Large cities anywhere in the world experience such issues as power blackouts, tap-water cut-offs, uncollected garbage, and damaged roads.
Traffy Fondue has been developed for residents of Thai cities to report their urban problems and seek solutions. The chatbot-based platform, which relies mainly on “human sensors”, can be easily accessed through the Line account “@traffyfondue”.
Dr Wasan Pattara-Atikom, a principal researcher at the National Electronics and Computer Technology Center (NECTEC) who develops the platform, told The Story Thailand that Traffy Fondue acts like a “matchmaker” between people who experience or are directly affected by urban issues and the responsible state agencies.
Traffy Fondue gets rid of a major pain point of the traditional “pipe system” used by state agencies in dealing with complaints. With its “platform system”, complaints are displayed on a public forum where everyone can see them, instead of being forwarded through the bureaucratic hierarchy as was the case in the past.
The predecessor of Traffy Fondue
Wasan said that he had received funding from NECTEC to develop a smart system for garbage management called “Traffy Waste”, which was meant to improve the efficiency of garbage collecting trucks in the Phuket Smart City project.
The system was aimed at addressing the problem of uncollected garbage, particularly during the high tourism season.
Relying on Internet of Things (IoT) technology and cloud computing, Traffy Waste collected data on the garbage trucks’ locations, routes, operating patterns, and time spent on garbage collection. The data were analyzed with artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
However, there were many factors that were beyond the control, such as bagged garbage placed outside the bins. Installing sensors on garbage trucks and roadside garbage containers was either impractical or too expensive.
Finally came the idea of using the “human sensor”, which is readily available everywhere. According to the developer, the Traffy Waste concept was later improved to become Traffy Fondue today.
“The human sensor technique has existed for a long time already. It’s similar to crowdsourcing, which involves a diverse group of participants contributing to efforts to solve problems in cities to make them more livable,” Wasan said.
These people can be passersby who happen to see the city’s problems and want to help. They may also be residents who are impacted by the problems and want the relevant agencies to solve them as soon as possible.
“Traffy Fondue helps to bring both sides together as easily and quickly as possible,” the developer said.
Technologies behind Traffy Fondue
According to Wasan, Traffy Fondue is developed as a mobile application for iOS and Android operating systems. Its front-end system is the Line-based app @traffyfondue, which is a chatbot receiving complaints attached with photos and locations. The data is uploaded onto a cloud-based system from mobile phones that work like an IoT.
The back-end system relies on Google Cloud in collecting massive amounts of data. AI technology is used for the analysis of data and assessment of its quality, covering the processes from receiving complaints to following up on the solutions.
“We try to develop an application that can be used easily and generally usable. Our database is meant to be opened to the public. The data can be downloaded for research studies or applied to other urban problems,” Wasan said.
IT and management advantages
According to him, the Traffy Fondue platform has an edge in speed and transparency. Everyone involved in the system can see the progress of the work processes, which helps improve the integration of work by the relevant agencies.
He said the platform system serves as a connection between the “local line” including municipalities and local administrative organizations and the “function line” comprising electricity and waterworks authorities and the Ministries of Transport and Social Development and Human Security.
Another advantage involves the efficiency of management costs, as Traffy Fondue is available as a “one-stop service” where data can be transferred through an online and paperless system. A lot of money can be saved as no personnel is required to deal with the paperwork and manage the complaints.
Wasan said that many local administrations across Thailand have adopted Traffy Fondue in dealing with complaints from residents. The platform has also been applied for receiving complaints in non-municipal sectors, such as hospitals, schools, power plants, housing estates, hotels and apartments.
“Most of them agree that [Traffy Fondue] is a tool that makes their lives easier. It is easy to use and can be used from anywhere,” he said.
Direction for the future
According to the developer, the Traffy Fondue platform can be expanded to cover more state agencies and larger administrative areas.
The next goal is to cover transport and traffic involving such matters as the smart bus stop. There is also possible cooperation with the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security in dealing with urban issues like homeless children.
Wasan said the National Health Security Office also wants to change its service system from “pipe” to “platform” for improved efficiency to cut down on long waiting lists for patients.
“Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt also wants this platform to receive complaints about irregularities. I will have to do more development,” he said.
Wasan points out that a key to unlocking more uses of Traffy Fondue involves understanding the business logic, particularly about building the relationship between users and service providers in the ecosystem, in which both sides are responsible for quality control.
According to him, Traffy Fondue aims to make public members want to use this platform and take part in tackling the problems of their cities while the relevant agencies must be ready to solve the issues quickly and transparently.
To succeed, the state agencies involved need cooperation from three sides — the management, the operation personnel, and effective tools, Wasan said.
“I hope that Traffy Fondue serves as the beginning of the bureaucracy’s transition from working separately to working on the same platform. This can help to greatly reduce the work steps and sluggishness in the system,” he concluded.
New feature in Traffy Fondue 2023
A new feature has recently been added to Traffy Fondue, allowing officials to receive complaints and manage cases through the Line chatbot.
After more than 164,000 complaints were filed through the LINE@Traffy Fondue within days, researchers at NECTEC’s Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) Laboratory developed and launched Traffy Fondue 2023 with a new feature called “Traffy Fondue Manager”, according to Wasan, who heads the ITS.
Traffy Fondue Manager allows officials to manage cases through the Line app at any time and from anywhere. On-duty officials are notified when new complaints are posted.
With the new feature, officials can now converse with the petitioners for details and additional information. Cases are searchable by case numbers, keywords, and locations.
Statistics on the solved cases are also available for purposes of analysis and planning by relevant authorities.
