ClearWay improves traffic flow in Perth

Radar installed on Freeway in Perth

The installation of a combination of 800 devices, including several Navtech Radar sensors, is transforming a 13km stretch of the Kwinana Freeway in Perth. The new measures will cut 10 minutes, from the average journey time, for drivers using the busy stretch of road.

Key to the solution is the use of Navtech’s ClearWay, automatically detecting incidents. As reported in Perth Now “it will improve traffic flow on the road by detecting crashes and breakdowns helping emergency crews clear the road quicker and get traffic moving again”. In the words of the Western Australia Transport Minister, Rita Saffioti, this type of project is “the way of the future”.

Main Roads Western Australia, instigated the Kwinana project in Perth ahead of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now making the most of current road capacity is an even more urgent requirement, with traffic levels predicted to increase due to a dramatic reduction in public transport use and social distancing making it more likely we’ll see more vehicles on the road with a lone driver.

Using technology to maximise existing road capacity will be an increasing trend. ClearWay already has features that can be added to existing systems with no additional infrastructure required. New capabilities can be added remotely, such as traffic flow behaviour analysis as well as safety features that may become more important as the use of our roads change, such as pedestrian detection and cyclist detection. Together these features can be used to increase capacity, without needing to build more roads, reduce journey times, optimise the use of road networks and improve safety.

ClearWay is a versatile technology. A radar-based solution, it collects rich data up to 700 metres in all directions, with a single radar able to see across multiple lanes of traffic operating in all conditions. The data is then interpreted with software, to deliver different information as required by the end user. In a changing ITS world, it’s a future-proofed solution for making journeys safer and more efficient.

The implementation of ClearWay was discussed in the ITS Australia webinar: Introducing Perth’s First Smart Freeway Project

“On the main line we have a radar system which is able to detect stopped vehicles… so we are able to better utilise our operators. Rather than having them scan all the cameras to understand when there is a change on our network, they will be alerted to the fact, and then they will be able to put [in place] the correct course of to return the network to its original status as quick as possible.”

Matthew Prindiville, Congestion Program Manager, Main Roads WA (Time stamp: 8 minutes, 55 seconds)

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