A cloud platform in Belgium is connecting intelligent traffic lights in Flanders and enabling information to be exchanged with road users.

This has been implemented by the Flanders Mobilidata programme and a consortium of smart mobility industry partners, led by Be-Mobile.

This platform has been designed to enable new traffic applications in Flanders. External parties, such as navigation software providers, can once they have passed an approval process plug in their own applications to the platform. That makes Mobilidata an opportunity for both road users and application builders.

The TLex cloud platform is the heart of the Mobilidata system and will eventually exchange millions of items of data every minute. The data exchange at approximately 250 intelligent traffic lights in Flanders is a step towards safer, smoother, more comfortable and sustainable traffic in Flanders by the end of 2023.

In many places in Flanders, journeys are soon to become more pleasant, since waiting at an unnecessary red light will be avoided as much as possible by intelligent traffic lights. Not only motorised traffic, but also cyclists and pedestrians will be able to go from A to B more smoothly thanks to this technology.

Moreover, emergency services on their way to an incident will not have to drive through a red light. They get a green light and priority over the other traffic so they can get to their destination more quickly and safely.

Finally, a smoother flow of traffic and a reduction in unnecessary stops and accelerations of cars and trucks should also have a positive impact on the environment.

Fast, reliable and integrated data exchange between road users and intelligent traffic lights is a crucial aspect of these plans. The TLex platform that has now been implemented responds to this. In autumn, several existing applications will be upgraded to support this exchange. Road users will then be able to receive relevant information and make informed decisions on sharing their data. To support data protection, the platform is undergoing a mandatory risk assessment. Only once this is complete and any ensuing additional measures have been taken will data be processed.

The TLex platform is produced by the Dutch company Monotch, which specialises in connected mobility and is rolling out the platform as a subcontractor of the Mobilidata consortium. This is a group of private partners in the Mobilidata programme, led by Be-Mobile. The current installation is a continuation of a system that already connects more than a thousand intelligent traffic lights in the Netherlands. It is invisible to road users, but they will be able to connect to it later this year through various apps.

“Some fifteen years ago, as I was just starting out as a researcher, I came across this concept of smart traffic lights that exchange data,” said Wim Vandenberghe, senior advisor at Mobilidata. “Despite all international research efforts in this field, there was only one country in the world that had actually rolled this out on a large scale to the day-to-day lives of road users: the Netherlands, via the Talking Traffic programme. The fact that Flanders, thanks to the Mobilidata programme, is now rolling out smart traffic lights and at the same time further developing the technology, is a world-class achievement we can be very proud of.”

Mark Walker, project manager at Monotch, added: “Commissioning of the TLex traffic light exchange is a significant step in the development of smart mobility for Flanders. It enables the secure and reliable exchange of information between road users and traffic lights which can be used to make the transport system safer, more efficient and more environmentally sustainable. Monotch is proud to have been chosen by Flanders to participate in the Mobilidata project based on our signature product and our extensive expertise.”

Be-Mobile is a smart mobility service provider, headquartered in Ghent, Belgium. It develops technology in the areas of smart mobility, traffic monitoring and management, connected vehicles, traffic information, mobile payment, and toll collection.