The Transport Department announced today a series of artificial intelligence (AI) projects to streamline licensing services, cut renewal processing times to a single day, and implement adaptive traffic signals across roughly 50 junctions to enhance smart mobility.

The department is preparing for the launch of the Easy Licence Application Approval project by the end of this year. Using advanced large language model technology, this system will automatically recognise, cross-check and verify application documents for online vehicle licence renewals.

The initiative aims to push the proportion of automatic approvals past 90% and markedly reduce processing times from up to 10 working days to one.

The application approval project will also cover two cross-boundary driving schemes – Northbound Travel for Hong Kong Vehicles and Southbound Travel for Guangdong Vehicles. The department targets boosting the ratio of cross-boundary driving permit applications automatically approved by AI to over 50%, shortening manual processing times by about 20%.

For counter services, the department deployed an AI-enabled anti-bot solution and dynamic identification technology in late June for the online appointment booking system for direct issue of the Hong Kong Full Driving Licence.

By identifying and blocking automated bot scripts and mitigating non-human operations, the technology ensures fair and orderly access. As a result, the maximum waiting time for applicants successfully entering the booking system dropped significantly from up to two hours to within 45 minutes.

To promote smart mobility, the department is implementing the Real-time Adaptive Traffic Signal System (RTATSS) at about 50 suitable independent signalised junctions across the city in phases.

A pilot Smart Traffic Signals project will roll out in the first quarter of 2027 at the junction of Gloucester Road and Great George Street in Causeway Bay. RTATSS sensors will detect real-time vehicular and pedestrian traffic flows, computing signal timings through AI to dynamically allocate more green time for pedestrians and reduce maximum pedestrian waiting time by 15 to 20 seconds.

Furthermore, the department is studying the establishment of an AI-powered Traffic Management Platform to identify traffic bottlenecks. This platform will help formulate contingency plans to rapidly respond to special traffic conditions, minimising delays during major events, adverse weather or unexpected incidents.