Newest Grant Awardees Maintain the Momentum with Vehicle-to-Everything Deployment Projects: A Message from ITS JPO Director Brian Cronin

In June, the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) announced $60 million in grants under the Saving Lives with Connectivity: Accelerating V2X Deployment program with plans to leverage future discretionary grant program funding and encourage the use of federal formulae funding, and local funding to further advance vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technologies and the overall connectivity of our transportation systems.

As part of its commitment to reducing deaths and serious injuries on our nation’s roadways, in August 2024 U.S. DOT announced the Saving Lives with Connectivity: A Plan to Accelerate V2X Deployment. This plan will guide the implementation of vehicle-to-everything technologies across the nation, and was created following several public meetings and extensive stakeholder recommendations and collaboration. On Thursday, October 24, the U.S. DOT Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) announced an additional $96.5 million in grants for 20 projects across 16 states through the Advanced Transportation Technology and Innovation (ATTAIN) program. The program is funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and administered by the Federal Highway Administration with additional research support from the Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office (ITS JPO).

The ATTAIN program provides competitive grants to deploy, install, and operate advanced transportation technologies to improve safety, mobility, efficiency, system performance, intermodal connectivity, and infrastructure return on investment.

Of the 20 ATTAIN awardees, seven will utilize connected vehicle (CV) or V2X technologies:

• The California Department of Transportation will receive $5.6 million for its interoperable V2X deployment and CV infrastructure enhancement by providing opportunities for interoperability with additional CV technologies.
• Hillsborough County, Florida, will receive $2.96 million to integrate smart traffic technology to improve safety, mobility, and CV readiness along 40 miles of arterial streets in Hillsborough County.
• Pinellas County, Florida, will receive $2 million to use artificial intelligence (AI) technology to optimize signal timing plans, improve safety through smart sensors and detection systems for predictive analytics, increase transportation reliability through transit signal priority, and enhance transportation communication through CV roadside units.
• The University of Hawaii and the Hawaii Department of Transportation will receive $4.2 million to develop, deploy, and validate AI-driven, CV technology-enabled, adaptive integrated corridor management and control coordination strategies for enhancing corridor-wide mobility and safety.
• The Maine Department of Transportation will receive $5.2 million for a statewide CV hazard notification project. The project will leverage standardized cellular V2X (C-V2X) technology to send warning messages in areas with bridge height restrictions, congestion, and where hazardous weather may impact travel.
• The City of Cedar Park, Texas, will receive $4.42 million to address vehicular congestion, enhance road user safety, and expedite emergency response through the deployment of various advanced transportation technology, including V2X, AI, emergency vehicle preemption, and automated traffic signal performance metrics (ATSPM).
• The City of Madison, Wisconsin, will receive over $5 million for its project that targets two critical safety needs and deploys next-generation traffic signal preemption for emergency vehicles and red-light running collision warning systems through 37 signalized intersections.

As outlined in the National V2X Deployment Plan, which precisely calls for additional deployment of CV and V2X technologies, each of these ATTAIN grant awardees and their seven projects work towards one or more goals, including:

• increased infrastructure deployments,
• widespread interoperability,
• use or testing of the 5.9 GHz band,
• improved security credentials management or cybersecurity,
• additional case studies to further showcase the benefits of V2X,
• increased use of signalized intersections with V2X capabilities, and more.

Each grant, deployment, test, and collaboration is a catalyst for achieving the overarching goal of the Plan, which is saving lives with connectivity. Together, we can reduce the number of roadway fatalities to the only acceptable number: zero.

Brian Cronin, Director, ITS JPO

Posted 11/1/24