Siemens Mobility Austria
C-ITS has been designed to exchange of safety information between vehicles and the road. Credit: kimi lee on Unsplash.

Siemens Mobility has secured a contract to supply its cooperative intelligent transport system (C-ITS) to the Austrian highway network operating authority ASFiNAG.

The company explained that its C-ITS is a next-generation traffic management system that facilitates the exchange of safety information between vehicles and the road.

Siemens Mobility Intelligent Traffic Systems CEO Markus Schlitt said: “The digitalisation of roadway and traffic management is an essential component of future mobility and we are delighted to partner with ASFiNAG on this ground-breaking project.

“We believe intelligent communication and technologies that connect vehicles of all kinds with smart infrastructure helps cities, or in this case highway authorities, manage their mobility and improve quality of life by significantly reducing congestion, accidents and emissions.”

Using ITS-G5 broadcast technology, the system analyses roadway conditions and distributes information to motorists regarding traffic jams, accidents and lane closures.

ASFiNAG will be the first in Europe to install a network connecting the vehicle and the road.

Installation work for the 525 Siemens Mobility Road-Side Units (RSU) have already been initiated across 2,200km of highway and expressway in Austria. A control centre will also be established for these systems.

ASFINAG managing director Josef Fiala said: “The direct connection with our customers provides an important contribution to safe, efficient and sustainable mobility.”

The C-ITS system is expected to become operational within the next 16 months.

Once operational, the system will be providing hazard warning services.

Going forward, ASFINAG aims to focus on the installation of technologies that would support automated driving and networked traffic management.

Last month, Siemens Mobility announced that it intends to acquire Aldridge Traffic Controllers (ATC), a provider of urban traffic controls in Australia.

Based in Sydney, ATC is a licensed distributor of traffic management software, called Sydney Coordinated Adaptive Traffic System (SCATS), to customers across the globe. The SCATS system is owned by Transport for New South Wales, Australia.