Skip to main content

FCC adopts C-V2X spectrum rules

ITS industry can move beyond temporary waivers to deploy C-V2X devices
By Adam Hill November 25, 2024 Read time: 2 mins
Decision codifies C-V2X technical parameters in the FCC’s rules (© Justlight | Dreamstime.com)

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has adopted final rules - its second report and order - for cellular Vehicle to Everything (C-V2X) technology. 

It means that, officially, in-vehicle and roadside units will be permitted to operate C-V2X technology in the 5.9 GHz spectrum band dedicated to ITS.

US transportation agencies and private sector companies can move beyond temporary waivers to fully deploy C-V2X devices.

“The FCC’s efforts to evolve the 5.9 GHz band are a win-win," says FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. "It drives innovation in our wireless and transportation economies and can help keep us safe on our roadways when we walk, ride and drive."

“We applaud the FCC for their work towards the completion of this rulemaking," says ITS America president & CEO Laura Chace. "We stand ready to work with our partners to make the promise of V2X a reality; leveraging transportation connectivity to significantly improve safety outcomes for our communities."

The decision codifies C-V2X technical parameters in the FCC’s rules, including power and emission limits and message prioritisation. 

The rules provide flexibility for the auto industry to use three 10-megahertz channels either separately or in combination as a 20-megahertz channel or as a single 30-megahertz channel. 

The FCC's order permits devices that have already been authorised under C-V2X waivers to continue to be marketed and operated.

It also provides a timeline for 'sunsetting' existing dedicated short-range communications (DSRC)-based technology.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Platooning with Ease on the I-70
    July 15, 2025
    What would happen to truck platooning - a nascent technology - if the weather turns nasty? The I-70 Truck Automation Corridor Project in the northern US should provide some answers, reports David Arminas…
  • Don’t forget security threat, says Econolite
    May 6, 2020
    A new level of communication is helping deliver on the promise of Vision Zero and a more sustainable future. But amid the promise, Econolite’s Sunny Chakravarty suggests we need to be mindful of the potential downsides in an age of mass connectivity
  • Virtual sessions provide benefit for attendees
    December 7, 2021
    It can rightly be said that this ITS America Annual Meeting is an event that will keep on benefitting attendees. For instance, there is a whole raft of virtual sessions that attendees here in Charlotte can access
  • Ken Leonard talks to ITS International
    August 21, 2014
    Ken Leonard, director of the USDOT’s ITS Joint Program office made time in his schedule during the Helsinki Congress to speak to ITS International. It has been 18 months since Ken Leonard took over as the director of the Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office at the US Department of Transportation. With 30 years of technical experience behind him, to say he is enjoying the challenge would be to put it mildly: “It is incredibly exciting to be working in intelligent transportation systems, th