No this isn't about a gathering of "Knight Rider" enthusiasts. Rather than speaking to their leather jacket-clad drivers, the cars being tested in Michigan communicate with each other, with the goal of improving safety on the nation’s highways.
Bill Vlasik reports on the roll out of a year-long test of "smart car" technology in Ann Arbor, Michigan, announced this week by federal officials. "Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said 3,000 cars, buses and trucks in
this city near Detroit would be equipped with data recorders and a
technology akin to Wi-Fi that can transmit information about accidents
or hazardous traffic conditions."
According to Vlasik, "Drivers in the connected vehicles will be warned, for example, of sudden
changes in traffic patterns or potential collisions through data
transmitted from similarly equipped cars and roadside devices."
"Mr. LaHood said the $25 million study would yield data useful in
deciding whether the government should require such crash avoidance
technology in future vehicles."
FULL STORY: Smart Cars Get a Connection Test in Michigan
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City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research