NTSB urges standards for connected vehicles

In response to fatal school bus accidents at intersections in New Jersey and Florida last year, the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has recommended that the government should set performance standards for new safety technology that allows cars and trucks to talk to each other and then require the technology be installed in all new vehicles. Vehicles equipped with the technology can continuously communicate over wireless networks, exchanging information on location, direction and speed ten tim
July 24, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
In response to fatal school bus accidents at intersections in New Jersey and Florida last year, the US 5628 National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has recommended that the government should set performance standards for new safety technology that allows cars and trucks to talk to each other and then require the technology be installed in all new vehicles.

Vehicles equipped with the technology can continuously communicate over wireless networks, exchanging information on location, direction and speed ten times a second. The vehicle's computer analyses the information and issues danger warnings to drivers, often before they can see the other vehicle.

The 834 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has been road-testing the technology, which is effective up to a range of about 1,000 feet, in Ann Arbor, Michigan, for the past year. NHTSA officials have said they hope to make a decision on whether to proceed to setting standards or whether to continue their research by the end of this year.

"This technology more than anything else holds great promise to protect lives and prevent injuries," NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman said. That was particularly true of crashes at intersections like the two school bus accidents, she added.
Urban Traffic Control Location Based Systems

Related Content

  • November 30, 2012
    Taking it to the streets
    The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) and US Department of Transportation (USDOT) have launched the Connected Vehicle Safety Pilot Model Deployment in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The largest connected vehicle test undertaken, and a critical next step in the development of vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication. The pilot, a $22 million partnership between UMTRI and USDOT, is part of a joint research initiative led by the National Highway Traffic
    Read More
  • April 17, 2012
    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.
    Read More
  • December 14, 2012
    Preparing for connected vehicle technology challenge
    A decision on mandating connected vehicle technology is expected in 2013, when associated political issues such as privacy are likely to come to the fore. Pete Goldin investigates industry’s preparations for the challenge. Once in a while new technology comes along with the power to revolutionise the way we live our lives. Connected vehicle technology could be such a game changer. If mandated in the United States, it could quickly become the status quo for transportation in the US, and such a disruptive cha
    Read More
  • May 30, 2013
    ITS America seeks stable and secure platform for connected vehicles
    The Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America) has issued a statement following the submission of comments regarding the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) seeking to amend the Commission’s rules to allow for the operation of Unlicensed National Infrastructure (U-NII) Devices in the 5850-5925 MHz Band (“5.9 GHz Band”) which was set aside by the FCC for the development of connected vehicle technology.
    Read More

Highlighted Content