Transit Agencies in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan Collaborate on Automated, Connected Vehicles

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) have formed the Smart Belt Coalition – a first-of-its-kind collaboration – with transportation agencies in Ohio and Michigan that will focus on automated and connected vehicle initiatives.

The coalition, which includes transportation and academic partners, brings together leaders on these technologies to support research, testing, policy, funding pursuits and deployment, as well as share data and provide unique opportunities for private-sector testers.

Participating agencies and universities as of this time include:

• Pennsylvania: PennDOT, PTC andCarnegie Mellon University;
• Michigan: Michigan Department of Transportation andUniversity of Michigan; and
• Ohio: Ohio Department of Transportation, Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission, TheOhio State Universityand Transportation Research Center.

The coalition is developing its strategic plan which initially focuses on:

• Connected and automated applications in work zones, including uniform work-zone scenarios offering consistency for testers as well as technologies offering better information to motorists.
• Commercial freight opportunities in testing, including platooning (connecting more than one vehicle) and potential coordination on interstates.
• Incident management applications providing better information to and infrastructure for emergency responders and other agencies.

Tags: featured

Category: Telematics