Mobile Phone Based RIMS for Traffic Control a Case Study of Tanzania

Vehicles saturation in transportation infrastructure causes traffic congestion, accidents, transportation delays and environment pollution. This problem can be resolved with proper management of traffic flow. Existing traffic management systems are challenged on capturing and processing real-time road data from wide area road networks. The main purpose of this study is to address the gap by implementing a mobile phone based Road Information Management System. The proposed system integrates three modules for data collection, storage and information dissemination. The modules works together to enable real-time traffic control. Disseminated information from the system, enables road users to adjust their travelling habit, also it allows the traffic lights to control the traffic in relation to the real-time situation occurring on the road. In this paper the system implementation and testing was performed. The results indicated that there is a possibility to track traffic data using Global Positioning System enabled mobile phones, and after processing the collected data, real-time traffic status was displayed on web interface. This enabled road users to know in advance the situation occurring on the roads and hence make proper travelling decision. Further research should consider adjusting the traffic lights control system to understand the disseminated real-time traffic information.