Bengaluru needs a ‘digital twin’ to fix its traffic woes, says Mohandas Pai: Report | Bengaluru

Former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai has called for the creation of a “digital twin” for Bengaluru to address the city’s notorious traffic congestion. Speaking at the Move In Sync Mobility Symposium 2024, Pai emphasized the need to gather data on traffic patterns across the city, examining every hour, day, and year over the last five years, as reported by The New Indian ExpressThis data, he suggested, would help identify congestion hotspots, allowing targeted interventions to improve traffic flow.

By understanding where the traffic jams occur and why, we can send teams to fix those specific areas, Pai explained, as quoted in the publication. He suggested that urban expert RK Misra should lead a team of top tech professionals, similar to how Nandan Nilekani assembled experts to create Aadhaar, to address the city’s traffic challenges.

Pai further proposed using traffic data to simulate future scenarios over the next five years, factoring in projects like the Metro and additional public buses, the report noted. This simulation would help predict where new traffic jams might occur and guide government agencies like the BMRCL and BMTC in planning better infrastructure.

At the event, Move In Sync launched the Traffic Quality Index (TQI), a tool to help citizens plan their commutes by grading traffic severity between any two points in the city.

The symposium also highlighted the #BLRFootpath Challenge, which assessed 100 km of city footpaths. Nearly 28 km of key roads like the infamous Outer Ring Road (ORR) were rated poorly, and event organizers called on corporations to step in and help improve these areas under their CSR initiatives.