some of the Gulf countries
has resulted in unprecedented
growth in population and vehicle numbers
– something that has changed the whole
dynamic of road infrastructure in this region.
Many Gulf countries are still struggling to
deal with this rapid surge in vehicle numbers,
and the result is seen in the high rate of road
accidents that these countries record every
year.Accordingtoavailablegovernmentdata,
220 people died and 550 more suffered
serious injuries due to road accidents
between 2008 and 2010 in Qatar. In Dubai,
115 people lost their lives in 2014, whereas
Qatar recorded 222 deaths in the same year.
While compared globally, Qatar’s fatality rate
stood at 13.7 road deaths in 2010, against
a figure of below five in some of the best
performing countries such as the United
Kingdom, Sweden and the Netherlands
(see table on page 49).
The World Health Organization’s global
status report on road safety concludes
that countries with high income generally
have the lowest fatality rate (8.7) against
middle-income countries (20.1). Ironically,
Qatar, being the richest country in the world,
with the highest per capita gross domestic
product (GDP), ranks among middle-income
countries when it comes to road fatality rate.
Qatar has a huge task in hand. It stands
at the crossroads of deciding how to go
about its future road expansion plan, which
technology to adopt, and what models to
follow in the future. Since Qatar is preparing
to host the world’s biggest sporting events in
2022, this task comes with a deadline.
Qatar already launched its National Road
Yousef Al Emadi, manager of Roads
Operations and Maintenance Department,
The Public Works Authority (Ashghal), says,
“It’s a combination between technology,
engineeringandinfrastructure.Thishasbeen
integrated into our future infrastructure so
now no project will go for tender unless there
is ITS infrastructure on it. At the end of the
day, you will not have the best results, unless
you have both of them.”
But ITS alone cannot solve the problem;
it is an enabler or tool at the end of the day.
Alan Bristow, director, Road Space
Management – Surface Transport, Transport
for London, says, “If you have the wrong
ITS trying to solve the wrong problem, it’s a
disaster. So you need to understand what is
the problem you are trying to solve and then
get the correct solution to help in solving it.”
Bristow, who is responsible for
managing the whole surface network of
London, says the problem most people
face is just the sheer amount of date that
new systems can face. So data is not the
answer. “You need to be able to transfer
that data processing. So it becomes useful
information to tell you what’s happening
and enable you to take action from it and in
that Qatar will find itself in the same boat as
everyone else,” he says.
For Qatar, Bristow explains, the first thing
to look at is what the causes of the problem
130Qatar has set a realistic goal of
reducing the number of road deaths
to 130 by 2022.
Qatar is already making some early strides in implementing parts of the ITS system such as the traffic
signals control room, which has been implemented for the past four to five years. (Image Corbis)
Over 120 intersections are currently under central control in Qatar. (Image Corbis)
Safety Strategy 2013-2022 in January
2013. It also has an intelligent transport
systems (ITS) masterplan, through which
it is formulating an action plan, standards
and specifications and architecture for
implanting ITS into the road development
and operation. Qatar has set a realistic goal
of reducing the number of road deaths to
130 by 2022.
EmbracingITS
ITS helps create a single, comprehensive
ecosystem that collects and integrates
data in real time from all the city’s transport
networks. Then, that data is used to manage
traffic and transport provision more
efficiently, as well as improving road safety
quitesignificantly.ITSisnotjustabouthaving
some communication devices, it involves
developing a complete process of delivering
andrunningsafeandefficientroadnetworks.
cover story | road safety
48 | The Edge
5. The Edge | 49
are. “You are not tailoring an approach from overseas
that doesn’t meet your specific requirements, and
that’s very wise.”
HesaysthoughsomemayfeelthatQatarisstarting
from scratch, that sometimes is the best place to start
from. “It enables you to take a fresh look, decide what it
is you want from the best of other people and combine
them together for your own unique flavour for how you
approach this,” adds Bristow.
Bristow, who has successfully managed the
transportation during the London Olympics in
2012, is probably the best person to ask how
Qatar should approach its transport management
for the 2022 World Cup. What did London do
for the Olympics that Qatar probably can take
“ITShasbeen
integrated
intoourfuture
infrastructureso
nownoproject
willgofortender
unlessthereisITS
infrastructure
onit.” – Yousef Al
Emadi, manager of
Roads Operations
and Maintenance
Department, Ashghal.
ROADFATALITYRATE
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Australia
Bahrain
Denm
ark
Ireland
Om
an
Qatar
Sweden
UAE
UK
USA
some lessons from? “For the Olympics we mobilised a lot of our staff to be
ambassadors for the travel network, and to help people understand how to get
around. For us, that was incredibly successful. A lot of our staff enjoyed doing it,”
he says.
Bristow reveals that they spent seven years before the Olympics doing
infrastructure work. “We built Stratford up into an international reception point, we
changed the nature of the road network, we did all sorts of things in all sorts of areas
to get ready. It’s a huge undertaking, as the World Cup for Qatar will be,” he explains.
Qatar’sroadtechnology
Currently, Qatar has different speed monitoring technology that it uses to send data
to a control room, but it is difficult to know which car has been speeding unless it
is captured through the camera, and two data points are put together to match.
Whereas, with the help of telematics, one can automatically find out which vehicle
number is going at what speed on a particular road, and the traffic department can
According to available government data, 220 people died and 550 more suffered serious
injuries due to road accidents between 2008 and 2010 in Qatar. (Image Corbis)
road safety | cover story
The Edge | 49
Road traffic deaths per 100,000 population in 2010.
Source: World Health Organisation
6. issue a fine on the same day.
Technology companies working in Qatar
say the country is embarking on a very large
ITS programme that will eventually cover
about a thousand kilometres of road. “This
one thousand kilometres probably will be
the most densely equipped road anywhere
in the world,” says Husam Musharbash,
president and CEO, Traffic Tech, adding that
there is a big programme for ITS already
happening in Qatar. “But it will take six to
seven years to cover all of these roads with
traffic monitoring control and road safety
equipment, with complete communications
network that will enable them to control
everything from one central control room,”
he adds.
Qatar is already making some early
strides in implementing parts of the ITS
system such as the traffic signals control
room, which has been implemented
for the past four to five years. Over 120
intersections are currently under central
control. There are several other systems
that have been implemented including an
emergency vehicle preemption system.
Musharbash says technology can play a
big role but what Qatar is moving toward is
much more than transportation. “Now they
are building the public transport system
including the metro system. That will help
alleviate some of the traffic congestion
problem. We cannot rely on only one mode
of transportation and solve all the problems
with the increasing population. It’s just not
doable,” he says.
Globalbestpractices
Qatar can take a lot of cues from
developed countries that have
successfully organised major events or
are constantly developing and testing
the latest technologies to improve their
“Newtechnologiesthatfocus
aroundcollisionwarningaswell
asautonomousemergencybraking
couldplayanimportantrolein
reducingcrashesaswellascollisions
withpedestrians.” - John Wall, manager,
Road Safety Technology, Centre for Road
Safety, Transport for New South Wales.
transport network.
Forexample,NewSouthWales(NSW),asoutheasternstateofAustralia,iscurrentlytrialing
a number of collision avoidance technologies (CAT). These systems rely on vehicle-based
sensors as well as cooperative ITS that use high frequency short range radios.
John Wall, manager, Road Safety Technology, Centre for Road Safety, Transport for NSW,
tells The Edge, “The Fleet CAT project has installed a camera-based collision avoidance
systemknownasMobileyeintomorethan30publicservicevehicles.Thesystemiscapableof
detectingpotentialforwardcollisionswithothervehicles,pedestriansandevenbicycleriders.”
In addition to warnings about potential collisions, the system also warns drivers if they are
travelling too close to the vehicle in front as well as warning drivers if they drift out of their lane
without using their indicators. Wall acknowledges that the system is still in the early stages of
trial so he cannot say if the technology is beneficial to Australian drivers. But research from
other countries suggests that this technology could potentially reduce the number of fatal
crashes between 20 and 40 percent.
NSW has another ongoing project called Cooperative Intelligent Transport Initiative (CITI),
which uses dedicated short-range communications, rather than camera-based systems to
predict a risk of a collision. “Vehicles using this system talk to each other around 10 times a
second using a basic safety message (BSM), which contains information derived from GPS
and includes a vehicle’s location, speed and direction. A computer attached to the radios then
usesamathematicalalgorithmtopredicttheprobabilityofacollision,”explainsWall.Modelling
by Austroads, an association of Australasian road transport and traffic agencies, suggests that
New South Wales’ (Australia) transport department currently testing the Cooperative Intelligent Transport
Initiative (CITI) project, which uses dedicated short-range communications, rather than camera based
systems to predict a risk of a collision. (Image Transport for New South Wales)
50 | The Edge
cover story | road safety
7. Qatar’sNationalRoadSafety
Strategy
The strategy has been
designed to save
800lives and prevent
2000 serious injuries
over the next 10 years
QAR155billion
earmarked for ITS investment in next
5 years
QAR600million
worth of contracts have already been
awarded to improve roads infrastructure
TMC will integrate information from all of
the state’s transport networks
Transport Management Centre
(TAM) will make up-to-date
travel information available
to smartphones and GPS
systems for public usage
Crash barriers to
be used along the
medians of high-
speed roads
Rural roads and
highways will also
receive safety
improvement
The National Road Safety Action
Plan contains
200individual actions to be delivered
over the next five years
13government and
semi-government agencies are
responsible for delivering the actions
An updated Action Plan will be released after
5years
this technology could reduce fatal crashes
by up to 25 percent, but research from the
United States suggests that the benefit of
using this technology could be a lot higher.
There are many potential intelligent
technologies that could assist Qatar in
reducing the incidence and severity of
crashes. Many of these are being introduced,
including traffic signals, fixed speed cameras
and radar measured speeding enforcement.
Wall believes new technologies that
focus around collision warning as well as
autonomous emergency braking could
play an important role in reducing crashes
as well as collisions with pedestrians.
“Collision warning systems use cameras
and advanced mathematics to predict a
potential collision, but these still require the
driver to take appropriate action such as
applying the brakes. With the autonomous
barking systems that we are seeing built in to
vehicles, the car itself will apply the brakes to
prevent a collision,” says Wall.
Elaborating on some of the latest
technologies vehicle manufactures are
introducingtothismarket,Dr.RichardBrown,
head of product management, Middle East
for MAN, says, “The first technology which is
mandatory, a standard installation and has
been introduced in this region, is electronic
braking system (EBS). This is one level higher
than anti-lock braking system (ABS) where
brake pressure is controlled by a computer
from the start.”
The next one that MAN Trucks and Bus
is bringing is the lane guard system (LGS),
which tells the driver if he is crossing the
lane without indicating. “Currently, we have
one fleet that we are trialing it with to make
sure it works in all countries. But it’s already
mandatory for all vehicles over 12 tonnes in
Europe,” says Brown.
He says vehicles around the world
are increasingly communicating through
telematics, which is part of ITS. “The
vehicle communicates directly with the
control centres and passes data, speed,
and position. This technology is already
available but is still to be introduced in
Qatar. Whereas, it is mandatory in Australia,
Iran, Brazil, and some parts of North
America and China,” he explains.
With the advent of telematics, it is now
possible to collect real time data about a
vehicle’sspeed,locationanddrivingpatterns.
Thetechnologyallowsyoutomonitordrivers’
behaviours – right from how may times he
has pressed the brake pedal in a day at what
pressure to whether he has gone around a corner too fast, or the centre of gravity has moved.
Vehicle manufactures are talking to ministries of different countries in this region to set the
speed limit of the road on their map, on the wall. “Every single truck, car and bus can have
telematics. And if he exceeds the speed limit in that area, automatically he can receive a fine,”
explains Brown. Al Emadi tells The Edge that they are trying their best to apply best practices
and recruit expertise to improve the road network of Qatar, but he acknowledges it is not an
easy task.
“There are, for sure, a number of challenges to apply when you look to achieve your goal
and targets of the National Traffic Safety Committee. It is a complex process, which involves
following different entities and making sure that they are fully aware of what they have to
do. You also need to secure the budget for implementing all these projects related to the
safety committee,” he explains. But, he suggests, one can overcome these challenges, with
expertise and competent people “because in the last few years, Ashghal has recruited a lot
of expertise in different sectors. We have everything in place, right from the strategy, road
mapping to advanced technology and the government support. So there is nothing which is
missing. I think all these will give us more and more support to achieve these goals,” concludes
Al Emadi.
Poor intersection layout
will be improved with
clearer markings, signage
and crosswalks
The Edge | 51
road safety | cover story
