The Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility has launched a pioneering project to install an artificial intelligence-based traffic light system at the Punta Prima roundabout, located at kilometre 52.8 of the N-332 road in the municipality of Torrevieja. The initiative is backed by a budget of 409,369.81 euro, including VAT, which is funded through the European Union recovery funds under the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan.
Work on the installation commenced on Monday 30th March and is scheduled to continue until the end of May. To ensure the safety of both road users and construction workers during this period, partial traffic cuts will be implemented along the affected stretch of the road.
The project involves setting up a smart monitoring and traffic management framework that utilises advanced machine learning and reinforcement learning. Through these technologies, the traffic lights are designed to self-regulate, learning to make autonomous adjustments to their cycles based on real-time traffic volume and past historical operational data.
To achieve maximum efficiency, the system complements machine learning with neural networks, big data analysis, traffic modelling, and traditional traffic engineering analytics. The physical upgrades include putting up traffic light posts at every entry point to the roundabout, along with the installation of detection cameras and traffic data collection devices. This comprehensive set-up is engineered to automatically alter traffic light cycles according to actual traffic intensity, aiming to improve vehicle flow and establish a framework for future smart systems across the State Road Network.
