A new toolkit is being developed in the new European project Emeralds: Mobility Analytics as a Service (MAaaS), which will simplify working with data. MICD collaborates with experts from the Transport and Planning Department of TU Delft’s Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geoinformation.
Duration
2023 – 2026Partners (TU Delft)
TU Delft-CEG, department Transport & Planning
In many cities, huge amounts of data on traffic are collected on a daily base: how many cars are driving and whereto, where does traffic congestion occur, how do bicycle flows run and is public transport used efficiently. There is also a lot of data available on air quality and the weather. The more data is available, the more complicated it becomes to produce useful analyses.
Therefore, governments need advice on how to use all these data streams. The new to be developed toolset allows municipalities, provinces and other road authorities to analyse and use the data. Think of importing data into different systems and generating multiple images in an interactive dashboard with a few clicks. Specific challenges in this development: processing and providing insight into the data must be fast and accurate. In addition, management must be simple. In technological terms, the standards are high: in edge/fog/cloud environments, analyses and calculations must be performed at lightning speed. The deployment of AI (artificial intelligence) helps to recognise patterns and make predictions. Since continuous learning is one of the biggest challenges in using AI, the ability of the platform to continually learn is crucial. In addition, data security and privacy-proof operations are also essential in this project.
To provide reliable support for developing mobility policies and management, the tool will be designed to address several scientific and technical challenges. For example, determining which data and data sources are relevant to estimate and predict risks. Also estimating and predicting congestion and identifying external factors affecting traffic flows. Examples include weather, intersecting crowds or the presence of police and security guards.
The toolset is being developed and tested in a number of pilots. In the Netherlands, the municipalities of Rotterdam and The Hague are partnering with MICD to develop and test the tool. A total of 20 European partners are collaborating in this project.
Video about the Emeralds project
In less than four minutes, those directly involved explain the Mobility Analytics as a Service they’re working on.