Blue traffic light signal for better air?

Ghatkopar residents Shivani Khot, 20, and her sister, Esha, 15, have come up with a unique solution to curb air pollution and conserve fuel – a blue traffic light,

Ghatkopar residents Shivani Khot, 20, and her sister, Esha, 15, have come up with a unique solution to curb air pollution and conserve fuel – a blue traffic light, which will blink 10 seconds after the red light comes on and stop blinking 10 seconds before the red light goes off. During this period, drivers will have to switch off their engine.

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Vehicular idling is a phenomenon where drivers unnecessarily keep their engine switched on. This leads to emission of half-combusted gases such as particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide that are harmful to human health. “In the absence of directives, citizens are not fully aware of idling and its ill effects,” said Esha. “In metropolitan cities, long-duration traffic signals are major contributors to air pollution. Not switching off engines leads to a rise in air pollution,” said Shivani. “Our focus is major traffic junctions, where vehicles stop for at least 120 seconds, with the red light on for 90 seconds. The 10-second cushion is for drivers to switch off and turn on their engines. The blue light will condition drivers over time to stop the engine as soon as it blinks,” she said. “The idea is to implement this on a trial basis in mega cities, and make it a part of the user manual, while obtaining driver’s license and across driving schools,” said Esha.

With help from experts, the duo carried out an assessment of vehicular idling at Jijamata traffic junction, Ghatkopar, where they calculated that 156 litres of fuel was wasted every day and 371kg of carbon dioxide was being emitted over 24 hours. Apart from winning a number of accolades including the National Level Research Gold Medal, the duo has presented their plan before the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), the Indian Institute of Technology – Bombay (IIT-B), the Petroleum Conservation and Research Association (PCRA), and the Union environment ministry over the past year.

While no official decision has been taken, MPCB plans to take up the concept with the traffic department.

“We should be happy that citizens are coming forward to find a solution. We have studied their plan and believe it can be effective. However, we need to validate it with the traffic police,” said Sudhir Srivastava, MPCB chairman.

“Different central departments have been consulted. We need to identify one city and implement it at select traffic junctions for at least six months to check the feasibility,” said a senior official from the Union environment ministry.