Nokia navigation company HERE and the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment are evaluating a cellular network-based cooperative intelligent transportation system (C-ITS) deployment to bolster road safety and reduce congestion problems in the country.

This evaluation will focus on a system that uses regular commercial 3G and 4G/LTE cellular networks and location cloud technology and data analytics from HERE to link smartphones and other devices, road infrastructure and traffic management centres.

This system would act as a low-latency data exchange mechanism, wherein information that could impact a commute, for instance, an accident, would be appropriately communicated.

"There is an opportunity to take advantage of this connectivity to improve road safety and traffic flow in the next few years."

As part of the collaboration, HERE will support the ministry’s Beter Benutten programme to optimise the efficiency of the country’s transportation networks through innovative solutions.

A demonstration of the technology is scheduled in Amsterdam during the Netherlands’ Presidency of the European Union in the first half of 2016.

Beter Benutten project manager Caspar de Jonge said: "The vast majority of Dutch adults are using smartphones and, increasingly, cars and infrastructure are getting connected to the internet. There is an opportunity to take advantage of this connectivity to improve road safety and traffic flow in the next few years.

"In particular, in 2016, we want to start deploying a road user messaging system that enables information to be gathered, processed and then distributed to the relevant road-users with quality, accuracy and at sub-second delivery rates. HERE will demonstrate to us that it can tick those boxes."

HERE senior vice-president Ogi Redzic said: "The ministry has been keen to explore the potential of cellular networks in improving mobility in the Netherlands. HERE’s solution can be built on existing Dutch networks, meaning that it wouldn’t cost the earth, could be quickly rolled out across the whole country and would bring benefits to citizens relatively fast.

"The Netherlands is regarded as a C-ITS trailblazer in Europe, so we’re looking forward to showcasing what we can do in the Amsterdam demo next year."