Improvement of traffic control system by means of infrared beacon two-way communication

In Japan, urban traffic congestion is chronic, and drivers want traffic and route information. The Police Agency proposed the UTMS (universal traffic management system) concept and developed a roadside infrared beacon for two-way communication between roads and vehicles. Then, they started the operation of the VICS (vehicle information and communication system) as part of the ITS (intelligent transport system) and realized the dynamic traffic information providing service to on-vehicle units. The IR beacons detect vehicles and calculate their motions. They can be used for giving priority to public vehicles, for vehicle control and for emergency vehicle support. Especially, for the VICS, that provides traffic information from infrared beacons to vehicle drivers, the number of on-vehicle units responding to infrared beacon has increased to 320,000 in only four years. On the other hand, 24,000 infrared beacons have been installed so far all over the nation, and the number will be intentionally increased. To achieve an advanced traffic control system in the 21^st century, more in-vehicle units will need to be installed, the number of infrared beacons expanded, and preparations made to qualitatively improve the system. The Agency has made efforts to collect more up-link information from on-vehicle units through the infrared beacons in order to promote improvement of the traffic control system