TC Participates in I-ACT Project Information Day
On June 4, transportation experts and industry leaders gathered at Chicago’s Illini Center for the Illinois Automated and Connected Track (I-ACT): Project Information Day. The event, hosted by the Smart Transportation Infrastructure Initiative (STI²), was centered on plans for the Illinois Automated and Connected Track (I-ACT), a proposed closed-course testing facility for connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) in Rantoul, Illinois. STI² members NUTC, the Illinois Center for Transportation at the University of Illinois at Urban-Champaign, the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Chicago and the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) sent representatives to present partnership proposals and innovative ideas for the project. NUTC associate director, Bret Johnson, presented and emphasized the importance of NUTC’s role in the STI² expansion project.On behalf of STI2, IDOT has issued a Request for Information (RFI) to invite more formal statements of interest from potential partners including, original automotive equipment manufacturers, automotive suppliers, transportation network companies (TNCs), technology companies, networking companies, trucking firms, telecommunications operators, energy utilities, startups, software developers, data analytics firms, media and content providers, contractors, academia, public sector organizations and other entities qualified in CAVs. The proposed facility would include a smart freight loop, a connected village, and an off-road test facility. The RFIs are due to IDOT by July 25, 2018.