Investigating Advanced Traffic Signal Control

Title: Exploratory Advanced Research Project
Advanced Traffic Signal Control Algorithms
Test of Eco Signal Operations at Richmond Field Station

[First title card.]

Can wireless communication between a vehicle and traffic control devices improve mobility and the environment?

[Second title card.]

A Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Exploratory Advanced Research (EAR) Program sponsored project lead by the University of California, Berkeley, with the California Department of Transportation, the BMW Group, and University of California, Riverside, seeks to improve mobility, safety, and fuel efficiency by connecting real-time vehicle information and traffic signal controls.

[Video starts with a silver BMW car driving down a two-lane road among a lot of trees.]

Announcer: The BMW research vehicle is approaching the intersection. [The car goes around a curve and speeds up. A small video within the video appears in the lower right corner of the screen, which shows a speedometer which accelerates when the car accelerates.]

Announcer: The recommended speed is displayed as a green area on the speedometer. A countdown shows the remaining red time.  [The car approaches an intersection with a green light.]

Announcer: By arriving at the onset of green unnecessary stops can be avoided. [The car proceeds through the intersection. The text on the screen below the speedometer says: speed in km/h.  The speedometer shows the speed of the car in the green range between 20 and 30 km/h.]

[There is a long quiet time as the car travels around a curve, and viewers can only see the pavement in front of the car as well as the onscreen speedometer as the car travels within the 20 to 30 km/h range.]

Announcer: The signal phase and timing information of the traffic signal is communicated to the vehicle over a 4GLTE network link. Based on the vehicle’s engine and gear maps, an optimal speed trajectory is calculated that allows it to pass the intersection with minimal fuel consumption.  [The car proceeds along the road and approaches a house on the left and a building on the right side of the road and then the video ends.]