The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved Rs 1,789.52 crore for a Delhi traffic management system that will use artificial intelligence to control traffic signals across the national capital.

Here is what the plan means. The Intelligent Traffic Management System (ITMS) will replace fixed-timer signals with adaptive, AI-driven signals that respond to real-time traffic conditions. Cameras and sensors at junctions will feed data to a central command centre, which will adjust green-light durations based on actual vehicle flow.

The system can prioritise emergency vehicles, detect violations such as red-light jumping and wrong-side driving, and help reduce congestion at Delhi’s notorious bottlenecks.

The funding was approved alongside the Rs 1.86 lakh crore Green Energy Corridor Phase-III as part of the Cabinet’s infrastructure decisions announced on October 1.

For Delhi’s commuters, the promise is shorter wait times and smoother peak-hour movement. Similar AI-based systems have been piloted in cities like Bengaluru and Pune, with authorities reporting measurable reductions in average travel time at covered junctions.