May 6, 2020
The testing days in Girona and Graz were an important milestone in the INFRAMIX project, which aims to prepare the infrastructure for the transition phase in such a way that both automated and non-automated vehicles can be on the road safely and efficiently at the same time.
The testing days in Girona and Graz were an important milestone in the INFRAMIX project, which aims to prepare the infrastructure for the transition phase in such a way that both automated and non-automated vehicles can be on the road safely and efficiently at the same time.
The distribution of automated vehicles in Europe will increase in the next years. The EU project INFRAMIX is therefore working on scenarios of how the road infrastructure has to be equipped during this transition period in order to enable the coexistence of automated and conventional vehicles. INFRAMIX is funded by the European Commission within the research and innovation programme "Horizon 2020".
Tests took place in September 2019 near Girona in Spain and in October 2019 near Graz in Austria and are an important milestone in the project. Not only technical components and feasibility were tested, but also user feedback was gathered to draw conclusions about the acceptanceof such new services.
The tests in Girona took place under the supervision of Abertis Autopistas on a 20km section of the AP7 motorway near Girona in Spain. This section of motorway was extensively equipped with sensors and V2X communications technology to design, develop, adapt and test physical and digital road infrastructure elements. The test vehicles – equipped with three different technologies – were used to test the following three scenarios: dynamic lane for automated vehicles, construction site areas and road bottlenecks e.g. at motorway entrances. Questionnaires were used to obtain comprehensive feedback from the test users on acceptance and user-friendliness. The very positive feedback received here is a decisive factor for the successful realisation of INFRAMIX. The following video provides an insight into the tests:
In October, tests were carried out under the supervision of ASFINAG on the more than 20 km long route between Graz West and Lassnitzhöhe. This section is equipped with state-of-the-art technology, including a large number of different sensors, communication facilities and variable message signs, and therefore offers a wide range of testing possibilities. The three INFRAMIX scenarios could be tested successfully here as well and feedback from users was obtained.
The results of the INFRAMIX project will be presented at a final conference at the end of May.
