Proximus accelerator Be-Mobile has set up a digital platform for Ghent together with other partners from the Traffic Management-as-a-Service consortium. The city uses it to process traffic data and monitor traffic information in real time. The platform brings together as much of the available mobility data as possible. Analysis of that data provides useful information, both for those who manage mobility in a city and for the citizens and businesses counting on that mobility.

Generally speaking, a lot of traffic data are available. This includes not just data from the traffic center, but also data from parking companies, bicycle- and car-sharing companies, De Lijn and SNCB, companies such as TomTom and Be-Mobile, and so forth. “That makes the project unique,” Filip Watteeuw, alderman for mobility in Ghent, believes. “TMaaS brings together large and small companies from all sectors on mobility. Competitors work together on a project that brings out the best in everyone.”

TMaaS brings all that mobility data together in the cloud and bundles it into usable information. “TMaaS feeds our digital dashboard LINK.Gent,” explains Tim Claeys. “The dashboard provides up-to-date traffic information in real time.” In addition, the information is multimodal. While most mobility platforms primarily give information for car drivers, LINK.Gent also offers information for pedestrians, cyclists and train, tram and bus users.

“The user can adapt the dashboard to his personal situation,” says Evert Gellynck, traffic engineer at Be-Mobile. “For example, you can plot out your regular route to work on the platform. Depending on your mode of transportation, you then receive personalized alerts.” That takes place by text message, e-mail or an in-browser notification. Specifically, this involves information on traffic jams or roadworks, for example, and train delays or the weather forecast for cyclists. “The user is provided with information promptly,” explains Evert Gellynck, “so that he can adjust his route. Better yet, our platform itself offers an alternative immediately.”

The TMaaS approach keeps the threshold very low. “Cities that want to map out their traffic flows usually have to invest in sensors and counters,” says Evert Gellynck. “And they must install dynamic signs to disseminate information. With TMaaS those barriers disappear. We work with the mobility data already available and communicate directly with users.”

Data analytics detect how many people are in a specific place in real time. The basis is the mobile phones on the Proximus network, which constantly transmit location information. A dashboard provides insight into the number of people in the city center and which regions or countries they come from.

Merchants and companies benefit from the information that Ghent offers. “It is interesting for them to conduct investment analysis at regular intervals, supported by data analytics,” said Bart. “This can help entrepreneurs and companies to choose the best location for a shop or office, according to the passage of potential customers in the area.”

In its administrative agreement, Ghent describes itself as a data-driven city. “But a number in itself does not mean much,” stated Bart. “That’s why we are investing in making even more data available for spatial planning, city marketing, and mobility, from which we can then actually learn something.”

“There is already a lot of potential. By looking at the right data, policymakers gain a powerful tool. It allows them to carry out targeted actions around city marketing, but also to feed the info portal hoeveelin.stad.gent – with all kinds of data about the city. And with real-time data on the number of visitors to public events – such as the Gentse Feesten – Ghent can also manage mobility and safety more efficiently.”

Specifically, in the context of the COVID-19 measures, Ghent examined how data analytics could help the city to develop a crowd barometer. “Here, too, we work with different data sources,” said Justine. “Data analytics shows how many people are globally present in a neighborhood. We combine this with data from the parking company and from the crowd scan in the shopping streets, and with the information from the stewards on the street.” This combination allows the city to properly manage the external communication about the hustle and bustle in the city center.

In Ghent, objective data is the basis for a smart policy in tourism, economy and mobility. To collect this data, Ghent has set up two projects: Data analytics detects the number of people in the city center and Traffic Management-as-a-Service gathers as much traffic data as possible.