Skip to main content

Ford trials technology to help drivers ‘ride the green wave’

Ford is currently trialling technology which aims to reduce time spent waiting at a red light. Green Light Optimal Speed Advisory uses information on traffic light timings from a roadside unit to display to the driver the best speed to travel at to get a green light. The tests are part of the UK Autodrive self-driving and connected car trial, a 16-member, publicly funded US$24 million (£20 million) project which is developing and trialling vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle to infrastructure technologies tha
October 24, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
278 Ford is currently trialling technology which aims to reduce time spent waiting at a red light. Green Light Optimal Speed Advisory uses information on traffic light timings from a roadside unit to display to the driver the best speed to travel at to get a green light.

The tests are part of the UK Autodrive self-driving and connected car trial, a 16-member, publicly funded US$24 million (£20 million) project which is developing and trialling vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle to infrastructure technologies that could make driving less stressful and time-consuming, and improve fuel efficiency.

The Mondeo Hybrid cars provided by Ford are also trialling Emergency Electronic Brake Lights, which warn when a vehicle up ahead suddenly brakes hard, even if the incident occurs out of sight, up to a distance of 500 metres.  

Technologies that will be trialled next year also warn drivers when another vehicle is blocking the junction ahead; when an ambulance, police car or fire truck is approaching; and prioritises vehicles arriving at intersections without traffic signs or traffic lights.

Trials are taking place on both public roads and closed circuits in Milton Keynes and Coventry during the next two years.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Canada looks to HOT lanes to tackle congestion
    March 16, 2017
    David Crawford sees an evidence-based approach to HOT lane conversions. Canada’s first high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes opened on 16 September 2016 as a pilot on a 16.5km section of existing high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes running in both directions along Toronto’s Queen Elizabeth Way. Promised in two recent budgets
  • Big data and GPS combine to cut emergency response times
    April 2, 2014
    David Crawford looks at technologies for better emergency medical service delivery. Emergency medical services (EMS) play key roles in transporting, or bringing treatment to, patients who become ill through medical emergencies or are injured in road traffic accidents (RTAs). But awareness has been rising steadily, in the US and elsewhere, of the extent to which EMS can generate their own emergencies. The most common cause is vehicles causing or becoming involved in RTAs, as a result of driving fast under pr
  • Flir combines vision and radar sensing of intersections
    April 6, 2016
    TrafiRadar, an integrated radar and visual intersection monitoring and sensing system, is being demonstrated by Flir. The unit contains both a Doppler radar and a megapixel camera and can detect the presence, speed and location of a vehicle up to 250m from the stop line.
  • Singapore plans changes to transit system
    June 13, 2018
    Singapore has the third-highest population density in the world and the numbers are continuing to grow. The government knows that transit is vital: David Crawford investigates the city state’s Smart Nation strategy. Transport is the most important of the five domains identified as the pillars of Singapore's far-reaching Smart Nation strategy, launched in November 2014 by prime minister Lee Hsien Loong with the aim of reaching fulfilment by 2024. Roads account for 12% of the island republic's 719km2 land ar