Futurists nearly half a century ago envisioned an intelligent highway system in which cars would drive themselves. Engineers at UC Berkeley are still aiming for that goal, but it remains a long way off.
By some estimates, intelligent highway systems could triple the capacity of existing highways without adding a single mile of asphalt. As traffic increases, the need for such technology is intensifying.
In the last two decades, vehicle travel increased 72%, while the U.S. road network grew just 1%. Congestion in major American cities now lasts about six hours each weekday, causing the average motorist to waste 36 hours a year in traffic jams, according to a Texas Transportation Institute study.
No crash road-building program will bail the public out of this mess. Indeed, as highway use more than doubles over the next 20 years, nobody is sure what will work. But clearly, technological improvement of the highway system is one of the few hopes.
In congressional testimony on May 10, Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta said the Bush administration proposes to increase funding for intelligent highway systems by 32% to $253 million for fiscal year 2002.
"Intelligent transportation systems and operations can make a difference in how we attack the congestion and productivity problems," Mineta said.
Whether that is a political difference or a real one is anybody's guess. But progress in at least some of the technologies, funded by both government and private industry, is starting to show up.
Adaptive cruise control, which automatically detects slower-moving cars ahead and reduces vehicle speed, is beginning to appear in some luxury vehicles and will show up more broadly in the years ahead.
It's a baby step, but clearly one that demonstrates the ability of sensors to detect other vehicles and advanced software to make decisions for the driver.
The Transportation Department's intelligent transportation system program is spreading federal dollars in every state. Since 1992, California has received $35 million, New York $80.8 million and New Jersey $91.25 million.
Among the most ambitious national efforts is the Partners for Advanced Transit and Highways, or PATH, at UC Berkeley. Most of its $6 million in annual funding comes from Caltrans rather than the federal government.
