MMDA dream of launching unmanned drones to monitor traffic hits a snag

It’s back to the drawing board for the robotics team tapped by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) to create unmanned drones fitted with closed circuit television cameras to be used in monitoring traffic.

According to MMDA Chair Francis Tolentino, the results of the initial test flights did not meet their expectations.

“The drones could only fly [to the height of a one-story building],” he said in a recent interview. “The students said they would have to make the drones lighter so these could fly higher.”

Tolentino said that one of the agency’s requirements was for the drones to soar to the height of a 10-story building. They should also be able to remain in the air for about three hours.

He added that the members of the robotics team—high school students of Dr. Yanga Colleges Inc.—have since left for Missouri to join a competition although they promised to continue their work upon their return.

Tolentino met with the students during a flag ceremony at the MMDA in February where they were feted for topping a robotic competition last year.

During the meeting, he asked them to build a device which could be used to observe the flow of traffic in Metro Manila, a challenge the youngsters accepted.

The students then decided to create unmanned drones that could be of help in monitoring traffic in major thoroughfares, Tolentino said.

The drones are expected to complement the MMDA’s Mobile Metrobase—modified passenger vans fitted with LCD screens and a microwave antenna that can transmit information from the main operations center of the agency headquarters in Makati City.

Tolentino said the unmanned drones would allow the MMDA to take a peek at blind spots in its network of CCTV cameras in Metro Manila, aside from being used to monitor major public events like processions and rallies.