Smart Cars Get a Connection Test in Michigan

Federal regulators announced a yearlong “smart car” project to determine whether wireless communication between vehicles can improve safety on the nation’s highways.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said 3,000 cars, buses and trucks would be equipped with data recorders and a technology akin to Wi-Fi that can transmit information about accidents or hazardous traffic conditions. Drivers in the connected vehicles will be warned, for example, of sudden changes in traffic patterns or potential collisions through data transmitted from similarly equipped cars and roadside devices. Sec LaHood said the $25 million study would yield data useful in deciding whether the government should require such crash avoidance technology in future vehicles.