Artificial Intelligence Can Help Predict Traffic Conditions More Accurately

Viswamitra Jayavant - Jul 06, 2019


Artificial Intelligence Can Help Predict Traffic Conditions More Accurately

Machine learning has been applied to many aspects of life, and many organizations are using it to predict traffic conditions right now.

Since machine learning becomes an accessible and practical tool, different applications have been found by scientists in every aspect of life. And right now, neural networks are being utilized by various organizations in the world as a way to improve traffic predictions.

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Neural networks are known under a vast array of names, with Artificial Intelligence (AI) being the most exemplary. While for most people it is not necessary to understand how the system works, your daily commute is silently aided by them every day. If you use Google Maps, Waze, or the likes, by feeding their own neural networks historical information and monitoring current users, they can predict the state of traffic at very high accuracy. However, it doesn’t mean that they are not vulnerable to failure.

Google Maps’ Traffic Prediction

A lot of people use smartphones as handheld GPS devices. If you have ever used Google Maps before, you would know that the app has the uncanny ability to predict traffic conditions. The app can provide you with an estimate of your travel time based on the most recent update about the condition of the routes you have to go through. In the past, the app only has data about a small section of the roads. Now, obviously, it has been improved considerably to the point it can predict your exact time of arrival to the minute.

The way it does this is simple: Google Maps is simultaneously tracking travel and location data of millions of people in the world. The average journey time can be calculated by collecting the location and average travel speeds of users on a particular road. All of the data Google Maps collected will be fed into an algorithm developed by Google to give you a relatively accurate estimate of your travel time.

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The company even announced back in 2017 that neural networks are beginning to be fielded to improve the service further.

More people using the app at a certain place and time improves the accuracy of predictions, but the app can never be 100% accurate. It is theoretically impossible to predict 100% of the future based on past and current data, after all.

Though the traffic condition feature of Google Maps is released limitedly to selected countries, they are working on expanding the reach of it to everyone.

Viewing Traffic Data At Different Times On Google Maps

No longer being a pure map viewer like it was in the past, Google Maps has become the go-to place for everything that involves navigation. Now it seems to be a tool for travelers to plan their journeys.

If you’re in a region that supports the feature, Google Maps can also perform a prediction, and show crash/speed report on your upcoming route.

The best thing about Google Maps as of now is probably its real-time traffic prediction feature. Though it is not known to most users, following these steps, you can easily view data about traffic at different times of the day.

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Firstly, open the app and tap on ‘Directions.’ Just do the typical steps to create a route: File in your starting point, then your destination.

Once the route is created in blue, you will be able to see real-time traffic in red along the way. Find the ‘Options’ menu at the top right of the screen, it is an icon with three vertical dots. Find and tap on ‘Set Depart & Arrival Time.’

Write in the time at which you will begin your journey, then tap ‘Set.’

Google will do all the work for you in predicting traffic conditions and estimate a time of arrival based on the time you start driving.

Waze’s Traffic Prediction

In 2016 before Google acquired waze, the company was launching a traffic prediction feature to their app on smartphones. This feature works quite similar to Google’s, called: ‘Planned Drives,’ Waze can set up the best route for you to get to your destination by avoiding bad traffics in accordance to how you set your schedule.

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You only need to select when you want to be at your destination, and Waze will do all other parts for you.

In terms of technology, since Waze is owned by Google, both of them pretty much use the same technique. By logging the average speed of Waze users’ cars on a particular section of road, Waze can calculate your travel time accurately. The more users present, the more accurate the service would be. 

Waze also has a unique feature that Google Maps doesn’t have by linking to your calendar and Facebook to let you know when you should leave to get to your destination on time.

Different Ways Neural Networks Are Being Used to Predict Traffic

Google and Waze aren’t the only players in this nascent field. A large number of organizations is utilizing neural networks to make people’s daily commute more streamlined and efficient.

An example of this is a neural network created by the Miguel Hernández University of Elche to predict traffic conditions. Data is generated through fixed sensors on the road and connected vehicles, the AI can impressively predict traffic conditions by up to 15 minutes ahead of time. The study is conducted along the A-7 Motorway in Spain, between Alicante and Murcia and has yielded excellent results. The team was also offered Levante Traffic Management Centre’s data collected through 12 years to enhance their project.

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