Designing roads for driverless vehicles: apply for contracts

16 Jan 2018 02:18 PM

Organisations can apply for a share of up to £200,000 to look at the design, management and use of UK roads for connected and autonomous vehicles.

The National Infrastructure Commission and Highways England have up to £200,000 to invest in projects that look at changes to roads and related infrastructure to maximise the benefits of driverless and connected vehicle technologies.

Change in how we use roads

Self-driving cars could be on UK roads in the next decade.

The way we use roads could change as a result. Vehicles could move in convoys, there may be no need for traffic lights, and lane directions could change depending on the time of day.

Practical ideas on design and management

The competition is seeking practical ideas on designing and managing roads in 3 areas:

• road design and related infrastructure including line markings, signs, posts, gantries, crash barriers and lighting columns
• traffic management such as traffic signals and any other means of controlling traffic flow
• road rules and regulations including such things as speed limits and waiting or loading restrictions

Funding for the competition is under SBRI (Small Business Research Initiative).

Up to £150,000 is available for feasibility studies in a first phase. The best project could attract £50,000 to develop it further in a second phase.

Find out more about SBRI and how it works.

Competition information

• the competition is open, and the deadline for registration is at midday on 7 March 2018
• it is open to any organisation that can demonstrate a route to market for its idea
• we expect phase 1 contracts to be worth up to £30,000
• successful projects will attract 100% funded development contracts
• a briefing event will be held on 31 January 2018

Find out more about this competition and apply.