Managing Traffic in Brazil

Focusing on urban mobility

Splice Group, a strong player in the traffic management industry, operates 1,700 cameras focused on traffic control and  law enforcement across more than 10 large cities in Brazil. The cameras detect vehicles and collect such information as date, time, speed, type of vehicle, and license plate.

Splice approached G-Lab seeking ways to apply this data to improving urban mobility and monetizing related products for the private sector.

Developing an intelligent dashboard

G-Lab students visited operational control centers in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte, and Sorocaba to ask traffic managers about the most pressing problems they see every day. After discussing a variety of potential business opportunities with Splice, the team developed an intelligent dashboard that displays real-time traffic status to such customers as traffic managers, city planners, police, and security companies. The team also came up with a second product idea: Splice could display variable messages in full-color LED signs integrated into stoplights to increase safety by relaying  important messages to the public; these signs could also be used to show customized advertisements to individuals driving  by.

Hitting the road

Splice was delighted with both the signage and the dashboard and decided to move forward with the two concepts. A trial of the dashboard was planned for two important avenues in Sorocaba. A representative from Splice remarked that the students from G-Lab met the company’s expectations and even exceeded them. The mayor of Sorocaba was excited about the project, too, telling the students: “Your work shows how we can develop, improve. I salute you for the excellent work.”