Signals Getting Set for Greater Safety. Automatic Signal Control to Prevent Emergency Vehicle Collisions?

As part of a national focus on ‘intelligent signal’ infrastructure, field trials under way in Arizona promise eradication of accidents between emergency vehicles at intersections. Collisions between police cars, ambulances and fire crews as they reach intersections at the same time, with equal priority given by all signals set on red, are very serious. For emergency teams and those in need of their help, the consequences can be dire. Engineers of Maricopa County’s Department of Transportation (MCDOT) in Arizona and researchers of the state’s university have started a series of trials at MCDOT’s ‘Smart Drive Test Bed’ in Anthem, AZ. Communication links are being tested between Maricopa County traffic incident response vehicles, MCDOT’s traffic management center (TMC) in southern Phoenix and six interconnected sets of traffic lights along the test bed on Daisy Mountain Drive in Anthem. Plans for further phases of tests anticipate Daisy Mountain Fire District trucks and local school buses simulating emergency response scenarios in real traffic conditions. Ultimately, as the connected vehicles approach intersections they will communicate with roadside technology to trigger appropriate traffic signal priority in accordance with sets of predetermined protocols. Emergency crews will be given information on the position, direction of travel and hierarchy of all response vehicles approaching the intersection; and the south Phoenix TMC will be able to track all that is happening as the system is activated. A lot of data has to be gathered, appropriate timings determined and software fine-tuned before this final testing can be carried out. However, in collaboration with a number of other project partners, the University of Arizona has been developing software and communications technology through its Smart Drive program for the past five years.

• Record URL:
  • http://www.itsinternational.com/sections/nafta/features/automatic-signal-control-to-prevent-emergency-vehicle-collisions/?locale=en
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/oclc/35183091
• Publication Date: 2012

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: Figures; Photos;
• Pagination: pp NA9-NA10
• Serial:
  • ITS International
  • Volume: 18
  • Issue Number: 1
  • Publisher: Route One Publishing Limited
  • ISSN: 1463-6344
  • Serial URL: http://www.itsinternational.com

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Emergency vehicles; Intersections; Traffic control centers; Traffic signal preemption; Vehicle to infrastructure communications
• Identifier Terms: Maricopa County Department of Transportation
• Uncontrolled Terms: Incident response
• Geographic Terms: Arizona
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Security and Emergencies; I73: Traffic Control; I85: Safety Devices used in Transport Infrastructure;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01368079
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Apr 19 2012 11:24AM