Information
A connected vehicle (car, truck, bus, e-bike, etc.) is equipped with wireless, short range
communication devices which are built into the vehicle or installed aftermarket. These devices
allow vehicles to communicate with roadside sensors and other technologies for enhanced
safety services.
What is a connected vehicle?
How do connected vehicles increase safety?
All modern vehicles provide some level of safety alerts to their drivers, whether it’s the
back-up camera alerting you to an object or person behind you, a car in your blind spot when
you are changing lanes, or an anticipated collision in front of you. All of these warnings rely on
the vehicle's sensors and are limited by line of sight. They cannot give you information about
another vehicle or situation which is around a corner, or further ahead on a highway but
coming up quickly.
Connected vehicles receive greater information about their surroundings that increase the
drivers’ situational awareness. This information allows drivers to make better decisions and
prevent accidents. A pedestrian walking out from behind a parked car, an unexpected stopped
vehicle on a highway, a car running a red light when your light is green. These are all scenarios
in which connected vehicles can help prevent tragedy.
Connected vehicles use multiple methods of communication. C-V2X is the technology that allows short-range direct communication to or from the vehicle without going through a cell tower. This is important for time-sensitive safety-critical messages like an impending collision.
Cellular data can be used for broader information and road intelligence such as an unexpected lane closure or approaching emergency vehicles. Together these technologies can enhance road safety for road users and make transportation systems more efficient.
What technology connects these vehicles? Is it cellular data(5G)?
Is this done through my cell phone?
No, connected vehicles require a device which is able to communicate in a dedicated
portion of the communications spectrum which is reserved for road safety. Since this spectrum
is preserved for transportation it cannot be accessed by cell phones. The device in your vehicle
is purpose built for connected vehicles and is either integrated in the vehicle or installed
aftermarket.
How can connected vehicles provide a benefit before wide adoption?
Sensors or cameras in intersections are an integral part of the connected-vehicle eco-
system. Sensors/cameras are used to detect pedestrians and notify incoming connected
vehicles of the position of these vulnerable road users to better protect them. Intersections
with this sensing technology are often referred to as Smart Intersections and are able to detect
non-connected vehicles and broadcast their position to local connected vehicles. This means we
don't need every vehicle on the road to be connected to see safety benefits. Each and every
connected intersection and connected vehicle will increase road safety.
The purpose of connected vehicles is to provide a greater amount of data to the car, not
the driver. The sensors on cars today try to provide warnings with the incomplete data their
sensors are collecting. In providing vehicles with a more complete awareness of their
surroundings notifications to the driver will be of higher quality with less chances of error.
Will this lead to greater driver distraction?
What about privacy?
Privacy is a top concern. The standards setup by the automotive industry to oversee
connected vehicles ensure that all safety communications are fully anonymous. Some
applications, such as an emergency vehicle requesting a green light, will require vehicle
identification but these services will always be optional and separate from basic safety
communication.
What is required for implementation of connected vehicles?
The implementation of a connected-vehicle deployment requires both in-vehicle technology as well as road-side infrastructure. It is the responsibility of a local or state transportation agency to deploy this infrastructure and the supporting technologies.
The in-vehicle technology will eventually be standard issue in new vehicles (some vehicles in Europe are already including this technology) but it is currently an aftermarket installation.
What is Sustainable Safety
This project is called Sustainable Safety because it is exploring the financial considerations involved in providing life saving safety technology to the citizens of any given community. We have learned that the cost of crashes in Oakland County over the last 5 years is $3.8 billion. This project is seeking to understand the total cost of building and paying for the infrastructure which could prevent or reduce the severity of those crashes.
How the Tech Works
V2X technology enables direct communication between vehicles and everything around them, including other vehicles, pedestrians, and road infrastructure. This real-time information exchange is pivotal for increasing safety, reducing traffic congestion, and improving environmental impact.
This project will be deploying V2X Roadside Units (RSUs), edge computing devices, and infrastructure-based sensors at target intersections across Oakland County. These are called Smart Intersections.
Vehicles are equipped with radio devices called On-Board-Units. Equipped vehicles communicate with the smart intersections and benefit from increased situational awareness and safety notifications that are provided to the driver. One of the alerts that will be provided is called a Vulnerable Road User (“VRU”) alert. VRU alerts
help a driver have awareness of pedestrians, cyclists and other vehicles which may be in the vehicle's path of travel. The Illustration below highlights the elements of a Smart Intersection.
The communications technology which is being deployed in this project has been in development for decades, and standards have been developed by the automotive industry to ensure that deployments are inter-operable across jurisdictions and vehicle types.
As of Q1 2024, this project was in the testing phase for a prototype deployment that demonstrates Vulnerable Road User alerts and signal priority (the ability of traffic signals to give priority to emergency vehicles, buses, etc.) using radio signals on the 5.9 Ghz spectrum and the adjacent unlicensed WiFi. This prototype demonstration of the technology will be showcased at 5 intersections in Oakland County.
Prototype Demonstration
In addition, 10 RCOC vehicles will be equipped with in-vehicle On-Board-Unit technology. Partner companies are invited to test their own vehicles in these intersections and/or enjoy a demonstration with a project- equipped vehicle. The prototype intersections are highlighted in the first Illustration.
The planning phase of the project includes the work of selecting the deployment order of future intersections throughout the county. Our analysis takes into account the number and severity of crashes, traffic counts, disadvantaged communities and routes traveled by fleet partners. Participating fleet partners can help inform route selection. The second Illustration above highlights routes under consideration.
