Key to Reviving Connected Vehicle Technology Development: Interoperability

There is renewed momentum for the implementation of Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) connected vehicle (CV) technology in the U.S., which has the potential to revolutionize traveler safety and mobility.

If that is going to happen, it will be critical to learn lessons from CV deployments over the past decade and resolve some of the issues that slowed progress in V2X development.

A connected vehicle is capable of using wireless communications for a digital exchange of data. V2X technologies enable vehicles to exchange information with other vehicles, pedestrians and road infrastructure and rely on the continuous broadcast of information — such as a vehicle’s or a pedestrian’s location and motion; the geometry of an intersection; traffic signal status; and traveler information — that can be used to avoid potential collisions, improve awareness of pedestrians and bicyclists in the roadway environment, and improve traffic flow.

The key to expanding its deployment? Gaining greater control over the interoperability between roadside, in-vehicle and mobile devices.

It remains the most pressing concern for U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT), state departments of transportation, auto manufacturers and other industry leaders to recognize that V2X technology can deliver on its promise and deserves widespread funding.

In the 2010s, V2X research and pilot deployments were on the rise and had demonstrated the ability to provide benefits, but proliferation of the technology was progressing at a slower rate than what many industry and government decision makers anticipated or desired.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) began to question if it was practical to continue dedicating 75MHz of the 5.9 GHz wireless spectrum — designated for wireless data transmission that are mandated for use in short-range V2X technology — exclusively for V2X communications.

In 2019, the FCC announced plans to reallocate this spectrum after concluding the technology had not demonstrated measurable progress in terms of improving safety or mobility. This plan included reducing the allocated spectrum from 75 MHz to 30 MHz and the transition from Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC) to Cellular Vehicle-to-Everything (C-V2X) communications.

While debates and arguments about the FCC’s proposal were ongoing between various industry groups, investment into V2X projects began to decline. While this decision didn’t stop state and local agencies from wanting to deploy V2X technology altogether, it slowed progress for several years.

Now that the FCC has provided a sense of certainty about its final course of action, which remains largely consistent with the original proposal, there has been a notable increase in momentum within the V2X industry. USDOT is increasing its investment in the V2X space, recognizing that it is time to make more effective utilization of the 5.9 GHz spectrum for V2X technology. This has been accompanied by increased interest and investment from state and local agencies as well.

This resurgence has driven the topic of interoperability between roadside and in-vehicle devices to the forefront of discussions, and is a key part of USDOT’s V2X Deployment Plan.

The safety benefits of V2X technology rely on a vehicle’s ability to receive, process and use valuable information from the surrounding infrastructure. Without that accurate, reliable and secure data, the system is unable to make consistent safety-of-life decisions.

Generating interoperable infrastructure-based messages requires a certain level of collaboration and coordination of effort. In the past, multiple vendors provided a wide range of products that weren’t always compatible, creating inconsistent, sometimes unreliable results. This deficiency in interoperability is probably the most fundamental reason V2X technology fell short of expectations.

The current state of interoperability is being investigated by the Connected Vehicle Pooled Fund Study (CV PFS), which is setting out to answer a few basic, but critical V2X questions:

• How interoperable are the current systems?
• What is being done well today?
• What needs to be improved?

WSP has performed a lot of testing and data analysis for the CV PFS to determine if deployments are working in an interoperable fashion. The test results helped deployers gain valuable understanding of system performance. While some consistency was noted between test sites, the results revealed to the industry there was a lot of progress left to be made to achieve interoperability.

Testing every intersection on a long-term basis would be daunting, so the CV PFS came up with the idea for a proof-of-concept system that can automate testing process for validating interoperability. As part of this effort, WSP, together with its partner, Neaera Consulting, engineered and developed a system that continuously, and in an automated fashion, monitors messages at intersections, performing a constant evaluation against the interoperability requirements throughout the testing. This information is provided to the system user, and if any alerts of real time issues are received, the user can adjust until the issue is corrected and the system returns to functioning in a consistently interoperable manner.

Throughout testing we learned what data was useful to analyze and what wasn’t. The overall outcome of the proof-of-concept system demonstrated that automated continuous monitoring is feasible.

The initial system proved so successful that the CV PFS is currently undertaking an additional round of engineering and development led by the WSP to create a more well-rounded system.

In 2022, USDOT resumed providing consequential investments in V2X technology.

Several grants, including the Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) discretionary program, Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A), and the Advanced Transportation Technology and Innovation (ATTAIN) program, identified V2X technology projects as being eligible for funding opportunities. While they are not “V2X” specific grants, they did specify V2X projects as eligible for grant funding.

Now there is a V2X-specific grant — Saving Lives with Connectivity: Accelerating V2X Deployment — that is one of the largest investments in this technology that we’ve seen from USDOT. In June, the latest grants were awarded to V2X initiatives by the Maricopa County Department of Transportation in Arizona, the Texas A&M Transportation Institute and the Utah Department of Transportation.

In the Maricopa County DOT application, WSP is identified as leading the program management, systems engineering, testing and readiness, and outreach activities; and in the Utah DOT proposal, WSP is identified as leading testing activities. This will give WSP a good handle on making sure that these systems are not only interoperable within themselves, but between each other.

Working with USDOT, state and local DOTs to successfully deploy the roadside infrastructure is going to advance the system tremendously … but it only completes half the picture.

Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) – specifically the auto industry – must return to the fold and install this technology in their vehicles. Previously, OEM’s couldn’t justify substantial investment because it lacked consistency and reliability. Only the 2017 Cadillac CTS came equipped with DSRC radios, but now the hope is that the technology will soon catch on with other manufacturers and models.

Now with this new focus on interoperability, the industry is making strides toward providing data OEMs can trust. When they see deployment of this technology at a large scale and successful in multiple places, they will be more confident in adding this technology to their vehicles, which will complete the data ecosystem.

There is actually more V2X technology in operation today than many people realize, particularly in leading deployment states. For instance, Georgia DOT has deployed thousands of V2X roadside units capable of broadcasting information to vehicles. It’s not readily known since few vehicles on the road are equipped to receive or use that data. The Ohio and Utah DOTs have also been thought leaders in the development of V2X and have made significant progress in deploying roadside units in their states. 

Many leading deployment agencies are also creating local partnerships to equip fleet vehicles with V2X technology to provide benefits such as priority and preemption to transit vehicles, snowplows and freight vehicles. These immediate benefits allow agencies to continue justifying investment as interoperability progress is made and until OEMs include V2X technology as a feature in production vehicles.

As more privately owned vehicles are equipped, the V2X ecosystem will truly begin to flourish, informing drivers of unsafe conditions and alerting them in real time about hazards. This will ultimately provide the anticipated large-scale benefits promised by V2X technology. We want everybody to benefit from this technology, create safer roads and work toward the Vision Zero goal to eliminate fatalities on U.S. roads.

The role of V2X technology in reaching this Vision Zero  goal starts with consistent and reliable data that can be trusted, whether driving through Ohio, Arizona, Georgia, Utah … or wherever the road may take you.