Singapore trials AI to predict bus crashes
By GovInsider
At-risk drivers could be sent for training before an accident is caused.
Singapore has trialled artificial intelligence to predict whether bus drivers are likely to cause an accident and require further training, it has been revealed.
“You can have AI, and predict if a bus driver will cause an accident in the next three months or so,” Mervyn Cheah, Head, NEC Laboratories, Singapore and Vice President at NEC Asia Pacific said at a tech conference in Australia yesterday.
“It could pre-empt that, and send them for training before they could even create an accident,” he added, according to The Australian.
The Japanese company has completed a test with bus operator SMRT, he said: “We have done a successful trial with SMRT.”
In the trial, the company used road performance data generated by the bus and had two data scientists observing the bus driver’s behaviour.
Generally, buses could also be fitted with cameras capable of analysing the drivers’ facial expressions, but this was not allowed in the SMRT trial.
AI could model the broader impact on traffic if an accident does occur, and warn other drivers of congestion, he added. It could also be modified to help commuters get onto buses and trains without causing delays.
Image by SgTransport - CC BY 2.0