Review article
Using Smart Intersections to Reduce Traffic Congestion and Emissions in Urban Areas
Karlo Kirinčić
; University of Rijeka, Faculty of Maritime Studies, Rijeka, Croatia
*
Siniša Vilke
; University of Rijeka, Faculty of Maritime Studies, Rijeka, Croatia
* Corresponding author.
Abstract
Growing urbanization and the frequent increase in motorization in urban areas cause significant traffic
congestion and pollute the atmosphere by creating large amounts of harmful gas emissions. Smart
intersections are based on adaptive traffic management systems, real-time data analysis, which is why
they can optimize traffic flows in cities. This paper explores the effect of smart intersections in reducing
traffic congestion and CO2 emissions with a focus on the city of Rijeka. The research is conducted
through a literature review and analysis of the effect of smart traffic lights that have been implemented
in the automatic traffic management system of the city of Rijeka. Special emphasis is placed on the
empirical results of smart traffic lights that have been installed in Asian cities with relevant information
for the application of the same systems in the Republic of Croatia. The results show a reduction in
travel time, an increase in traffic flow and a reduction in CO2 emissions. The objective of this paper
is to analyze the current state of installed smart traffic lights in the city of Rijeka, and to investigate
the efficiency of the application of these modern intelligent transport systems.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
346319
URI
Publication date:
14.4.2026.
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