Want to use AI for road safety and better mobility: Nitin Gadkari

Says aim is to use the technology for enforcement purposes in cities where state govts or civic bodies are falling short

Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Monday said that he intends to use technology based on artificial intelligence (AI) in government systems to improve mobility, adding that AI integration for road safety is the need of the hour for India.

“My vision is to use AI for enforcement purposes in cities where state governments or municipal authorities are falling short,” the minister said at an event.

This will remove human interference and the possibility of errors, he said.

“Road safety has become a challenge for developing countries like India,” he said, adding that India accounts for 5 lakh road accidents every year, with over 1.5 lakh deaths—one of the highest across the world.

The minister identified high priority areas that could benefit from AI-based technology — forensic post-crash investigations, pattern of accidents due to black spots, fatigue indicators, and sleep detectors for driver, and advance vehicle collision avoidance systems.

Gadkari called on Indian industry and entrepreneurs to build indigenous AI-based solutions for monitoring and enforcement of motor vehicle legislations.

“There are a few highway monitoring solutions in the market and they are using imported hardware and software,” Gadkari said.

As per government data, road accidents on highways account for over 35 per cent of all road accidents and 84% of the total road accidents happen among the age group of 18-60 years.

He added the ministry has already begun a pilot project with AI-based technology in Nagpur, which is being used for identification of black spots on roads, along with integration of machine learning and AI for national highways.

The ministry is also mulling implementing digital construction, which enables machines to translate design drawings on the field using sensors.

The Centre has already rolled out advanced traffic monitoring system (ATMS) on the Delhi-Meerut Eastern Peripheral expressway, and intends to integrate the technology into all national highways.

The system uses technology to capture the number plate of vehicles, identify discrepancies in vehicle documentation and adherence of traffic rules, and alert local authorities about such vehicles.