Skip to main content

ITS America applauds US DOT decision to accelerate automated and connected vehicle projects

The Intelligent Transportation Society of America’s (ITS America) President and CEO Regina Hopper has applauded the announcement by US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx that the Obama Administration has proposed US$4 billion over 10 years for automated and connected vehicle pilot projects that accelerate vehicle safety technologies. Secretary Foxx also announced that the US DOT is removing potential roadblocks to the integration of innovative, transformational automotive technology that can signific
January 15, 2016 Read time: 3 mins
The Intelligent Transportation Society of America’s (560 ITS America) President and CEO Regina Hopper has applauded the announcement by US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx that the Obama Administration has proposed US$4 billion over 10 years for automated and connected vehicle pilot projects that accelerate vehicle safety technologies.

Secretary Foxx also announced that the US DOT is removing potential roadblocks to the integration of innovative, transformational automotive technology that can significantly improve safety, mobility, and sustainability.

“We are on the cusp of a new era in automotive technology with enormous potential to save lives, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and transform mobility for the American people,” said Foxx.  “Today’s actions and those we will pursue in the coming months will provide the foundation and the path forward for manufacturers, state officials, and consumers to use new technologies and achieve their full safety potential.”

The President’s FY17 budget proposal would provide nearly US$4 billion over 10 years for pilot programs to test connected vehicle systems in designated corridors throughout the country, and work with industry leaders to ensure a common multistate framework for connected and autonomous vehicles.

Hopper said, “ITS America applauds Secretary Foxx and the Administration for accelerating the adoption of advanced vehicle technologies, such as vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication that will significantly reduce traffic fatalities and injuries and ensure America continues to lead in automotive and transportation innovation.

“Automated and connected vehicle technologies will save thousands of lives each year and bring us closer to our goal of zero deaths on America’s roads.

“Congress took a critical step in the FAST Act to encourage innovation and support the deployment of these and other Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS).  This announcement represents the collective commitment of the transportation, technology and highway safety communities to tackle the challenges and harness the opportunities before us to transform safety and mobility in America.”

Secretary Foxx also unveiled policy guidance that updates the 834 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) 2013 preliminary policy statement on autonomous vehicles.  The new guidance, released today, reflects the reality that the widespread deployment of fully autonomous vehicles is now feasible.

“NHTSA is using all of its available tools to accelerate the deployment of technologies that can eliminate 94 per cent of fatal crashes involving human error,” said NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind.  “We will work with state partners toward creating a consistent national policy on these innovations, provide options now and into the future for manufacturers seeking to deploy autonomous vehicles, and keep our safety mission paramount at every stage.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • ASECAP examines tolling’s trials, tribulations and triumphs
    September 4, 2018
    If you want to get up to speed on the main issues facing the transport sector and tolling companies, ASECAP Study Days event in Ljubljana was a good place to start. Colin Sowman reports (Photographs: Louis David). Increasing populations, ever-higher technical and safety requirements, and electric and hybrid vehicles will provide both challenges and opportunities for tolling companies. The annual Study Days event organised by ASECAP (the European association for tolling companies) examined all of these aspec
  • The benefits of Lidar
    March 21, 2022

    While Lidar is gaining ground in the ITS industry, it has not yet reached the level of mass adoption where it shows up frequently in requests for proposals (RFPs) from cities and DoTs.

  • Congress ‘needs a lesson in smart transportation’
    December 11, 2014
    Former US transportation secretary Ray LaHood says Congress needs to learn there’s more to transportation funding in the 21st century than building more roads and bridges. He urged smart transportation advocates attending the Smart City Council’s Smart Cities Now forum in San Diego this week to take their message to Congress. There are new people in Congress who are going to write a transportation bill, LaHood suggested, and if they don’t incorporate all of the smart technologies that the forum has
  • Consumers ‘fear technology failures with autonomous vehicles’
    April 21, 2017
    With the exception of Generation Y (1977-1994), all other generational groups are becoming more sceptical of self-driving technology, which poses a new challenge to car manufacturers and technology developers, according to the J.D. Power 2017 US Tech Choice Study. The study was carried out in January-February 2017 and is based on an online survey of more than 8,500 consumers who purchased/leased a new vehicle in the past five years. “In most cases, as technology concepts get closer to becoming reality, cons