Siemens Mobility’s intelligent transportation systems (ITS) division in the USA is providing connected vehicle (CV) systems for a project in Florida that will be one of the largest state-funded signal phase and timing (SPaT) CV deployments in the country.

Siemens will be supplying the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) with Roadside Units (RSUs), On-Board Units (OBUs), CV applications and RSU central management software for the City of Gainesville’s Trapezium SPaT connected traffic lights project. The scheme will take place along the four-road area surrounding the University of Florida, descriptively called ‘the Trapezium’, covering 27 intersections. The university environment surrounded by this area provides a rich mix of automobile, transit, bicycle, and pedestrian activity and is an ideal location to further examine and quantify the significant benefits of CV technologies.

The project is expected to be completed by 2021, and is planning to include the following CV capabilities:

SPaT map display signal timing, signaling remaining time to a green signal;
Red-light violation warning;
Wrong way entry (WWE);
Exit ramp deceleration warning (ERDW);
Curve speed warning (CSW);
Emergency electronic brake lights;
Forward collision warning (FCW);
Intersection movement assist;
Work zone warning;
Do not pass warning;
Speed limit warning.

These are applications that have already been successfully tested in other cities. This technology has been previously installed in the state of Florida and has been proven to be interoperable and compatible with third party devices.

Siemens’ history with DSRC (dedicated short-range communications) systems and CV applications in the USA extends back to 2007 with its involvement with the USDOT Connected Vehicle Test Bed in Oakland County, Michigan. This was a testing environment intended to advance the state of ITS practice by providing a cutting-edge model operating environment for CV and DSRC. The company was one of the first controller manufacturers to output SPaT data at the testbed.

Siemens has been supplying traffic-related products and services to FDOT, as well as local municipalities in Florida for over 40 years. Most recently, the company has been the primary CV technology partner in the high-profile Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority (THEA) USDOT Connected Vehicle Pilot Project, supplying over 40 RSUs and driving the development of 13 V2I and V2V applications. Siemens is also a member of the USDOT Affiliated Test Bed for CV technologies, a group pursuing wide-spread deployment of wireless communication systems between vehicles and road infrastructure.

“We are committed to incorporating the latest technology and transportation solutions to strengthen safety on our roadways,” said Raj Ponnaluri, FDOT’s connected vehicles and arterial management engineer. “We’re proud to develop this exciting CV technology project that has the potential to make a major impact on driving behavior in the Gainesville area.”

Marcus Welz, president of Siemens Mobility’s ITS business in North America, commented, “We are excited to be leading the momentum for CV deployment in cities around the country. The inevitable safety and mobility benefits provided by utilizing CV technology is becoming more mainstream, thanks to the efforts of agencies like FDOT, who have really stepped up to push Florida into the spotlight of this disruptive new force.”