In a unique collaborative initiative between government, industry and academia to advance road safety, Intel, INAI, IIIT-H (International Institute of Information Technology-Hyderabad), CSIR-CRRI (Central Road Research Institute) , Mahindra & Mahindra, and NMC (Nagpur Municipal Corporation) jointly launched the iRASTE (Intelligent Solutions for Road Safety Through Technology and Engineering) project in Nagpur. Leveraging the power of AI (artificial intelligence), this pivotal project aims to reduce the number of road accidents in the city of Nagpur by up to 50% and create a master plan for Vision Zero for the country . The iRASTE project was initiated in Nagpur by the Indian Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Shri Nitin Gadkari.

Commenting on the launch, Nivruti Rai, Country Head, Intel India and Vice President, Intel Foundry Services said, “Technologies such as artificial intelligence will play a transformational role in enabling smarter and safer vehicles, roads and drivers. Intel is committed to ensuring road safety and reducing the number of fatalities in India through the use of technological solutions. I am delighted to launch the iRASTE project, a unique collaborative initiative that brings together key players to ensure road safety in Nagpur and develop a nationwide adoption plan towards Vision Zero.

Creating safe and sustainable roads for India – starting with Nagpur

The iRASTE project was initiated in Nagpur by the Indian Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Shri Nitin Gadkari. As part of this project, Nagpur Municipal Corporation’s fleet of vehicles will be equipped with collision avoidance technology that can reduce crashes and near misses by up to 60%. The sensors of these technologies will also make it possible to map for the first time the dynamic risk of the entire road network (gray dots map). Road maintenance agencies can use this information to prevent accident-prone areas (black spots) before they claim lives. The iRASTE project will conduct detailed studies to recommend technical fixes for existing black spots and implement an AI-powered system for continuous monitoring of the quality of road infrastructure.

Speaking on occasion, Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Government of India, who initiated the project, said: “This unique initiative will attempt to reduce the number of road fatalities in Nagpur by 50%. The training would then be extended to other cities in India.

“Each year India loses around 1.5 lakh of lives each year in road accidents. Nagpur loses 250 lives in road accidents each year, at the rate of eight deaths per 1 lakh of inhabitants, or four times that of Mumbai, ”he added, citing the urgent need for collaboration and initiatives. like iRASTE to meet the challenges of the road. security in India.

Commenting on the collaboration, Professor PJ Narayanan, Director, IIIT-H said: “Academic institutions have enormous knowledge and expertise which can and should be used to improve the condition of society. IIIT Hyderabad has focused on applied research that does just that. Through the INAI, we want to transform academic expertise into impact at the population level. Roads and vehicles are the lifeline of the country, but are also very dangerous for drivers and pedestrians. We look forward to playing a role in significantly reducing accidents through the iRASTE project in the years to come. “

New-age technology to solve mobility problems

Redefining road safety with an innovative and holistic framework, the iRASTE project focuses on the three key aspects of vehicle safety, mobility analysis and road infrastructure safety. It aims to re-imagine road safety with the predictive power of AI. Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) will provide a cost-effective means of improving the safety of fleets and road users. Among other things, ADAS alerts, as well as driver assessments and training, can improve driver performance. Mobility analysis will continuously monitor the dynamic risks of the entire road network to define gray and black dots – high risk or accident prone areas. Preventive maintenance of these stretches will prevent blackheads before they cost their lives.

About the project, Dr. Shekhar C. Mande, CEO, CSIR said: “This is a wonderful example of multi-institutional collaboration between different academic, industrial and government partners with complementary skills to solve the problems that society faces on a daily basis. “

“I am pleased to note that the CSIR-Central Road Research Institute (CRRI), pioneering the introduction of road safety audit programs on national and national highways and having completed the road safety audit by nearly 9000 km will provide the technical advice needed in this project. They will help identify accident-prone locations and will also assess driver behavior before and after installing the Collision Avoidance System (CAS) in their vehicles. This project in Nagpur will certainly be an important step in solving the road safety problem in India through the intervention of advanced technologies and can also be emulated in different cities, ”he added.

The iRASTE project relies in a unique way on the expertise and capacities of each of the partners. Intel India offers embedded systems based on ADAS technology. CSIR-CRRI brings expertise in the field of road engineering and IIIT-Hyderabad undertakes AI-based research to address road safety at the population level through the INAI Center for Research applied in AI. Finally, Mahindra & Mahindra, with their vast experience in driving major road initiatives, will conduct public road safety awareness and driver training programs in Nagpur.

Already on the way to progress

If iRASTE is a two-year-old project, it has initiated work on the three vectors of vehicle safety, mobility analysis and infrastructure safety. The installation of collision avoidance systems on city buses has also started. And finally, a first GreySpot map of the city’s road network has been generated and studies are underway to carefully map the existing black spots on the road network.

Technologies such as artificial intelligence are playing a transformational role in enabling smarter and safer vehicles, roads and drivers – and we hope to not only see but experience this innovation not only in Nagpur, but also across the country. India.