Nearly every Metro Atlanta community has placed “pedestrian and cyclist friendly” goals in their city’s master plans. More and more multi-use networks are being created and connected for traveling to and from city centers. Recently, Peachtree Corners launched a new collaboration with Spoke to transform roadway safety and rider connectivity by delivering the first ever internet connected ecosystem for vulnerable road users.
This technology was recently tested in a real-world scenario during the city’s first Curiosity Lab Criterium bike race. Professional cyclists raced through the city with Cellular Vehicle-to-Everything (C-V2X) units attached to their bikes. Then, working closely with automaker Audi, Spoke’s system was tested in the smart city throughout the race.
Using various layers of connectivity, Spoke’s technology ensures pedestrians, cyclists and any other vulnerable road users are identifiable by vehicles. Equally, users are aware of vehicles before the naked eye can detect them.
“Safety for our residents, cyclists and pedestrians is a top priority,” said Peachtree Corners City Manager Brian Johnson.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in 2018, there were approximately 47,000 bicyclists injured with nearly 900 riders killed in traffic crashes in the United States.
While the technology continues to be tested, feedback from automakers and cyclists will play a role in how likely the products are to be used in real life.
“With our partner Qualcomm, we have reimagined the form factor for C-V2X technology, making this solution small enough to fit on a bike without disturbing the biker or impacting the performance,” said Spoke Chief Strategy and Operation Officer Reid Sigety in a statement. “Partnering with Curiosity Lab not only allows us to continue to improve and develop our solutions further, but also gives us a space to see how these solutions will improve in real-world scenarios. We are excited to further test and refine this technology with our partners at Peachtree Corners and to continue to improve our solutions with the goal of saving lives across the country.”
From Johnson’s point of view, there are multiple applications for this technology. Runners, children walking to school, construction crews working along roadways and parents walking with strollers may all benefit. “The unit is small enough to place in a child’s backpack, in a construction worker’s vest, in a stroller pocket and more,” noted Johnson.
The partnership will allow Spoke to continue to test their technology within certain Peachtree Corners municipal vehicles and will be used by some Peachtree Corners road workers to improve safety.
“While the Audi vehicles that are being used for the testing and development of Spoke’s technology have the C-V2X technology embedded into the vehicles, everyday vehicles do not yet have this C-V2X technology embedded,” said Peachtree Corners City Manager Brian Johnson. “The current testing is part of a longer-term goal to help make our roadways safer and more efficient.”
