A Web Application for Real-Time Traffic Monitoring in Lagos Metropolitan Area

Traffic congestion in Lagos State, Nigeria's commercial capital in the South West zone, constitutes a major economic and social burden, costing commuters an estimated several hours daily. This study develops a web application for real-time traffic monitoring in the Lagos metropolitan area, drawing on crowd-sourced and sensor-based data to provide actionable commuter information. The application was built using React.js for the frontend and Express.js on the backend, with integration of the Google Maps API for geospatial visualisation. The research adopts the agile Scrum methodology, with three development sprints guided by feedback from 50 commuter testers and 10 Lagos State traffic officials. Key features include live traffic heat maps, route optimisation suggestions, incident reporting by users, and journey time predictions. Evaluation metrics encompass response time, data accuracy, and user experience ratings. Testing results show that the application achieves an average page load time of 1.8 seconds and correctly predicts traffic conditions with 79 percent accuracy based on historical data. The study acknowledges limitations in sensor infrastructure and proposes integration with the Lagos State Smart City initiative as a scalability path. The research underscores the importance of civic technology in addressing urban mobility challenges across Nigerian megacities. Keywords: traffic monitoring, Lagos, real-time, geospatial, web application