Police to deploy drones that can count crowd numbers at Marina Bay Singapore Countdown 2025

Don’t be alarmed if you spot drones flying overhead during this year’s countdown at Marina Bay – they're actually there to ensure your safety. 

These unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), which are deployed by the police, come equipped with spotlights, blinkers and speakers to enhance visibility and allow the police to broadcast safety announcements. 

These UAVs will prove valuable as large crowds are expected at Marina Bay during the Marina Bay Singapore Countdown 2025. The Singapore Sports Hub will also play host to the Let's Celebrate 2025 event for the New Year's Eve celebrations.

These events, expected to attract large crowds, will run from Dec 31, 2024, into the early hours of Jan 1, 2025, said the police in a statement on Dec 27.

UAVs were previously used for crowd-counting at ZoukOut in 2022 and 2023, and the Marina Bay Singapore Countdown in 2022. In these events, the UAVs were trialled for crowd-counting.

The drones will deliver video footage to a video analytics tool, known as the Q-crowd counter (QCC), to determine crowd numbers, which will help police officers accurately gauge the situation on the ground to prevent overcrowding incidents. 

Created by the police and the Home Team Science and Technology Agency (HTX), the QCC uses live camera feeds from drones to monitor crowd sizes at large-scale events.

It leverages on artificial intelligence and computer vision techniques to accurately determine crowd numbers within seconds, and can reportedly count a crowd of about 2,000 people in just three seconds.

This system is more efficient and accurate than relying on thermal heat imaging to determine crowd density in previous years, especially under low-light conditions, said the police.  

Information gathered from the QCC will also be uploaded to the Crowd@MarinaBay portal, which gives members of the public updates on crowd levels and closed areas around Marina Bay. 

The police said that the data collected by the UAVs will be purged immediately after use. 

Besides the drones, more than 800 officers will be deployed at various sites for the countdown this year, up from 600 last year, said the police.

Aside from Marina Bay and the Singapore Sports Hub, celebrations will also be organised at Sentosa, Orchard Road and various heartland locations.

There will also be enhanced Mobicam systems stationed at areas where people usually congregate. The Mobicam is a static police camera which also has a blinker, speakers and an electronic signage. 

With the Mobicam systems, officers at the Police Command Centre can broadcast audio advisories and visual messages to members of the public. 

Members of the public can also make use of the electronic signages to get directions to public transport.

Separately, they are also encouraged to check the Crowd@MarinaBay and Crowd@Kallang for real-time information on crowd levels, area closures, available transport nodes and movement routes before heading to Marina Bay and Kallang Basin areas for the festivities.

Real-time information is also available for Crowd@OrchardRoad and Crowd@Sentosa.

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xingying.koh@asiaone.com