{"id":870230,"date":"2025-09-03T21:12:36","date_gmt":"2025-09-04T02:12:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/03\/an-electrifying-future-for-transportation-infrastructure-at-the-its-world-congress\/"},"modified":"2025-09-03T21:12:36","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T02:12:36","slug":"an-electrifying-future-for-transportation-infrastructure-at-the-its-world-congress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/03\/an-electrifying-future-for-transportation-infrastructure-at-the-its-world-congress\/","title":{"rendered":"An Electrifying Future for Transportation Infrastructure at the ITS World Congress"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The global transportation industry is at a crossroads, with artificial intelligence, electrification, connectivity and digitization all poised to disrupt the way infrastructure is designed, built and managed. Despite the current geopolitical status of the United States, industry practitioners from around the world emphasize the need for global collaboration and standards.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have never seen such a fast rate of change,\u201d said Laura Chace, president and CEO of ITS America<\/a>, speaking at the ITS World Congress in Atlanta Aug. 24-28. Even from a year ago, the capabilities of AI to aid in infrastructure inspections and other transportation applications has accelerated, she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Atlanta Regional Commission<\/a> (ARC) is using AI to \u201ccrunch the numbers\u201d on population growth, modeling and planning future transportation, added Anna Roach, executive director and CEO, noting that the region plans to invest $168 billion in transportation through 2050.<\/p>\n

But \u201cwe can\u2019t build like we used to,\u201d said Jannine Miller, executive director of the State Road and Tollway Authority, Transit Link Authority and Georgia Regional Transportation Authority. \u201cWe can\u2019t just add lanes.\u201d Right-of-way acquisition costs are greater than ever, she noted. \u201cWe have to make smarter use of existing infrastructure.\u201d For example, the GA 400 toll lanes will have managed congestion pricing, Miller said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With the Atlanta region undergoing a \u201cmanufacturing renaissance\u201d that anticipates 75,000 new jobs due to the electric vehicle industry, the state legislature added $1.2 billion last year for transportation funding, said Russell McMurry, Georgia Dept. of Transportation secretary. \u201cFreight tonnage will double on the highways by 2050,\u201d so the agency is exploring ways to add broadband on Interstate routes and future-proof major traffic corridors for evolving technology, he said. \u201cWe must be accused of trying\u201d to use technology to save lives, he added.<\/p>\n

He noted that the Port of Savannah has 20-plus traffic signals with smart vehicle connectivity to prioritize loaded trucks and alert drivers if freight rail traffic is currently at a crossing so that they can detour.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Anticipating the FIFA World Cup next year, ARC has a $9-million grant to plan a mobility app for the elderly and disabled, while an autonomous shuttle from the 22-mile multi-use trail Atlanta Beltline will take passengers to locations up to two miles north or south.<\/p>\n

In the European Union, there is a \u201cprofound shift to smart mobility\u201d and a 2050 carbon zero economy goal, said Kristian Hedberg, head of the delegation of the EU to the U.S. \u201cDigitization is central to the agenda,” he said. The EU has adopted an action plan to encourage automated and advanced-assisted driving.<\/p>\n

But sharing data standards and best practices is key, as is resilience and inclusion, said Joost Vantomme, chief executive of ERTICO-ITS<\/a> Europe. Ace Yamamoto, president of ITA Japan and secretary general of ITS Asia-Pacific, added that those agencies are looking to create \u201csecure common processes\u201d for data sharing. \u201cThe ITS community needs a structured approach,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

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Vantomme, speaking on a later panel, emphasized the need for aligning research efforts not only across continents but among industries, for example autonomous vehicles and AI. \u201cIt would be nice if they got together,\u201d he said.\u00a0He noted that the European Commission plans to set up an alliance for automakers to share technologies regarding autonomous vehicles and offer support for EV battery manufacturers. The EU is also pursuing a legal framework for AI that would protect safety and human rights and set mandatory requirements for \u201chigh-risk\u201d AI systems, such as those used in vehicles and road traffic.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Power Highways<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Other potential alliances are between highway agencies and energy\/utility providers, said several panelists. For example, state transportation rights-of-way could be suitable to place energy infrastructure such as transmission lines, said Joe Simon, project manager with NREL. He said the agency is completing a geospatial and regulatory evaluation of the potential for ROWs to accommodate such energy needs as geothermal, battery energy storage and transmission.<\/p>\n

But currently, more than 40 state transportation departments restrict or prohibit colocation of utilities on the Interstate system, notes Randy Sutterfield, executive director of the NextGen Highways<\/a> initiative. And historically, \u201cutilities and DOTs don\u2019t proactively collaborate,\u201d he noted. But various polls show that the public would prefer new infrastructure to be built within existing infrastructure, so the goal is to \u201cidentify stakeholders interested in changing the policies.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Michigan, the goal is to build infrastructure to support 2 million electric vehicles by 2030, said Michele Mueller, Michigan Dept. of Transportation manager of connected, autonomous and electrified vehicles. MDOT is pursuing a public-private partnership to build a mobility charging hub at the DTNA Redford campus with Daimler Truck North America and DTE Energy in a $13-million effort. The DOT is also using $1 billion in funding from the U.S. Dept. of Energy to build a \u201cMachH2\u201d hub<\/a> with a hydrogen supply chain for heavy-duty trucks across six states.<\/p>\n

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As for its wireless inductive charging testbed\u2014the nation\u2019s first\u2014the results are \u201cexceeding our expectations,\u201d she added. Companies such as Ford and UPS have used the in-road charging system and found it to be effective regardless of weather, and for both static and dynamic wireless charging. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Ambitious Efforts<\/strong><\/h3>\n

In Jacksonville, Fla., the first permanent connected and autonomous vehicle public transit service corridor launched in June. The Bay Street Innovation Corridor repurposes a 10-mile elevated guideway that was originally meant for monorail, said Nathaniel Ford, CEO of the Jacksonville Transportation Authority<\/a>. In this first phase, AVs are operating in three miles of mixed traffic. Phase 2 aims to convert the 2.5 miles of track on existing superstructure and eight stations into an elevated roadway for autonomous and connected vehicles and a battery-powered bus. The current bi-directional tracks run approximately 2.5 miles.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the most transformative time for transportation in our lives,\u201d said Ford.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Echoing the event\u2019s general theme of interconnections, Greg Crandell, general manager with Holon US, said that smart cities require multiple modes of transport to be automated, and \u201can AV community.\u201d Holon is planning to deploy an autonomous shuttle on the innovation corridor.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With technologies like AI, computer vision, machine learning and connectivity all maturing simultaneously, \u201cthis is a once-in-a-century transformation\u201d of transportation and cities, said John Absmeier, CTO of Woven by Toyota<\/a>, a subsidiary that aims to transform the automaker into a \u201cmobility company.\u201d<\/p>\n

The goal of Woven is to achieve a vision of zero fatalities on roads throughout the world, he said. \u201cMobility today is like the \u2018World Wide Web\u2019 in 1999\u2014it means everything, and nothing,\u201d he said. But to achieve the ultimate vision of a connected, safe system, \u201cinfrastructure investment is required\u201d and the responsibility lies \u201cnot with any one industry or country.\u201d<\/p>\n

The concept of mobility as a service may be solidifying in some cities in Europe that have adopted a single-app system provided by Siemens to plan, book and use multiple modes of transport, said Greg Valyer, head of business development for Siemens\u2019 MaaS. For example, the app serves 15 German districts covering 58 transit lines, 390 stations and 1,000 bus stops, creating a \u201cmobility association\u201d that includes bicycle, taxi and vanpool options, especially for first-mile\/last-mile gaps, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the U.S., the city of Dublin, Ohio, is also serving as a testbed for smart infrastructure, said Jean-Ellen Willis, director of transportation and mobility. \u201cThe goal is to be the most connected community in the U.S.,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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With a 100-gigabyte fiber network, and a 33 Smart Mobility Corridor<\/a> that includes 432 strands of fiber, 63 road units and 40 connected intersections, the city is testing autonomous freight and autonomous truck platooning, she said. It also has a near-miss heat map regarding accidents, adaptive signal control that prioritizes pedestrians and, in winter, snowplows and other technologies.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

A World First<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Dublin isn\u2019t the only U.S. region trying to pioneer the transportation future in tandem with global partners. Kapsch TrafficCom<\/a> North America and the North Carolina Tollway Authority announced during the conference that they will deploy the world\u2019s first production-level V2X tolling system on the Triangle Expressway.<\/p>\n

This joint initiative will move connected vehicle-based tolling from the concept and pilot phases into a live, operational environment near Raleigh.<\/p>\n

The project integrates two distinct technologies\u2014roadside legacy tolling and CV data\u2014into a single transaction, creating a blueprint for future funding models.<\/p>\n

Instead of the gantries associated with open-road tolling, this technology has a small roadside box that can cover five lanes, says JB Kendrick, president and CEO of Kapsch<\/span><\/span>\u00a0TrafficCom North America. \u201cOver time, data can be exchanged between cars, intelligent message signs, emergency services clearances,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The project will be rolled out in phases, beginning with the installation of roadside units and testing with onboard unit-equipped vehicles. Subsequent phases will focus on integrating Vehicle-to-Everything toll data with NCTA\u2019s host and back-office systems, with the ultimate goal of invoicing customers based on transactions generated directly by their vehicle.<\/p>\n

Eventually, NCTA could use the data to predict when it needs to repave roads, redeck bridges or add new infrastructure, says Kendrik.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\"Aileen<\/a><\/p>\n

Aileen Cho, ENR’s deputy editor for infrastructure, is a born-again Angeleno and recovering New Yorker. She studied English and theater at Occidental College, where a reporter teaching the one existing journalism course encouraged her to apply for the LA Times Minority Editing Training Program. Her journalism training led to her first stories about transportation, working as a cub reporter with the Greenwich Time. She has been honored, solo or with ENR colleagues, with several journalism awards. For ENR, she has traveled the world, clambering over bridges, touring airports, and descending into tunnels. She is a regular at transportation conferences, where she finds that airport and mass transit engineers really know how to have fun (bridge engineers aren’t far behind). She is always eager to hop on another flight because there are so many interesting projects and people, and she gets tired of throwing her cats off her computer in her home office in Eagle Rock, California. She is a very conflicted Mets\/Dodgers fan.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Read More<\/a>
\n Raleigh Haslett<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The global transportation industry is at a crossroads, with artificial intelligence, electrification, connectivity and digitization all poised to disrupt the way infrastructure is designed, built and managed. Despite the current geopolitical status of the United States, industry practitioners from around the world emphasize the need for global collaboration and standards. \u201cI have never seen such<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":870231,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[101677,809],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-870230","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-electrifying","8":"category-future"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/870230","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=870230"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/870230\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/870231"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=870230"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=870230"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=870230"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}