Strategic Plan For Intelligent Vehicle Highway Systems In The United States

NHTSA · 1992 · ROSA P / United States. Joint Program Office for Intelligent Transportation Systems

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Summary

This 1992 strategic plan, developed by IVHS AMERICA with funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation, addresses the critical need to modernize the United States’ surface transportation system. The document was motivated by severe congestion, safety concerns, and inefficiencies that conventional infrastructure expansion could no longer resolve. In 1991, traffic accidents resulted in 41,000 deaths and over 5 million injuries, while congestion cost the nation an estimated $100 billion annually in lost productivity. The plan responds to the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA), which authorized a $660 million program for Intelligent Vehicle-Highway Systems (IVHS) over six years. The objective is to leverage information processing, communications, control, and electronics to create a national system that improves safety, reduces congestion, enhances mobility, and increases economic productivity. The plan outlines a comprehensive course of action structured around five functional areas: Advanced Traffic Management Systems (ATMS), Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS), Advanced Vehicle Control Systems (AVCS), Commercial Vehicle Operations (CVO), and Advanced Public Transportation Systems (APTS). It emphasizes a public-private-academic partnership model, with IVHS AMERICA serving as the coordinating body. The federal government, led by the Federal Highway Administration, is tasked with funding research, managing operational tests, and removing institutional barriers. State and local governments are responsible for deploying and maintaining infrastructure, while the private sector drives product development and market deployment. The plan also addresses necessary institutional changes, including the establishment of standards, protocols, and new forms of intergovernmental cooperation. The document projects significant societal benefits from IVHS implementation. Experts estimated that by 2011, IVHS could reduce traffic fatalities by eight percent, saving approximately 3,300 lives and avoiding 400,000 injuries annually. Congestion in adopting cities could be reduced by up to 20 percent through dynamic traffic control, incident management, and traveler information systems. Additional benefits include improved energy efficiency, reduced emissions through smoother traffic flow, and enhanced economic productivity for commercial fleets via automated tracking and electronic toll collection. The plan notes that over 20 operational tests were underway or planned to evaluate these technologies, ranging from collision avoidance systems to real-time transit scheduling. The significance of this plan lies in its establishment of a coherent national framework for deploying interdisciplinary transportation technologies. It positions IVHS as a fundamental transportation resource comparable to concrete or steel, requiring unprecedented coordination among diverse stakeholders. By defining clear roles for government, industry, and academia, and by addressing legal and institutional challenges such as privacy and liability, the plan aims to accelerate the transition from research to widespread deployment. It serves as a foundational roadmap for the evolution of intelligent transportation systems in the United States, aiming to ensure the transportation network remains economically efficient and environmentally sound into the 21st century.

Key finding

Experts estimate that IVHS can reduce traffic fatalities by eight percent and congestion by up to twenty percent by 2011.

Methodology

review

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