Skip to main content

US to field trial connected vehicle technology

The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has announced that the University of Michigan will conduct a road safety field trial in Ann Arbor, Michigan, which will include the installation of wireless devices in up to 3,000 vehicles in one location, to evaluate the effectiveness of connected vehicle technology to prevent crashes.
April 17, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
RSSThe 324 US Department of Transportation (DOT) has announced that the University of Michigan will conduct a road safety field trial in Ann Arbor, Michigan, which will include the installation of wireless devices in up to 3,000 vehicles in one location, to evaluate the effectiveness of connected vehicle technology to prevent crashes.

During the pilot, to be carried out on the streets and highways of Ann Arbor from August, 2012 to August, 2013, drivers will be alerted to impending dangers in real-time so they can take action to avoid crashes. Data will be collected from the vehicles in order to understand how different types of motorists respond to safety messages in the real world.

"This test will be an important step towards the US Department of Transportation's top priority – a safer transportation system," said Peter Appel, administrator of the 321 Research and Innovative Technology Administration. "Technology is an investment in the future and this pilot deployment of vehicles that 'see' and 'talk' with one another with the help of wireless communication will allow us to learn how drivers use electronic alerts to avoid crashes in a real-world environment."

The safety pilot is the second part of a two-part connected vehicle research initiative. The first part is the Safety Pilot Driver Acceptance Clinics, which began on this month. The driver clinics are the first step in identifying how motorists respond to innovative wireless devices for safety. Participants in the six driver acceptance clinics will test cars equipped with connected vehicle devices in a controlled environment where researchers can observe the drivers' responses to the technology.

To continue the data collection under real-world conditions, the Ann Arbor safety pilot will allow drivers using cars, trucks, and transit vehicles fitted with wireless devices to carry out their normal routines while their vehicles sense the presence of other equipped vehicles nearby.

Related Content

  • August 19, 2014
    ITS America, Global Automakers respond to NHTSA's connected car ANPRM
    ITS America and international motor vehicle manufacturers’ representative the Association of Global Automakers (Global Automakers) have responded to the US Department of Transportation's (DOT) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) and a supporting comprehensive research report on vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications technology. The report will include analysis of the Department's research findings in several key areas including technical
  • February 7, 2019
    THEA tests connected vehicle technology in Florida
    The Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority (THEA) in Florida trialled connected vehicle technology which it says could lead to collision avoidance in real life. The test was carried out as part of the THEA Connected Vehicle (CV) pilot, an initiative which relies on wireless communication between onboard units that have been mounted on poles along the Slemon Expressway and throughout downtown Tampa. A special rearview mirror was installed in eight vehicles to display safety alerts to drivers. The ve
  • October 28, 2016
    New solutions for catching texting drivers
    Many countries have laws prohibiting texting while driving but enforcement is proving difficult – David Crawford looks at some new approaches being tried by authorities. Finding definitive solutions – technological, regulatory and educational - to the potentially lethal practice of people driving while using mobile phones is proving elusive, while the stakes grow higher.
  • August 30, 2012
    V2X trials in the US and Europe to finally kick start ITS?
    Large scale, real-life, high profile V2V and V2I trials in both the United States and Germany are are catching the headlines, putting ITS in the limelight after more than a decade of procrastination, according to ABI research. The US DoT Safety Pilot program involves 3,000 vehicles in Ann Arbor, Michigan. In Germany, 120 vehicles in the simTD project (Safe Intelligent Mobility, test- field Germany) will roam the Rhine-Main region until the end of the year and will be focused on traffic, road safety, and ef