How Are Governments Improving Road Safety Through Smart Traffic Cameras?
The adoption of intelligent traffic camera is increasing significantly, due to the rising incidence of road accidents. These cameras capture video sequences or images followed by high-level image processing, such as face recognition and motion analysis, and further transfer compressed video data and extracted video information through a network to concerned authorities for further analysis. These systems help public and private agencies to leverage new and existing video assets and provide the information required to avoid recurring congestion and road mishaps.
Moreover, expansion of metropolitan areas in countries, such as Brazil, India, Mexico, and China,is increasing the frequency of traffic congestion that calls for the adoption of intelligent traffic system (ITS) solutions. Emerging nations across the globe are installing intelligent traffic cameras to reduce congestion and manage traffic flow. Due to this factor, the intelligent traffic camera market is expected to increase its value from $10,087.8 million in 2019 to $24,465.6 million by 2030. According to P&S Intelligence, these reasons will drive the market at a CAGR of 8.5% during the forecast period (2020–2030).
The application segment of the intelligent traffic camera market is categorized into toll management, surveillance, and traffic management. Of these, the surveillance category dominated the market in 2019, due to growing concerns regarding road safety and rising government initiatives for the developmentof smart cities with enhanced security. Whereas, the traffic management category is expected to display the fastest growth during the forecast period, owing to the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled traffic management systems that include intelligent traffic cameras, which facilitate traffic flow by remotely accessing and controlling the lights at intersections.
In 2019, the European region installed the maximum number of intelligent traffic cameras, due to the advancement in camera technology and availability of these cameras at an affordable price. The cameras help in improving the transportation ecosystem in the region. According to the European Commission, the ITS is imperative for increasing the safety and tackling emission and congestion issues in Europe. Moreover, the organization, under its Digital Single Market Strategy (2019–2024), aspires to manage the transport network effectively, by adopting ITS in the region.
Toll management, surveillance, and traffic management are the major application areas of intelligent traffic cameras. Amongst these, the requirement for these devices was found to be the highest in surveillance applications in 2019. This is credited to the increasing concerns over road safety and the surging implementation of government initiatives aimed at developing smart cities all over the world. The demand for these cameras was observed to be the highest in Europe in the years gone by.
This was because of the rapid advancements that were made in the camera technology and its higher accessibility, which supported its deployment in the transportation ecosystem. According to the European Commission, the ITS is necessary to increase road safety and tackle emission and road congestion issues in the region. However, during the forecast period, the sales of these cameras are expected to rise at the fastest pace in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. This is ascribed to the presence of several populous countries in the region, such as India and China, which are witnessing a massive rise in road congestion and accidents.
Thus, it can be safely deduced that the demand for intelligent traffic cameras will surge sharply in the coming years, mainly because of the rising incidence of road accidents and the burgeoning requirement for improved road safety and better flow of road traffic across the world.
