By applying this technology, the city of Helsinki strives to make its city centre cyclist- and pedestrian-friendly, increase road safety and reduce hazardous emissions. The Dutch company Nedap developed the technology that enables selective vehicle access control and the installation of the system was carried out by Finnish company Visy. Helsinki is considering expanding the vehicle restricted zone in its city centre in 2013.

To increase the quality of life and the economic vitality of the city significantly, Helsinki wishes to reduce the volume of motorised vehicles in its city centre and regulate the amount of traffic movements, while taking into account the dynamic aspects of the city traffic. Residents, retailers, suppliers, taxis and emergency services seek access the heart of Helsinki at various times and for a wide range of reasons. The vehicle access control system enables selective vehicle target groups with a valid permit to enter the city centre automatically, securely and conveniently. The system offers a high degree of flexibility in granting access rights to vehicles, based on need, route, destination and time of day.

The Finnish company Visy installed the intelligent system at three access roads to the city centre. At each gate various technologies for identification and communication are installed that are locally integrated and remotely controlled. Long range RFID technology is used to identify vehicles. A vehicle management controller (VMC) controls connections to barriers, traffic lights and RFID readers and controls their activity. The VMC hardware layout and purpose built embedded software enables a clean installation that is easily maintained.

In the past decade, Nedap has successfully implemented these controllers in a large number of Dutch cities to enable intelligent vehicle access control. The city of Helsinki perceived the results as positive and currently is considering to scale up the number of restricted traffic zones in the city.