Skip to main content

Industry collaboration ‘the key to avoiding autonomous driving traffic congestion’

A joint whitepaper published by Here and SBD argues that new levels of vehicle automation will increase traffic congestion in the foreseeable future and it's up to the automotive industry to enhance its collaboration in order to create a seamless transition as we reach these new levels of automation. According to co-author of the study, Andrew Hart, director at SBD, autonomous cars have the potential in the long-term to revolutionise mobility and radically improve the safety of our roads. However, the pa
July 19, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
A joint whitepaper published by 7643 Here and 4263 SBD argues that new levels of vehicle automation will increase traffic congestion in the foreseeable future and it's up to the automotive industry to enhance its collaboration in order to create a seamless transition as we reach these new levels of automation.

According to co-author of the study, Andrew Hart, director at SBD, autonomous cars have the potential in the long-term to revolutionise mobility and radically improve the safety of our roads. However, the path towards the fully autonomous car is full of potholes, which may create short-term pains in unexpected ways. The automotive industry and road authorities will need to work carefully together to navigate around these potholes, in order to gain the trust of consumers and reap the societal benefits of this new technology, he said.

The whitepaper claims there are two main factors that will determine just how big the impact automated vehicles will have on traffic congestion. The first is the level of vehicle automation. The second is the corresponding level of user adoption.

While basic levels of automation could have a small positive impact in helping to ease traffic congestion, higher levels of automation could have a detrimental effect on congestion when the user adoption rate is low.

In order to help mitigate the increase in congestion during these transition periods, Here and SBD urge the automotive industry to work together towards collaborative autonomous cars. This includes formalised efforts to break down information silos and establish vehicle, road network and infrastructure data exchanges in conjunction with local, state and national transportation agencies.

The white paper describes how levels of automation represent a sequence rather than a binary occurrence where one day the roads are exclusively filled with self-driving vehicles. According to SBD, 11 million cars in Europe, USA and China will be shipped in 2016 with driver assistance systems such as adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking or lane keep assistance. From 2020, car manufacturers have announced a new generation of autonomous vehicles will be launched that achieve Level 4 to 5 automation, allowing drivers to hand over control to the vehicle.

Related Content

  • June 26, 2012
    euroFOT study demonstrates benefits of driver assistance systems
    Today, the euroFOT consortium published the findings of a four-year study focused on the impact of driver assistance systems in the Europe. The €22 million (US$27.5 million) European Field Operational Test (euroFOT) project which began in June 2008 and involved 28 companies and organisations, was led by Aria Etemad from Ford’s European Research Centre in Aachen, Germany. The study looked at existing technologies and their potential to both enhance safety and reduce environmental impact. euroFOT also reveale
  • November 2, 2016
    Ertico coordinates big data debate
    David Crawford finds that agreeing a common data standard for auto manufacturers’ onboard sensors, navigation system companies and map makers is proving a complex task.
  • September 4, 2018
    Avoiding a tangle
    The ITS industry will get into a ‘terrific mess’ if it doesn’t sort out the question of interoperability, says Georg Kapsch. He talks to Alan Dron about data, connectivity – and why governments should stay out of technology issues Governments should set a regulatory framework to help shape the direction of road technologies - but then stand aside and allow industry to create the necessary technologies, according to a European pioneer in the field. Georg Kapsch, CEO of Kapsch Group and Kapsch TrafficCom,
  • March 29, 2018
    Report highlights community impact of new mobility options
    Local authorities and communities must understand the impacts of the new mobility options and regulate to get the transport systems they want, according to a new report. Colin Sowman takes a look. Outside of the big cities plagued with congestion, the existing transportation system(s) often cope adequately, and the ongoing workload (maintenance, safety…) is more than enough to keep local transport authorities busy. Is it, therefore, a good use of public service employees’ time to keep abreast of the raft