Australian and New Zealand transport agency collective, Austroads, has been shortlisted for an award that champions connected and automated vehicles.
Austroads is a finalist in the ITS Australia Connected and Automated Vehicle Award.
The shortlisting is reported to recognise the value of an audit specification published last year that details a new way to measure the readiness of road networks to support automated driving on freeways and highways.
The innovative approach will accelerate the readiness of road networks for more automated driving. The specification covers line marking, traffic signs, route and lane discontinuities, temporary roadworks and incident conditions, cellular data coverage and the availability of map data.
Austroads Future Vehicles and Technology Program Manager, John Wall, said the ability of physical and digital infrastructure to support automated driving will directly impact the scale and timing of the deployment of vehicles equipped with this life-saving technology.
“While the audit specification was developed for Australasian roads, the potential to use the methodology internationally has already been recognised,” he said.
“In December 2019, Austroads and ARRB attended a meeting of EuroRAP (European Road Assessment Program) to share the audit specification and details of the broader project that fostered its development. The specification was subsequently adopted for a European Union demonstration project.
“Additionally, the OECD’s International Transport Federation has recognised the value of this research, and in July 2020 Austroads was invited to join the Federation’s Working Group on Automation, as well as given a seat on the Physical Infrastructure sub-group.
“Through Austroads’ participation in these groups, Austroads expects other countries will adopt the specification and audit methodologies.”
Transport Certification Australia has also been shortlisted for the Excellence in Transport Data Award for the National Telematics Framework.
A fifteen-person judging panel determines finalists for the ITS Australia National Awards, comprising intelligent transport systems professionals representing industry, government, and academia. The awards will be held in an online ceremony on 26 November 2020.