Tainan City’s crosswalks “glowing” has sparked discussions, and several members of the city council have also paid close attention to this innovative approach. Director-General of the Bureau of Transportation Wang Ming-de stated that lighting up crosswalks with projected markings belongs to an experimental cooperation plan proposed by vendors and built at their own expense; the Bureau of Transportation selected a total of 4 intersections with heavy pedestrian traffic in Anping, Guiren, Yanshui, and other places for pilot trials. Mayor Huang Wei-che also revealed more AI technologies, stating that depending on the results in the future, funding will be sought to expand the implementation.

The Bureau of Transportation explained that the design mainly lies in enhancing drivers’ recognition of crosswalks and pedestrians when turning, strengthening the awareness of yielding, and observing whether it can effectively prompt vehicles to slow down, thereby improving the safety environment for pedestrians at intersections.

Huang Wei-che also added on social media platforms that the city government brought in experts from the information and communications technology industry, through the integration of software and hardware including the Internet of Things, edge computing, and AI recognition, adopting multiple means such as projection, lighting, and electronic signboards to establish a temporary reminder mechanism for car and motorcycle drivers when pedestrians pass through.

Huang Wei-che said that the purpose of this mechanism is to establish a consensus of yielding to pedestrians at intersections through technological means, so the engineering team has extremely high requirements for both software and hardware. Not only must the AI response time be short, but routers, switches, edge computers, projectors, etc. must all adopt military and industrial-grade standards. He also thanked these vendors for their support of traffic safety, hearing that when the engineering team called back to dispatch goods, procurement and warehousing were like encountering US clients, cautiously sending the best quality equipment to Tainan.

Currently, 3 vendors are trialing applications. In two locations around Guiren HSR Station and ICC Tainan, intersection lighting will be enhanced when pedestrians pass through, improving visibility at night and reminding distant vehicles to reduce speed; between Yuejin Road and Zhongxiao Road in Yanshui, there is the same lighting mechanism, along with an electronic signboard to remind drivers that pedestrians are passing through; on Yonghua Road in the downtown area (in front of the City Council) near the hypermarket, red boundary lines are projected to create a “virtual protective fence” at night, and speed reduction graphics are projected to remind drivers to pay attention to pedestrians.

Huang Wei-che stated, “Once getting off the car, you and I are both pedestrians.” In the future, the city government will view the results of the demonstration and verification, strive for more funding, and expand to applications at other intersections.

The Bureau of Transportation pointed out that in recent years, Tainan has completed more than 1,520 pedestrian signals, 260 pedestrian exclusive phases, and 650 leading pedestrian intervals, continuing to strengthen pedestrian safety through engineering means. However, as the public’s emphasis on pedestrian rights increases, the city government also continues to introduce new technologies to elevate the overall traffic environment.

News link：https://udn.com/news/story/7326/9464205