PUNE: Students from the Symbiosis Institute of Business Management (SIBM) have conducted a detailed survey of ‘traffic congestion on the road from Pashan to Symbiosis International University (SIU), Lavale Campus’ using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) and have come up with solutions which they are going to submit to the Pune traffic police.
An initiative of the Consulting and Strategy Club (CSC) of SIBM Pune, the survey was carried out between November 2022 and February 2023 by a team comprising Rishi Madhav Chandran, Amit Chattopadhyay, Prajwal M, Shubham Pingale, Vivek Ranaut and Vinayak Sharma under the guidance of professor Chetan Panse, associate professor, SIBM.
Sharing details of the project’s scope and objective, Prajwal M, said, “We have studied the causes of traffic congestion on the route from Pashan (Rajmata Jijau flyover) to SIU Lavale Campus with particular focus on the Pashan-Sus road, and providing recommendations to ease traffic congestion. The objectives of the project were to identify the causes of traffic congestion, suggest practical solutions for traffic management on the identified route, and most importantly - provide a template for technology-assisted solutions for traffic management on other arterial routes of the city.”
Shubham Pingale explained, “In the first phase, congestion points on the Sus-Pashan to SIU Campus route were identified with the help of Google Maps’ live traffic data. In the second phase, 14 field visits were carried out at different times of the day to these congestion points to record traffic during one-hour intervals using video cameras. The camera footage was analysed to tabulate the type and number of vehicles passing through. This information was collected for a pilot run of the model.”
{{/usCountry}}Shubham Pingale explained, “In the first phase, congestion points on the Sus-Pashan to SIU Campus route were identified with the help of Google Maps’ live traffic data. In the second phase, 14 field visits were carried out at different times of the day to these congestion points to record traffic during one-hour intervals using video cameras. The camera footage was analysed to tabulate the type and number of vehicles passing through. This information was collected for a pilot run of the model.”
{{/usCountry}}A member of the CSC, Chetna Chhabadiya, said, “The main reasons for traffic were the need for greater road width, heavy vehicles, construction equipment movement during peak hours, lack of traffic signals, and school transportation enroute Lupin Ltd. and SIU campuses. We conducted over 37 general interviews with pedestrians and drivers on Pashan-Sus road for the analysis of various issues leading to traffic congestion.”
Whereas Vidya Yeravdekar, pro-chancellor, SIU, said, “Many a times during the Covid pandemic, our SIU hospital ambulance got stuck in traffic on this stretch which is why we decided to work on this issue. Our students have carried out the survey using AI and ML techniques and have done good work to come up with solutions for the problem. Now, with the help of the traffic police and Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), we will take this project forward to resolve traffic issues.”
SIBM director R Raman said, “When our students complete their course at SIBM, they are ready to work on consulting projects in the corporate world. This is a pilot project our students have worked on and later, we are going to carry out more such social research projects.”
Deputy commissioner of police (traffic) Vijay Magar said, “We had a meeting with the SIBM team working on the traffic congestion project in the Sus area and certainly, we look forward to their project report. Once the report is submitted, we will work on suggestions that are feasible along with PMC officials. We really appreciate the efforts of the SIBM students in helping the traffic department.”