Advancing urban mobility in developing countries: A mobile RSU approach for sustainable transportation

The rapid and uncontrolled urbanization of cities in developing countries has engendered a plethora of urban mobility issues, including traffic congestion, accidents, and air pollution. To address these challenges, contemporary urban mobility trends are incorporating innovative technologies and sustainable governance practices. This article investigates how urban managers can leverage the opportunities presented by cost-effective technologies and the management of urban data to enhance urban mobility in developing countries. Within this discourse, an RSU-based approach is proposed that employs motorbike taxis for inter-vehicular communication, given their status as the most widely used form of public transportation. This approach substantially diminishes investment costs and reinforces the sustainability of urban mobility. Through the implementation of this solution, a noteworthy reduction is anticipated in the emission of gases such as CO2, and NOx, known contributors to climate change and various respiratory diseases. To validate the efficacy of the proposed solution, four distinct scenarios are scrutinized in a case study centered on the city of Douala in Cameroon, utilizing tools such as OMNET++, SUMO, Veins, and INET. The proposed framework offers significant benefits in terms of environmental sustainability and operational efficiency. It enables a 10% reduction in CO2 emissions, a 15% reduction in NOx emissions, an 11% drop in fuel consumption, and a 15% reduction in waiting time in traffic jams. The envisaged solution aims to aid urban managers in their decision-making processes, specifically in advancing sustainable urban mobility. Through the adoption of this approach, cities in developing countries can mitigate challenges associated with urban mobility and enhance the overall well-being of their residents.