Thiruvananthapuram: Pedestrian safety enhancement controller (PeSCo), a unique system developed by C-DAC, will soon help the visually impaired, differently-abled, elderly, women and children cross busy city roads safely.
The existing signal system does not factor in the needs of these sections. The timing set for pedestrian crossing in the system is for normal people.
Once the system is up and running, it will give audio signal for visually challenged to locate the machine. The system was installed in front of Cotton Hill school, Vazuthacaud, on a trial basis on Wednesday.
A particular tone has been set in the machine for providing the alert. The tone was set after getting input from the faculty of Blind School.
Initially, the colour of the machine was grey but it was later changed to bright blue. A Braille touch screen will also be provided to make the system more user-friendly.
“RFID cards will be distributed through NGOs and other government agencies to the needy people. The users can flash the card near the controller which will automatically fix the signal time for crossing based on the degree of disability and requirement. For instance, if a normal person requires 15 seconds to cross the road, in case of differently-abled, children, women, elderly and visually impaired, it would be 30 seconds or more,” said Dr Ravi Kumar, associate director, CDAC. The hardware installation will be completed in two-three days. The Kerala Road Fund Board and TRDCL are supporting the initiative.
