Elefsina-Corinth-Patras highway launches smart street lighting system that adapts to real-time traffic data under safe driving conditions

• A technological first on Greek highways
• Artificial intelligence and machine learning in the service of road safety
• A new step in VINCI Highways’ ambition to reach Net Zero by 2050 on its operations

Olympia Odos becomes the first highway in Greece to implement a smart lighting system that adapts automatically the intensity of the highway’s lightning to the level of traffic and to the quality of driving conditions.

This is a major step in Olympia Odos‘s environmental action plan, which aims to meet VINCI Highways’ commitment to achieve operational Net Zero Emission on its network by 2050. The adaptive lighting system is among the best regional projects recognized by the VINCI Environmental awards.

The system uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning to guarantee the highest safety standards. It determines the optimal lighting level by processing live data from multiple sources (traffic, weather, road incidents).

Constant monitoring of the vehicle traffic at each interchanges allows the system to calculate the highways’ total traffic and make forecasts for the next hour. When traffic decreases and predictive traffic remains low, the system will progressively reduce the lighting.

The system also includes real-time data from the highway’s weather stations and cameras so as to immediately increase lighting in case of change in the driving conditions.

After the successful validation by the Safety Auditor, the system is put into trial operation on the Elefsina-Corinth section. It is expected that by next summer 2024, it will be implemented along the whole 8,100 light points of the highway.

The adaptive lighting system, combined with the energy performance of the LED lights already fully implemented by Olympia Odos, will allow to reduce the highway’s annual energy consumption for night lightening by up to 75%.

The adaptive lighting system has been developed in collaboration with the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), with specialized partners from the University Community and the start-ups field including:

• Extrabit, https://www.extrabit.gr/
• Ex Machina (EXM), https://exm.gr/
• Invision AI, https://invision.ai/
• National Technical University of Athens, https://www.ntua.gr/el/

About Olympia Odos

Olympia Odos is one of the largest projects of strategic importance for Greece. Olympia Odos is the modern European-standard motorway that unites Peloponnesus with Central Greece and Europe. The project includes the design, construction, maintenance and operation of the road axis Elefsina - Korinthos - Patra - Pyrgos, of a total length of 277 km. Olympia Odos is a concession project with a 30-year duration, which is funded partly by the Greek State and the European Union, but also by private investments by strong Greek and foreign companies with a long and successful history in constructing high quality and cost-effective infrastructure projects, as well as the provision of high-level operation services. 

The Shareholders of OLYMPIA ODOS S.A. are:

• VINCI CONCESSIONS S.A. (29,9%)
• AVAX S.A. (19,2%)
• Hochtief PPP Solutions GmbH (17%)
• AKTOR Concessions S.A. (17%)
• GEK Terna S.A. (17%)

About VINCI Highways

VINCI Highways, a VINCI Concessions subsidiary, is a leader in road concessions, operations and mobility services. We design, finance, build and operate highways, bridges, tunnels, urban roads and mobility services on a 3,130 km network in 14 countries. VINCI Highways leverages its expertise to deliver the highest performance and safety standards and provide drivers with a positive experience.

More information:

• https://www.vinci-concessions.com/en/vinci-highways
• @VINCIConcess
• https://www.linkedin.com/company/vinci-highways/

Watch the Adaptive Lighting video https://youtu.be/b3UOhLHotyM