Your neighbourhood traffic signal could get smarter, and catch violators

Ever since the online system for traffic chalans went live in Hyderabad, one sees fewer incidents of cops talking (read negotiating) with traffic signal violators, who stand meekly by the roadside, trying to pull a trick or two (or some rupee notes) from their bag to go free.

Over the past few years, a camera wielding cop evokes more fear from the public than a lathi wielding constable! Any signs of a violation, the traffic constable clicks a picture of the vehicle with the number plate and promptly upload them online. The online system, app reminders and mobile notifications take care of the rest.

The online system has indeed been a welcome change. However, this isn't to say that the 'negotiators' have been totally done away with. Moreover, the lack of a cop by the road-side makes many a motorist go berserk, given that there isn't the 'papparazi' to catch one in action.

This is one area where computer vision, image processing and automation can simplify lives further, and bring about some orderliness. Imagine if HD CCTV cameras are setup at every junction or major points in the roads. Now, computer vision can process the streaming images, make out the number plates and potentially alert remote personnel on traffic violations. Upon confirmation, a traffic challan can be immediately raised. A futuristic version of this system, could process everything fully automatically.

This not only automates & simplifies traffic monitoring and law enforcement, but also effectively does away with any chance of 'negotiations' and out-of court settlements! Importantly, this instills a fear of the unknown in the public, that someone is perpetually watching over one's shoulders and that no violations would be spared.

Such a system is very much possible today with advances in image processing and computer vision, while the streaming loads can be handled by a standard big data setup with a Hadoop/Spark cluster. Revenues from the challans and enforcement will more than cover the cost of high quality cameras as well.

Stranded by the road-side

A few days back, when I was getting back home from work, my car suffered a break down. Though I had taken an offbeat road that day, the traffic was nevertheless very high, considering it was the peak hour. With very little knowledge on automobile service/recovery, no proper documentation of road-side assistance/service numbers and when Google searches failed to deliver, I resorted to phone-a-friend as the last option.

Fortunately, this option did work and I got numbers of few vehicle-towing service providers. From the numbers, I ended up calling Allianz roadside assistance, which offered very prompt services. They assured of a pickup in 60 minutes, however they had a strange pre-condition of online payment by the customer before initiating processing. Though demanding an upfront online-only payment from a customer stranded by the roadside didn't sound like a great model, I did manage to make a payment, inspite of running low on mobile battery.

The towing vehicle getting into position, while traffic flows by

Though it appeared by then that I had to just wait it out until the tow truck arrived, things didn't pan out that easily. Having gotten stranded on an off-road, in a drizzling weather and running low on mobile battery, I had to kill time by sitting in the vehicle. Thats when I had to put up with stares from every vehicle or passerby crossing me. And, they were of all kinds - the angry look from people who thought someone had pulled over, blocking traffic on a busy road to just while away time; the occasional sneers from few vehicles; and the genuinely puzzled, curious look from a lot of passengers, who at times paused in their tracks, some even re-traced steps back to my vehicle to give a proper, top-down stare before moving on!

Tried of this routine & unsure on how to respond to the stares, I finally pulled out my laptop and watched a movie. I'm sure this would have doubled the curiosity and furiousness of fellow passengers, but atleast that kept me glued to the screen. And, Backcountry was a movie that matched the mood :) 

The learnings for me from this episode were:

• Spend time learning basics of car issues & recovery, like a first-aid. Perhaps, keep a small printed cheat-sheet handy, to try out basic options before escalating for expert-help
• Keep the numbers of multiple service centres in the locality (I had just the one where I usually get service done, and that had closed for the day), apart from the numbers of towing services

...and perhaps, keep some movies handy to keep yourself engaged!

Staying relevant in the Radio cabs space - Is Meru holding up?

Nokia's CEO ended his speech while announcing their distress sale to Microsoft saying, “we didn’t do anything wrong, but somehow, we lost.” Immediately, he and the entire management team publicly wept.

All case studies on Nokia dissecting the reasons for failure point to one thing in common - "inadequate pace of innovation & the seeming reluctance to change even as their world was turning upside down". Interestingly, all market leaders across industries who have been swept away with fundamental changes in their respective industries have this in common - Polaroid, Yahoo or Sun Microsystems.

When I need to book a cab, I usually check the 3 apps on my phone - Uber, Ola and Meru. The occasion decides the app that gets picked. If its an early-morning drop to the airport, the choice invariably is Meru (having burnt hands on a couple of occasions while trying to switch to other operators). For every other case its either Uber (on those rare occasions where surge pricing is not on!) or Ola.

Having used Meru for over 8 years, I'm amazed at their consistency - both, in their 'uber' punctuality with guaranteed before-time arrival AND in they being wedded to technology that is atleast few years behind the industry. 

Their Android app has few frustrating touchpoints. For instance, a basic thing such as the 'favorites' feature doesn't really store your home/office location. Meru, surprisingly doesn't yet have a navigation map for its drivers. The GPS seems to be used only for cab booking. So, the driver doesn't have the advantage of routing technology, and the customer's bill summary doesn't provide a route map, unlike Ola/Uber, which offer this check on whether the driver took an optimal route. Without GPS mapping & proper address storage, you end up explaining your home address & landmark to the drivers, every single time. 

While these contribute to a poor UX overall, their significantly higher fares put off users. Today, a bulk of their daily trips seem to come from airport drops and pick-ups, which is one location where you can still find a very high number of their cabs. Considering that the rival cab aggregators do a pretty good job in the above areas along with providing a seamless app user experience, it remains to be seen when Meru would catch up. However, I've noticed in the past that they took an inordinate amount of time to start offering online payment and wallet facilities, years after their peers, so this may take a good amount of time, as well.

As a side note, strangely I've noticed several of their drivers, across trips handing over their business card containing personal contact details, with Meru branding, possibly encouraged by the company. This is puzzling to say the least on why a cab aggregator would encourage their drivers to push for direct bookings with customers.

Pic Source: Forbes article

Thus, directionally the story of Meru cabs doesn't appear to be too different from the fall of some of these biggest names, in the anecdote at the starting of this post. Meru had a stellar rise to the top in the organised cab players market and at a point had a near monopoly in a couple of major Indian cities. The arrival of cab aggregators marked the reinvention & rejuvenation of this industry - players like Uber, Ola & the erstwhile Taxi4sure had innovated the radio cabs space, unseated Meru cabs from its leadership position and gave it serious competition. 

Thankfully, the story is not yet over for Meru. It continues to try and reverse the downward trend, raise funds and even put in place an expansion plan to fight back. However, the initiatives don't seem to be paying off at the pace that the competition is grabbing business from them. Atleast from a consumer's perspective, things don't seem to look good. 

Cab Booking for the masses?

My vacation last month involved extensive travel across Tamil Nadu. It was perfect timing to catch up on eclectic events - the annual "Chithirai festival" in Madurai, similar annual festivities in my ancestral place near Karaikudi, and what better time to chill out in Ooty to beat the sweltering Indian Summer. More details on the festivities in a later post.

Here, I wanted to talk logistics - my experiences with radio cab booking during my travel. Accustomed to using Uber, Ola and the likes in Hyderabad or in my business trips to the metros, I've never looked for options or modalities beyond them. Don't we love their availability round the clock and the convenience of  2-tap booking on their apps? The booking-scheduling-tracking lifecycle works seamlessly.

However, when I instinctively took to cab booking, this time in the tier-2 cities and towns like Madurai, Thanjavur, Karaikudi, it brought forth some teething logistics issues. Cab providers such as Ola, Savaari, NTL Taxi provide coverage, and the issue is more to do with the booking channel & modalities than with the anything else. 

The data network is patchy at best in several parts of these cities, so much that getting a continuous 2G signal is a luxury. There were several instances where the app doesn't refresh or shows cab availability with a huge lag. I often lost connection after booking a cab, and couldn't track status or even cancel the booking. Once, I ended up accidentally booking a cab in Coimbatore, while I was looking for local commute within Madurai! I had travelled back from Coimbatore and the map didn't refresh until I made the booking. 

Apart from network issues, its also the adaptability of all segments of users to this channel. I know of family and relatives back at home who are loathe to using an app for booking, but are quite comfortable with calls or SMS. 

That got me thinking whether radio cabs through apps is a universal solution for India. We have so many segments of users with varying levels of tech adoption. The problem of non-uniform/poor connectivity & logistics infrastructure will take a while to get ironed out. Wouldn't it make sense to have a secondary system also enabled?

What about a SMS-based booking system for cabs? User sends SMS to a designated number with the requested cab type (SUV, Sedan, hatchback), time and current location pincode. Cab company sends back a confirmation SMS or incase of non-availability, mentioning alternate cab types available / asking user to choose alternate time. To get user's exact location within the area, driver calls the user (this anyway happens even in metros for app-booking, since the GPS location shown on map is at best approximate). All status updates are pushed subsequently by cab company through SMS, and users can enquire status/cancel request through a simple SMS.

This avoids the need for archaic telephone booking and the need to staff operators who coordinate manually. A SMS-based system can well be automated and perhaps even be integrated at the backend with the app-based systems. This would score as an inclusive approach, given the demands of a developing country like ours.

BPD: Life in Bhutan: An exec summary!

(BPD: Life in Bhutan: An executive summary!, 26 Apr -1 Jun '15)

After my stay in Bhutan over the past week, here is what I've gathered about the country. Understandably, this is based on first hand experiences at Thimphu and Paro, but also based on interactions with locals travelling from other parts of the country, and based on the similarity (and simplicity) of life throughout Bhutan.

1. Tourist Season:

Image source: Drukasia

Most people visit Bhutan during the fall months of Sep-Oct-Nov which is considered the peak tourist season and resplendent with local festivals and activities for tourists. This is followed by the spring period of April-May, which sees some tourists. However, unlike other tourist places, even during the current tourist season of April, one can hardly be bothered by crowds. This can be explained by the relatively lesser awareness about tourist options in Bhutan, and also because its expensive for foreigners (non-Indians), wherein there is a mandatory daily package fee of $250 per person.

2. Administration:

Bhutan has been a monarchy since its unification about a century back, when it used to have several regional satraps. It is now taking baby steps towards democracy, as initiated by the 4th King less than a decade back wherein, only the second elected government is in power. All governance mechanisms of a democracy are slowly taking shape including the new Bhutanese Supreme court building, that was recently inaugurated by Indian Prime minister Modi during his visit to Bhutan. However, the people are uniformly very fond of their Kings, and still not entirely comfortable with the concept of democracy, and hence view it as not-so-essential. Every house and monastery has pictures of the Monarchs and they are worshiped as God. 

3. Religion:

Prayer bell in a school playground, Paro!

A huge majority of the population follow Buddhism, though there are some Hindus from Nepal & India, which explains the occasional presence of very small Hindu temples and pictures of Hindu Gods. One can find Buddhist prayer flags, inscriptions and pictures of Buddha & Guru Rinpoche ( who is considered the second Buddha) everywhere. People are generally very religious and one can find people chanting mantras even while walking in the street or travelling in public transports. Its a common sight to see people carrying mini-prayer wheels, apart from utilizing every opportunity to give a gentle, clock-wise push to a prayer bell in the vicinity; and the bells are found everywhere.

4. People:

Toddlers, at the back!

The people are friendly and helpful all over Bhutan, but are generally less talkative and get into a brief conversation, only when approached. Men wear the traditional attire of 'gho', while women are slender and attractive in their 'kera'. It was surprising to see kids go to school in this attire, differentiated only by colors of robe, based on the school. Kids come with dollops of cuteness and its a common sight to see toddlers neatly tied at the back of parents for easier carrying around. It was a surprise to not find a single pram throughout my stay in the capital! The people are law-abiding, with almost zero instances of theft or other illegal activities, and I also heard that the punishments are very severe and swift for any deviation. I was routinely reminded by locals that the law-and-order scene was unlike in India, since I could leave my stuff anywhere in the open, and it would stay untouched for days together!

Archery is national sport and archery training fields seen in all parts of the country. Snooker also seems to be of interest, as seen by the numerous parlors that have sprung up. The local language is 'Dzongka', however most people follow and speak basic Hindi, thanks to the influence of Bollywood and the huge dominance of Hindi Entertainment channels in every part of Bhutan. All Indian DTH antenna are very prominently used by people, though its still illegal - all hotels I stayed in provided Sun Direct service!

Almost everyone chews the betel leaf and areca nut, locally called 'doma'. This is hard to miss in Bhutan, and even if you miss the red-stained teeth and lips, the pungent odour would surely hit you. There are blood-like spots of the 'doma' in all places around the country, and one can find people routinely spit on the roads and around the buildings. This was one undesirable thing that stands out against the clean imagery being propagated in Bhutan.

5. Transportation:

A rare traffic junction, Thimphu city

Roads in the city are broad and clean, while the vehicle movement is disciplined at its best, with the way of right for pedestrians. I was surprised to not find any traffic signals or traffic jam, blaring horns or even loud music in vehicles, there are only the occasional traffic junctions manned by cops. While walking to the Tango monastery in Thimphu, I was shocked to see instances of people in cars who didn't want to sound horns even when pedestrians were walking right ahead of them, blocking the road unintentionally; for a while, all the cars patiently followed behind!

I found the taxi drivers to be polite and reasonable, which again took me some time to adjust to, after all the unpleasant conditioning over the years, on our Indian roads. Most taxis are Maruti Alto or Hyundai Santro, while a lot of private vehicles are fancy SUVs.

6. Economy:

A shopkeeper in 'kera'

Being a small mountain country with a miniscule population, Bhutan ends up importing almost all of its goods, largely from India, Nepal and Thailand.  Hence, its easy to buy most Indian products, but only at a premium and always above the MRP. People have a good time in Bhutan and are well taken care of, with heavy subsidy and care by the government - free education,  free healthcare, near-free agricultural inputs and public goods. There is a strong focus on quality of life and the businesses appear a little laid back, with less aggressiveness that one finds in other countries. The offices close at 5 PM and most tourist shops and stores start winding down by 7 PM, as well.

Bhutan produces and sells most of its electricity, produced from the abundant hydropower thanks to its mountain landscape. It also exports Cement and a handful other goods that earn revenue for the country, apart from tourism that also generates some income. The country evidently spends a lot on preserving its culture and is fanatical about conserving the natural environment through sustainable development. All of this is in line with Bhutan's famed GNH policy (Gross National Happiness), as opposed to building an economy around the GNP (Gross National Product) as is the practice world-over. 

7. Infrastructure:

Post office, same architecture again!

The first thing one would notice about all buildings is the uniformity of all structures, whether its a house, commercial building or even a mall! All of them follow the traditional Bhutanese architecture, as dictated by the Driglam Namzha. The cities are green and clean with enough trees planted (or rather not cut off). The government has taken care to place dustbins every few metres throughout the city, and more at tourist places - this is in line with Bhutan's target to achieve Zero Waste by 2030. Overall, there are no flashy signs of development or grandeur, even the capital Thimphu looks like a big, but pretty ordinary city.

All houses have paintings of religious figures for good luck and protection. All tourists find it amusing to see pictures of penis or 'phallus', locally painted on the house walls, which is believed to ward of evil spirits. Perhaps, this must be one of the most commonly photographed things by tourists in Bhutan!

'Penis' on house walls, a common sight!	'Phallus' dolls.. just to ward off evil spirits