The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is awarding $60 million in grants under the Saving Lives with Connectivity: Accelerating V2X Deployment program to advance connected and interoperable vehicle technologies. FHWA says the grants to recipients in Arizona, Texas and Utah will serve as national models to accelerate and spur new deployments of vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technologies.
“As this department explores every measure that can help reduce roadway fatalities, connected vehicle technology—like V2X—has potential to make roads safer and save lives,” said U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “The grants we’re announcing today are helping accelerate the development and adoption of potentially life-saving V2X technology nationwide.”
The Saving Lives with Connectivity: Accelerating V2X Deployment initiative is focused on road safety, mobility and efficiency through technology that enables vehicles and wireless devices to communicate with each other and with roadside infrastructure and provide warnings, meaning cars will be able to effectively communicate with traffic devices and the roadside.
“These grants are leading the way in promoting and deploying V2X technologies to explore the potential to save lives on our nation’s highways,” said FHWA Administrator Shailen Bhatt. “The funding provided today will help accelerate the technology so that we can deploy it on a national scale and provide new tools to reduce deaths on our nation’s roads and highways.”
The grants will promote the deployment of V2X technologies, with the goal of advancing the full lifesaving potential of V2X communication while ensuring connected technologies communicate securely and without harmful interference across a variety of devices and platforms.
“I’m proud of the partnerships between federal, state, local and tribal government agencies for coordinating all of these technologies to improve safety,” said USDOT Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology Dr. Robert C. Hampshire.
The grants are as follows:
- Arizona: The Maricopa County Department of Transportation will receive $19.6 million to lead a largescale deployment of V2X technologies, relying primarily on 5.9 GHz communications, to connect 750 physical roadside units and virtual roadside units to an estimated 400 vehicle onboard units targeting transit, emergency and freight fleets. The project will deploy Emergency Vehicle Preemption, Vulnerable Road User detection, Transit Signal Priority and Freight Signal Priority applications in the cities of Phoenix, Tolleson, Avondale and unincorporated Maricopa County, as well as along Arizona Department of Transportation’s U.S. 60.
- Texas: Texas A&M Transportation Institute will receive $19.2 million to deploy V2X technology in the Greater Houston, Texas, area, the city of College Station, including near the campus of Texas A&M University and the corridors connecting these two metropolitan cities. The project serves to holistically enhance safety, efficiency, and overall mobility for vulnerable road users situated at signalized intersections, emergency responders navigating through varying traffic scenarios, transit operators seeking efficient routes, workers operating within construction zones and everyday motorists.
- Utah: The Utah Department of Transportation will receive $20 million toward V2X deployment sites in three states – Utah, Colorado and Wyoming – each representing a broad variety of population densities, demographics, jurisdictions, topography and transportation facilities. The project covers all of Utah, I-80 through the entire length of Wyoming and major portions of Colorado, including the Denver Metro Area, I-70 from Denver to the Utah border and I-25 through Colorado. The applications focus on safety, mobility and environment and support the ability to demonstrate measurable impact and address critical needs including connected intersection, weather impact, curve speed warning, traveler information and vulnerable road user and other safety alert technologies.
More information on the V2X grants can be found on USDOT’s website.
