The global transportation industry is at a crossroads, with artificial intelligence, electrification, connectivity and digitization all poised to disrupt the way infrastructure is designed, built, and managed. Despite the current geopolitical status of the United States, industry practitioners from around the world emphasize the need for global collaboration and standards.

“I have never seen such a fast rate of change,” said Laura Chace, president and CEO of ITS America, speaking at the ITS World Congress in Atlanta Aug. 24 to 28. Even from a year ago, the capabilities of AI to aid in infrastructure inspections and other transportation applications has accelerated, she said. 

The Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) is using AI to “crunch the numbers” on population growth, modeling and planning future transportation, added Anna Roach, executive director and CEO, noting that the region plans to invest $168 billion in transportation through 2050.

But “we can’t build like we used to,” said Jannine Miller, executive director of the State Road and Tollway Authority, Transit Link Authority and Georgia Regional Transportation Authority. “We can’t just add lanes.” Right-of-way acquisition costs are greater than ever, she noted. “We have to make smarter use of existing infrastructure.” For example, the GA 400 toll lanes will have managed congestion pricing, Miller said. 

With the Atlanta region undergoing a “manufacturing renaissance” that anticipates 75,000 new jobs due to the electric vehicle industry, the state legislature added $1.2 billion last year for transportation funding, said Russell McMurry, Georgia Dept. of Transportation secretary. “Freight tonnage will double on the highways by 2050,” so the agency is exploring ways to add broadband on Interstate routes and futureproof major traffic corridors for evolving technology, he said. “We must be accused of trying” to use technology to save lives, he added.

He noted that the Port of Savannah has 20-plus traffic signals with smart vehicle connectivity to prioritize loaded trucks and alert drivers if freight rail traffic is currently at a crossing so that they can detour. 

Anticipating the FIFA World Cup next year, ARC has a $9-million grant to plan a mobility app for the elderly and disabled, while an autonomous shuttle from the 22-mile multi-use trail Atlanta Beltline will take passengers to locations up to two miles north or south.

In the European Union, there is a “profound shift to smart mobility” and a 2050 carbon zero economy goal, said Kristian Hedberg, head of the delegation of the EU to the U.S. “Digitization is central to the agenda,” he said. The EU has adopted an action plan to encourage automated and advanced-assisted driving.

But sharing data standards and best practices is key, as is resilience and inclusion, said Joost Vantomme, chief executive of ERTICO-ITS Europe. Ace Yamamoto, president of ITA Japan and Secretary General of ITS Asia-Pacific, added that those agencies are looking to create “secure common processes” for data sharing. “The ITS community needs a structured approach,” he said.

Vantomme, speaking on a later panel, emphasized the need for aligning research efforts not only across continents but among industries, for example autonomous vehicles and AI. “It would be nice if they got together,” he said. He noted that the European Commission plans to set up an alliance for automakers to share technologies regarding autonomous vehicles and offer support for EV battery manufacturers. The EU is also pursuing a legal framework for AI that would protect safety and human rights and set mandatory requirements for “high-risk” AI systems, such as those used in vehicles and road traffic.

Power Highways

Other potential alliances are between highway agencies and energy/utility providers, said several panelists. For example, state transportation rights-of-way could be suitable to place energy infrastructure such as transmission lines, said Joe Simon, project manager with NREL. He said the agency is completing a geospatial and regulatory evaluation of the potential for ROWs to accommodate such energy needs as geothermal, battery energy storage and transmission.

But currently, more than 40 state transportation departments restrict or prohibit colocation of utilities on the Interstate system, notes Randy Sutterfield, executive director of the NextGen Highways initiative. And historically, “utilities and DOTs don’t proactively collaborate,” he noted. But various polls show that the public would prefer new infrastructure to be built within existing infrastructure, so the goal is to “identify stakeholders interested in changing the policies.”

In Michigan, the goal is to build infrastructure to support 2 million electric vehicles by 2030, said Michele Mueller, Michigan Dept. of Transportation manager of connected, autonomous and electrified vehicles. MDOT is pursuing a public-private partnership to build a mobility charging hub at the DTNA Redford campus with Daimler Truck North America and DTE Energy in a $13-million effort. The DOT is also using $1 billion in funding from the U.S. Dept. of Energy to build a “MachH2” hub with a hydrogen supply chain for heavy-duty trucks across six states.

As for its wireless inductive charging testbed, the nation’s first, the results are “exceeding our expectations,” she added. Companies such as Ford and UPS have used the in-road charging system and found it to be effective regardless of weather, and for both static and dynamic wireless charging. 

Ambitious Efforts

In Jacksonville, Fla., the first permanent connected and autonomous vehicle public transit service corridor launched in June. The Bay Street Innovation Corridor repurposes a 10-mile elevated guideway that was originally meant for monorail, said Nathaniel Ford, CEO of the Jacksonville Transportation Authority. In this first phase, AVs are operating in three miles of mixed traffic. Phase 2 aims to convert the 2.5 miles of track on existing superstructure and eight stations into an elevated roadway for autonomous and connected vehicles and a battery-powered bus. The current bi-directional tracks run approximately 2.5 miles.

“This is the most transformative time for transportation in our lives,” said Ford. 

Echoing the event’s general theme of interconnections, Greg Crandell, general manager with Holon US, said that smart cities require multiple modes of transport to be automated, and “an AV community.” Holon is planning to deploy an autonomous shuttle on the innovation corridor. 

With technologies like AI, computer vision, machine learning and connectivity all maturing simultaneously, “this is a once in a century transformation” of transportation and cities, said John Absmeier, CTO of Woven by Toyota, a subsidiary that aims to transform the automaker into a “mobility company.”

The goal of Woven is to achieve a vision of zero fatalities on roads throughout the world, he said. “Mobility today is like the ‘World Wide Web’ in 1999—it means everything, and nothing,” he said. But to achieve the ultimate vision of a connected, safe system, “infrastructure investment is required” and the responsibility lies “not with any one industry or country.”

The concept of mobility as a service may be solidifying in some cities in Europe that have adopted a single-app system provided by Siemens to plan, book, and use multiple modes of transport, said Greg Valyer, head of business development for Siemens’ MaaS. For example, the app serves 15 German districts covering 58 transit lines, 390 stations and 1,000 bus stops, creating a “mobility association” that includes bicycle, taxi and vanpool options, especially for first-mile/last-mile gaps, he said. 

In the U.S., the city of Dublin, Ohio, is also serving as a testbed for smart infrastructure, said Jean-Ellen Willis, director of transportation and mobility. “The goal is to be the most connected community in the U.S.,” she said.

With a 100-gigabyte fiber network, and a 33 Smart Mobility Corridor that includes 432 strands of fiber, 63 road units and 40 connected intersections, the city is testing autonomous freight and autonomous truck platooning, she said. It also has a near-miss heat map regarding accidents, adaptive signal control that prioritizes pedestrians and, in winter, snowplows, and other technologies.

A World First

Dublin isn’t the only U.S. region trying to pioneer the transportation future in tandem with global partners. Kapsch TrafficCom North America and the North Carolina Tollway Authority announced during the conference that they will deploy the world’s first production-level V2X tolling system on the Triangle Expressway.

This joint initiative will move connected vehicle-based tolling from the concept and pilot phases into a live, operational environment near Raleigh.

The project integrates two distinct technologies – roadside legacy tolling and CV data – into a single transaction, creating a blueprint for future funding models.

Instead of the gantries associated with open-road tolling, this technology has a small roadside box that can cover five lanes, says JB Kendrick, president and CEO of Kapsch TrafficCom North America. “Over time, data can be exchanged between cars, intelligent message signs, emergency services clearances,” she said. 

The project will be rolled out in phases, beginning with the installation of roadside units and testing with onboard unit-equipped vehicles. Subsequent phases will focus on integrating Vehicle-to-Everything toll data with NCTA’s host and back-office systems, with the ultimate goal of invoicing customers based on transactions generated directly by their vehicle.

Eventually, NCTA could use the data to predict when it needs to repave roads, redeck bridges or add new infrastructure, says Kendrik.