New innovation helps first responders shave time off the conveyance of patients with life-threatening conditions to hospitals
One of SCDF’s 7th generation ambulances (Photo: SCDF)
In an emergency situation, mere seconds can make the difference between life and death.
Thanks to the new Traffic Priority System (TPS), first responders can now hasten a patient’s delivery to the hospital by 30 to 100 seconds!
How does TPS work?
Jointly developed by HTX, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) and the Land Transport Authority (LTA), the TPS gives SCDF ambulances traffic signal priority in the “final mile” when transporting patients with life-threatening conditions to the hospital.
SCDF ambulances will be equipped with special on-board devices (OBDs) that communicate with special road-side equipment (RSE) installed at TPS traffic junctions located near to public hospitals.
In situations where the patient is suffering a life-threatening condition, SCDF Operations Centre will use the Advanced C3 Emergency System (ACES) to trigger the TPS, which will in turn activate the ambulance’s OBD and RSE. This process of whitelisting will ensure only ambulances which are granted priority can trigger the RSE.
When the ambulance comes within 200 metres of the traffic junction equipped with TPS, the RSE will detect the OBD through dedicated short-radio communications (DSRC) and trigger the traffic light controller (TLC) to ensure the traffic lights are in the ambulance’s favour.
Engineer Teo Shi Wei from HTX’s Civil Defence Programme Management Centre (CDPMC), who worked on TPS, found the project meaningful as it offered the possibility of saving lives.
“The positive impact of TPS can be significant as it reduces ambulance waiting times at traffic light junctions when conveying critically ill patients to the hospital,” she shared.
Shi Wei also shared that the project faced its fair share of challenges because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused disruptions to global supply chains and resulted in shortages in chip components.
Thankfully, close inter-agency cooperation during this difficult period helped the project team pull through. “Thanks to the collaboration between HTX, SCDF and LTA, we ironed out these challenges collectively,” she recalled.
Implementation phases
The TPS will be progressively implemented in three phases starting from 15 July 2024.
In the current Phase I, OBDs have been installed in SCDF ambulances operating from Jurong Fire Station and Bukit Batok Fire Station, and RSEs have been installed in the traffic junctions around Ng Teng Fong General Hospital, which lies within the response boundary of the two fire stations.
In Phase II, OBDs will be installed in all remaining SCDF ambulances, and TPS coverage will be extended to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Changi General Hospital, and National University Hospital. This phase is scheduled for completion by the second quarter of 2025.
In Phase III, TPS coverage will be extended to the remaining Public Hospitals: KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Sengkang General Hospital, Singapore General Hospital, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, and Woodlands Health Campus. This final phase is scheduled for completion by the fourth quarter of 2025.