MMDA Tech Innovations

More than a year ago, MMDA launched a program that captures evidence of traffic violations using a digital camera. I personally have seen MMDA personnel with a small digital camera at the Boni MRT station overlooking the loading/unloading zone at EDSA cor. Boni Ave cor.

This digital evidence has been a nifty tool to reduce any disputes regarding violations.

Last Saturday while waiting for a bus along EDSA, I noticed what appears to be another technology innovation of MMDA. Buses have new fuschia (what other colors are there for MMDA?) tags on their windshield. The thing is, the tags have a printed barcode.

I read on the papers this morning that this is part of the Organized Bus Route program of the MMDA. In essence, the program removes colorum buses, rationalizes buses (dispatched at appropriate times of the day depending on number of passengers), and forces the buses to keep a line and not keep overtaking each other.

I wonder how the barcode will come into play in this program. Will it actually feed into a useful database?
I wonder what kind of device MMDA will use to capture barcode information. Wireless barcode scanners like those of DHL/FedEx?
I wonder if the technology will truly help make the program more efficient. Or will it just be another cost charged to tax-payers. Well, I have faith in babababayani.

I’ll end with a tech-enabled idea for the MMDA, let’s see where the idea will take our discussion:

Accept MMS/e-mail messages from the public at large.
Use it as a reporting mechanism where the public can provide visual digital feedback on:
* traffic situations
* vehicular accidents
* erring motorists
* kotong MMDA personnel!

Whatya tink?

ka edong