Passenger and Luggage Weight Monitoring System for Public Transport based on Sensing Technology: A Case of Zambia

Abstract

The prevalence of overloading, which is exceeding the maximum load weight, on public buses in Zambia is very rampant because there is currently no system to measure and monitor load weight at bus stations, apart from weighbridges on few selected roads located far away from the loading points. The aim of this study was to design and develop a passenger and luggage weight monitoring system to mitigate the challenge of overloading on public buses. To achieve this, a baseline study was conducted to appreciate the challenges of the current system being used to manage passenger and luggage, i.e., load weight, on public buses. The risk factors considered to contribute to compromised road safety leading to road traffic accidents were also established from all stakeholders as follows: 54 percent human, 39 percent road/environmental, 6 percent vehicle and 1 percent was attributed to other factors. The results were then used as a basis to design and develop a load weight monitoring system (LWMS) based on sensing and other emerging technologies like Load Cells, Wireless Sensor Network (WSN), Internet of Things (IoT), and Cloud Computing concepts to automate the measurement of the load weight, capture and transmit data.