Siemens working on UK's first connected road test environment

Siemens has announced it's working on its latest connected and autonomous vehicles (CAV) project, in a collaborative partnership to create what it calls one of the most advanced environments for CAV technologies in the UK.

Together with nine other consortium members, the UK Connected Intelligent Transport Environment (UK CITE) project will see trials on British roads as early as next year, following a successful application for funding from the government’s £100 million Intelligent Mobility Fund.

The project aims to enable automotive, infrastructure and service companies to trial connected vehicle technologies in real-life conditions on 40 miles of roads within Coventry and Warwickshire, using combinations of DSRC and LTE talking car technologies to compare their performance.

Siemens will develop, supply and install roadside units which will communicate with the vehicles and the traffic infrastructure. Siemens Stratos hosted traffic management system will be used as the back office for all communications to and from the vehicles. This technology aims to help to prove use cases that will establish how technology can improve journeys, reduce traffic congestion and provide in-vehicle entertainment and safety services through better connectivity.

Gordon Wakeford, head of Siemens’ mobility division in the UK, said: “We’re delighted to be utilising our ingenuity towards this unique UK CITE project with our consortium partners. Siemens is actively engaged in a number of Vehicle-to-Infrastructure research projects worldwide, establishing communication links between traffic infrastructure and motorists to help influence the way they drive”.