Spain has placed itself at the centre of the inclusive and accessible world. Do you want to know why? In the city of Córdoba they have installed a traffic light that uses artificial intelligence (AI), and if you are wondering what AI is doing at a traffic light… you need to read this news
Accessibility in traffic
This traffic light has not been placed there by chance, but with a very important task: to prepare when people with reduced mobility want to cross, for what? to adjust the time so that they can cross without feeling that time is pressing them.
Located on Avenida del Aeropuerto, this project has put Córdoba on the podium of inclusive cities, and the location was chosen from among several groups in the area.
Why at an airport?
Córdoba is a very large city, but specifically, in the surroundings of this location there are health centres and other buildings where services are provided to people with reduced mobility (such as an orthopaedic centre) or the San Rafael Alzheimer’s Association. In addition, it is a very busy area for people, and unlike other traffic lights, which aim to optimize traffic, this particular traffic light only aims to preserve the safety of people with less motor skills.
How does it work then?
It is a system based on cameras with AI, which recognizes wheelchairs, walkers, canes and baby strollers. Once it detects these items, it is easy, it simply extends the time in which pedestrians can pass.
The traffic light incorporates two bidirectional cameras, and changes the traffic lights when it detects someone from the group we mentioned before. You may think it’s nonsense, but it’s 30 seconds (the standard time it takes for a pedestrian to cross without any difficulty) compared to the 35 seconds that these people can cross without being in such a hurry. The best of all is the invention, because the more it is used, the more precise the detection of pedestrians with special needs will become.
A proud city
That’s right, the delegate for Inclusion and Accessibility of the Córdoba City Council, Bernardo Jordano, has shown his pride in this innovation, which, although he does not ignore that it may have been implemented in other places, is certainly a pioneer in the Spanish state (but it is similar to the KI4PED program implemented in Germany)
The town is grateful
Antonio Galindo, president of the Cordoba Association for Multiple Sclerosis, stressed the importance of the project: “People with reduced mobility often feel pressure when crossing, fearing that they don’t have enough time. This traffic light helps reduce this anxiety and improves their autonomy.” And although its success rate is only 90% for now, it seems to be on the verge of innovation. Who would have thought that a traffic light could use AI to make our lives more comfortable in this way?
Experimental phase
The system is already operational, although it is in an initial phase, where those responsible hope to collect usage data to evaluate whether the additional 5 seconds are sufficient or whether they need to be adjusted a little more. In addition, the City Council plans to expand the installation of these traffic lights in other key areas of the city, such as hospitals, civic centres and transport stations.
And what about the privacy of citizens?
Don’t worry about that, because although the cameras record pedestrians, the algorithm respects the guidelines of the Data Protection Act (LOPD), so it will not be able to store any type of personal information because it will focus exclusively on detecting pedestrians with patterns of lack of mobility.
We have to wait to see if it is useful, but Córdoba is already a benchmark in urban accessibility based on AI!!