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Due to the limitations of its technology and theory, the traditional traffic control system has been unable to adapt to the needs of new technology and traffic development and needs to be reformed and reconstructed. From the national scientific and technological research and development plan to the traffic control system development projects of relevant enterprises, the common problem is that the advanced signal control system plays an insufficient role in practical application. The existing signal control system excessively relies on the use of IT technology but ignores the basic theory of traffic control and the essential consideration of the traffic environment and optimal regulation of road traffic flow, which greatly limits the scientific and practical value of a traffic control system in China. This narrative review analyzes recent developments and emerging trends in urban traffic control technologies through literature synthesis spanning 2009–2025. With the rapid and large-scale development and application of new transportation technologies such as vehicle–infrastructure networking, vehicle–infrastructure collaboration, and automatic driving, the real-time interaction between the traffic controller and the controlled party has new support. Given these technological advances, there is an urgent need to address the limitations of existing traffic signal control systems. Transportation technology development must leverage rich traffic control interaction conditions and comprehensive data to create next-generation systems. These new traffic optimization control systems should demonstrate high refinement, precision, better responsiveness, and enhanced intelligence. This paper can play a key role and influence for China to lead the development of urban road traffic control systems in the future. The promotion and application of the new generation of urban road traffic signal optimization control systems will improve the efficiency of the road network to a greater extent, reduce operating costs, prevent and alleviate road traffic congestion, and reduce energy consumption and emissions. At the same time, it will also provide the entry point and technical support for the development of vehicle–infrastructure networking and coordination and the automatic driving industry.
Wang et al. (Thu,) studied this question.