The City of Las Vegas is undertaking one of the city’s first connected vehicle pilots with technology provided by Siemens working in partnership with Brandmotion and Commsignia.

The turnkey vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) and vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) solution will be trialled along Casino Centre Boulevard between Bonneville and Clark Avenues.

The aim of the technology, which will be demonstrated this week at CES 2018, is to create a connected and safer road environment in downtown Las Vegas.

The city said it is committed to utilising the latest digital tools to make an impact on its pedestrian and public roadway safety and the six-month pilot programme marks the start for connected vehicle technology infrastructure going forward.

“By showcasing this smart city technology, Las Vegas is building a truly connected, multimodal system that provides a safer and more efficient road network for its residents and visitors,” said Marcus Welz, CEO of Siemens Intelligent Traffic Systems.

“The initial V2I technologies provide a foundation for enhanced safety in a heavily frequented area of Las Vegas while its usage and its smart application will continue to expand throughout the city. The impact of this future-prove technology will be significant for road users.”

Siemens V2I technology includes roadside and vehicle infrastructure, innovative software applications and a digital smart city platform that enables vehicles and pedestrians to communicate with traffic infrastructure like intersections, corridors and traffic signals in real-time to enhance situational awareness, improve safety and prevent injuries.

The initial connected vehicle pilot will focus on two key initial priorities:

• Pedestrian safety: a crosswalk will be equipped with roadside unit to warn oncoming drivers when a pedestrian is present in the crosswalk. By using the installed on board units, which connect with the roadside units, drivers will receive warnings in their vehicles. This information could also be transmitted to the pedestrians to detect a potential vehicle/pedestrian collision near the crosswalk and potentially prevent an incident

• Corridor notifications: vehicles equipped with the connected vehicle technology will receive information and warnings from connected street infrastructure such as when vehicles are traveling in the wrong direction, in an exclusive bus-only travel lane and for certain times of the day, when lane usage has been restricted. Casino Centre Boulevard is a common entry point for wrong-way drivers onto the Bonneville and Clark one-way streets and unauthorised entry onto an exclusive transit lane. The Las Vegas connected vehicle pilot aims to reduce the risk of collisions by detecting and warning wrong-way drivers before they enter a one-way street or closed lane.

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