Is your street too busy, marred by cars and vans driving too fast? Do people want to walk, cycle, and play more in the street, but consider it unsafe?
Today’s dominance of motorised vehicles as the primary means of transport in our cities and towns means that their traffic levels negatively impact, or simply directly cause many health and social issues, which urgently need to be addressed.
Traffic counting in itself is not a solution, but it can be a powerful, quantitative tool in capable hands, forming a solid basis for meaningful reforms.
Increasingly, some forward-thinking local authorities are finding ways to address these social issues, to make our communities cleaner, safer, and healthier, but to do this they need supporting data.
That is why Telraam works with citizens and mobility professionals together: to gather the data needed to make the streets a better place.
Telraam offers purpose-built, affordable, artificial intelligence driven traffic counting sensors, a network-management framework, and a complete architecture for storing, analysing, visualising, and distributing traffic data. In this setup the Telraam sensors are hosted by citizen scientists, establishing a valuable bridge between their neighbourhoods, local authorities, and mobility professionals. This connection, and the open access to the collected traffic data, democratises local traffic planning, and opens up new opportunities for all involved parties.
The Telraam approach:
Citizen science projects can be a cost-effective way for local authorities to gather data and gain insights into traffic issues in their community. No need for expensive street installations to protect the security of street users and the counting devices.
Citizen scientists are residents of the community in which they are collecting data, which means they have the local knowledge and perspectives that can be valuable in understanding local issues and developing locally applicable solutions.
Citizen science projects can be a way to engage members of the community in the decision-making process and to get them more invested in finding solutions to the local challenges.
By involving citizens in the data-gathering process, local authorities can also create a greater sense of ownership and buy-in for solutions that are developed as a result of these collaborations, which will lead to more widespread adoption and a greater positive impact and reception in the community.
Telraam sensors count road users classified into various categories.
Currently (Q1 2023) the data that is displayed on the Telraam website (and made available via the Telraam API) includes four categories.
The new Telraam S2 device is capable of differentiating between an even broader set of road user. These new classes will also be available to the public (after an initial testing and fine-tuning period) first via the API, and then on the website reports.
V1 data categories | S2 data categories |
Pedestrians | Pedestrians Strollers |
Two-wheelers | Bicycles Motorbikes |
Cars | Cars |
Heavy vehicles | Vans Trucks Buses Trailers Tractors |
As an individual citizen you can buy your own Telraam device and count traffic in your street on your own via the Telraam platform.
Alternatively, join one of the many networks already counting or recruiting.
No existing networks in your area, or need to decide where to collect traffic data?
Feel free to browse a complete overview of past and current networks