THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: When Mohammed Jassim M and Muhammed Saddique U K undertook a study on the number of ambulances traversing Kochi daily, they were amazed. According to reports with the traffic police, at least 25 ambulances carrying critical patients were speeding through a single junction on a daily basis.
Most of them, however, would never reach hospitals on time. Reason? Overwhelming traffic and congested roads. Armed with their findings, the duo set out to develop a mobile app, a first of its kind which gives priority to ambulances and other emergency services like fire engines at signals.
Jassim, who along with Saddique co-founded Traffitizer Technologies in February says that the app took three years to complete. “ Only recently, we were able to complete the patent process. This technology will be implemented on a trial basis in Kochi immediately,” he said.
How the app functions
The idea is to get ambulance drivers connected to the startup’s server through the mobile app. Once the drivers give an indicator that they are present at a red light in a traffic signal, the signal will change to green.
“ However, this will be on a priority basis. The lane which has more number of ambulances will receive preference. Also, the traffic signal will change based on the cases being handled by the ambulance. For example, if one of the lanes has a stroke or an accident victim being carried in the ambulance, the traffic controller will turn the signal green to that particular ambulance’s favour,” Jassim shares.
As part of the survey, the duo had interviewed thirty drivers who operated between Kakkanad and the city. “ All the drivers had the same complaint. They could not reach the hospital on time. In places like Kakkanad where there is more lane width, these ambulances were forced to take the wrong direction, a dangerous manoevre since it could lead to accidents. In Kaloor, where the traffic junctions are crowded and the lanes are more congested, the ambulances just get stuck,” Saddique said.
In Vyttila, were traffic banners have been set, the scenario is worse. The ambulance attendent has to get out of the ambulance to lift the banner so that the ambulance can pass through.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Arul RB Krishna has tied up with the duo in order to implement the system effectively. Impressed by the mobile app, GCC countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have approached Saddique and Jassim to implement the system in their roads. “This is why we decided to implement the system in Kochi to see how successful it would be. Initially, it will be implemented for ambulance drivers. Then, we plan to implement it for fire engines and the police drivers,” Jassim added.
The IT duo, who graduated from Rajagiri School of Engineering and Technology recently are the incubatees of the Kerala Startup Incubator. Currently, they are setup at the Centre for Social Innovation and Incubation and are being mentored by Chief Operating Officer Rijin John.
Jassim and Saddique adds that they decided to commit to this app owing to their social commitment and want to address themselves as social entrepreneurs.