Transport in Budapest to get significantly more efficient very soon

The traffic light schedules and transport may change for the better in several parts of the Hungarian capital thanks to a joint project between BKK, Budapest Közút Ltd and Google. At the intersections concerned, stop-and-go traffic conditions could be halved and emission could be seriously reduced. More locations may be included in the project in the near future.

About the project

BKK, the Budapest Transport Centre, writes that thanks to the cooperation between BKK, Budapest Közút Ltd and Google, a major innovation is now available for car drivers. At several intersections in the capital, traffic lights will be fine-tuned based on the IT giant’s traffic measurement data – speed and number of passages. This will change traffic light programming fundamentally to benefit drivers, without penalising public transport vehicles and pedestrians. The improvement will also reduce jams in the capital, allowing traffic to flow more freely on the roads and reducing emission.

The locations

In addition to the Kőbányai Road–Szállás Street intersection in the 10th district, BKK and Budapest Közút Ltd will also use Google data at the traffic light intersection of Heroes’ Square–Dózsa György Road, in front of the Museum of Fine Arts. Thus, the transit time will improve immensely for drivers. In cooperation with the companies involved in the project, the traffic light programme at the BAH-junction is currently being reviewed. In addition, other busy intersections in the capital may be included in the project in the near future.

Continuous cooperation

This is not the first project in which one of the world’s largest technology companies, Google, and BKK, the capital’s mobility manager, have collaborated. For years, BKK’s traffic information has been displayed on Waze. The Google-backed Waze is one of the world’s fastest-growing community-based transport and navigation apps. The previous joint work, like this one, also helped people who travel around the capital every day.

BKK provides real-time public transport data to Google through FUTÁR. Google Maps enables more detailed and smarter route planning in Budapest. Instead of planning trips based on timetable data, the system uses the real traffic situation. In addition, it also utilises BKK’s satellite tracking system. It shows when a vehicle departs from a given stop and the fastest route to get to the desired destination. In Europe, Budapest was one of the first cities to introduce this service thanks to a partnership between BKK and Google.

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