Skip to main content

ITS Australia welcomes USDOT move on V2V communications

The announcement by the United States Government announcement that it will begin taking steps to enable vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication technology for light vehicles has been welcomed by ITS Australia, which said it is pivotal in taking road safety to the next level. This technology improves safety by allowing vehicles to ‘talk’ to each other and exchange basic safety data, such as speed, position and projected path, ten times per second. The US Department of Transportation (DOT) announcement inc
February 17, 2014 Read time: 3 mins
The announcement by the United States Government announcement that it will begin taking steps to enable vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication technology for light vehicles has been welcomed by 858 ITS Australia, which said it is pivotal in taking road safety to the next level.

This technology improves safety by allowing vehicles to ‘talk’ to each other and exchange basic safety data, such as speed, position and projected path, ten times per second.  The 324 US Department of Transportation (DOT) announcement includes ‘multiple layers of security and privacy protection’.

The 834 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is now finalising the analysis of the data from this study. NHTSA will then begin working on a regulatory proposal that would require V2V devices in new vehicles in a future year, consistent with applicable legal requirements, Executive Orders, and guidance. DOT believes that the signal this announcement sends to the market will significantly enhance development of this technology and pave the way for market penetration of V2V safety applications.

ITS Australia chief executive officer Susan Harris said: “Passive safety products, such as seat belts and air bags that protect people in a crash, have greatly reduced road trauma. V2V technology is the next major step forward. This active safety system enables real time communication between vehicles to help avoid collisions in the first place.”

US DOT Secretary Anthony Foxx said V2V technology has the potential to avoid 70 to 80 per cent of crashes that involve unimpaired drivers. The DOT approval follows almost a decade of testing and a rigorous Safety Pilot Model Deployment study begun in 2012 in Michigan involving almost 3,000 cars, buses, trucks and motorcycles equipped with 5.9 GHz dedicated short-range communications (DSRC) radios.  

“Australia’s innovative ITS industry is at the forefront of the V2V technology proven in this Safety Pilot Model Deployment study. We are also international leaders in other intelligent transport systems technologies,” said Susan Harris.

To capitalise on and grow the advanced capabilities of the local ITS industry, ITS Australia is working with the local ITS industry, led by the University of South Australia, to establish an Intelligent Transport Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) to drive further research.

Susan Harris said a CRC will ensure that Australia continues to be a leader in the competitive high technology international transport market. “The fact that we have the skills and drive for innovation is proven by the fact that creative Australian businesses are producing world’s best practice ITS solutions – and are achieving significant exports,” she said.

Related Content

  • ETSC welcomes EU plans for safer cars, vans and lorries
    December 20, 2016
    The European Commission has published a list of 19 lifesaving safety technologies that could be made mandatory on new vehicles in the next update of EU vehicle safety rules expected next year. The European Transport Safety Council (ETCS) welcomes the announcement but says several critical areas for action are missing, and the proposed timescale is far too long considering that most of the technologies are already available. ETSC says 26,000 people die on European Union roads annually, with at least
  • Automotive V2X communications market 2014-2024
    September 25, 2014
    Visiongain’s report, Automotive Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) Communications Market 2014-2024, looks at vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications, which encapsulate it says a truly connected vehicle - able to communicate with other vehicles, traffic lights, toll gates, pedestrians, and even the owner's home - the automotive sector's answer to safe, clean and ultimately autonomous/self-driving vehicles. According to the report, in 2014, the V2X market is still in its infancy, comprising only vehicle-to-veh
  • USDoT pilots show win-win potential for connected vehicles
    December 19, 2017
    Pete Goldin discovers the state of play with connected vehicles trials in the US and the impact of Hurricane Irma on Tampa’s pilot. The US Department of Transportation’s (USDoT’s) connected vehicle (CV) pilot sites have moved into phase 2 of the deployment programme– design, build, test and, maybe most importantly, collaborate.
  • Car to car communications a step closer
    December 14, 2012
    Vehicle manufacturers have targeted 2015 for the first cars to roll off European assembly lines fitted with operational V2X technology. They and their partners in the Car 2 Car Communications Consortium are confident of meeting the target, reports Jon Masters. Around three years from now vehicles should be appearing in showrooms boasting the capability of communicating with each other. Manufacturers will have started fitting the first proprietary car-to-car driver-aid safety devices and deployment of ‘vehic