Skip to main content

WSP/Parsons Brinckerhoff deploys connected vehicle technology for US army test

As part of the Planet M initiative, the US Army Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) and the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) have partnered to test connected vehicle applications on the I-69 freeway in Lapeer County, Michigan. WSP/Parsons Brinckerhoff is part of the MDOT team leading the infrastructure deployments. The test involved the installation of six road side units (RSU) at different locations to create a vehicle communications system. The system evalu
July 1, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
As part of the 8439 Planet M initiative, the US Army Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) and the 1688 Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) have partnered to test connected vehicle applications on the I-69 freeway in Lapeer County, Michigan. 6666 WSP/4983 Parsons Brinckerhoff is part of the MDOT team leading the infrastructure deployments.

The test involved the installation of six road side units (RSU) at different locations to create a vehicle communications system. The system evaluates various vehicle-to-infrastructure applications, including speed recommendation, curve speed warning, lane closure warning and disabled vehicle warning.

WSP/Parsons Brinckerhoff is leading the team responsible for the infrastructure installations, RSU software configurations, network architecture development, and backhaul communication and testing. In addition, the firm coordinated a system mock-up test with all parties involved, which was conducted in a lab environment prior to the actual live testing on I-69. During the live testing, the firm provided as-needed on-site technical support with the radio configurations and troubleshooting, leading to a highly successful test. RSUs are being decommissioned and reinstalled at permanent locations on I-69 for future real-world applications.

Related Content

  • March 11, 2025
    Smoother running on Florida’s I-4
    The Sunshine State is pioneering new implementations of V2X tech designed to smooth traffic flows and save lives. Andrew Stone shares the story so far…
  • July 27, 2012
    Measuring vehicle lengths with a single loop - promising results
    District 7 of Caltrans has been conducting trials to see whether the use of a single inductive loop to measure vehicle lengths and so identify heavy trucks is feasible. So far, the results have been very promising, according to Lead Transportation Engineer Steve Malkson. Between them, the adjoining ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, the US's two biggest, cover some 10,700 acres (43km2) and 68 miles (109km) of waterfront.
  • February 18, 2014
    Caltrans develops remote remedy for ailing VMS
    A remote diagnostic system for variable message signs keeps Caltrans staff safer and makes them more efficient. District 12 of the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) maintains roads in Orange County including 292 route miles of freeway lanes and 240 directional miles of full-time high occupancy vehicle or carpool lanes. All of these lanes are controlled from the district’s transportation management centre (TMC) using a network of 58 variable message signs (VMS) positioned alongside or abo
  • February 1, 2012
    Gearing up for IntelliDrive cooperative traffic management
    Beginning in the first quarter of 2010 it became evident that the IntelliDrivesm programme direction had been reestablished, by the USDOT's ITS Joint Program Office (JPO), after being adrift for a few years. The programme was now moving toward a deployment future and with a much broader stakeholder involvement than it had exhibited previously. By today not only is it evident that the programme was reestablished with a renewed emphasis on deployment, it is also apparent that it is moving along at a faster pa