This article first appeared in Digital Edge, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on April 10, 2023 - April 16, 2023

The application of geospatial technology and sophisticated analytics has enabled PLUS Expressways Bhd (PLUS Malaysia) to enhance road user safety and highway operations. On March 16, the country’s largest highway concessionaire received an award for Innovation in Geospatial Technology and Highway Management at the Esri Malaysia GeoInnovation Awards 2023.

Chief technology officer Kang Yew Jin says the PLUSGeospatial data visualisation system allows its 3,700 monitoring teams nationwide to maintain the 1,130km stretch, supporting 1.7 million vehicles daily.

“We initiated our highway management system in 1998. The Geographic Information System (GIS) was one of the components. But the applications were a bit static [at the time] because we did not have a proper internet infrastructure or the technology to do it,” says PLUS Malaysia head of database warehousing Shahdaryani Abd Talib.

According to Esri Malaysia Sdn Bhd, which specialises in GIS technology, GIS creates, manages, analyses and maps all types of data. The system connects data to a map, integrating location data (where things are) with all types of descriptive information (the situation on the ground).

This provides a foundation for mapping and analysis that is used in almost every industry. GIS allows users to understand patterns, relationships and geographic context.

PLUSGeospatial leveraged the GIS system or ArcGIS developed by Esri Malaysia. It also included cloud technology and added features like 3D mapping, drones and 360° aerial panoramic views of PLUS Malaysia’s highway operations. ArcGIS provides location-based analytics and allows the company to gain insights using contextual tools to visualise and analyse data. The server enables collaboration and sharing via maps, apps, dashboards and reports.

“GIS gives us quite a lot of data. With popular geospatial applications like Google Maps and Waze, users would get real-time information and [they would] show navigation. We are slightly different with how we use our data,” Kang tells Digital Edge.

“We use analytical data for pavement condition assessment and accident data for better highway maintenance. For example, if there is a landslide ahead or if a road is blocked, we would know ahead of time and use that information to reroute traffic or plan out the necessary signage for PLUS [highway] users.”

In addition, PLUSGeospatial deploys artificial intelligence (AI) to discern suicide attempts at hotspots like the Penang Bridge. Penang has recorded 233 suicide cases since 2020, seven at Penang Bridge alone in 2022, according to news reports.

“During the Movement Control Order, we noticed that the number of suicide attempts went up. There are eight hotspots along the bridge alone. What we did was, we took the CCTV images and pumped them into AI software to train and analyse the images. Now, the AI helps us detect if someone is lingering too long or too close to the bridge,” says Kang.

“We use the computer vision of AI to do the image processing. So, a lot of AI is centred around image processing and logic in terms of trying to figure out whether there is potential that a person may want to jump. [And] when such instances happen, the PLUS patrol is immediately alerted to prevent any mishaps from happening,” he adds.

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