Autonomous driving technology developer Plus and infrastructure owner-operator Transurban recently announced a unique partnership in which Transurban’s intelligent roadway will provide look-ahead data to trucks equipped with Plus’s Automated Vehicle (AV) software, as well as providing proactive support from Transurban’s traffic operations center. Compared to past connected-vehicle plays, there are some new and interesting aspects to their approach that I’ll explore here.
Transurban is an Australian-owned company that builds and operates toll roads. With over 10 million customers globally and 22 roads under operation, Transurban operates assets in Australia’s three largest cities – Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane – plus the A25 Motorway in Quebec and the 495 Express Lanes, 95 Express Lanes and 395 Express lanes in Virginia near Washington, DC. The company notes that they are “a global leader in sustainability performance, which has been evaluated and recognized by two leading investor sustainability ratings, the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) and the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) Infrastructure. Beyond building and operating roads, Transurban has a strong technology focus, researching and developing innovative tolling and transport technology.”
