Project description DEENESFRITPL Driving a radical solution to reduce traffic Traffic congestion in cities is one of the most difficult problems to solve. It negatively impacts the environment, our health and the economy, as well as our quality of life. One possible solution is the use of vehicles that are automated and connected (CAV). The EU-funded TrafficFluid project proposes a new paradigm: lane-free traffic (to reduce congestion) and the nudge effect (where cars are pushed from a distance, and flow is more effective). The project aims to develop complete novel strategies for vehicle movement as well as urban road infrastructures with micro- and macro-simulation systems. This will spur further research and the development of novel initiatives. Show the project objective Hide the project objective Objective "Traffic congestion is a serious threat for the economic and social life of modern societies as well as for the environment, which calls for drastic and radical solutions. The proposal puts forward an utterly original idea that leads to a novel paradigm for vehicular traffic in the era of connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) and is based on two combined principles.The first principle is lane-free traffic, which renders the driving task for CAVs smoother and safer, as risky lane-changing manoeuvres become obsolete; increases the static and dynamic capacity of the roadway due to increased road occupancy; and mitigates congestion-triggering manoeuvres. The second principle is the nudge effect, whereby vehicles may be ""pushing"" (from a distance, using sensors or communication) other vehicles in front of them; this allows for traffic flow to be freed from the anisotropy restriction, which stems from the fact that human driving is influenced only by downstream vehicles. The nudge effect may be implemented in various possible ways, so as to maximize the traffic flow efficiency, subject to safety and convenience constraints.TrafficFluid combines lane-free traffic with vehicle nudging to provide, for the first time since the automobile invention, the possibility to design (rather than merely describe or model) the traffic flow characteristics in an optimal way, i.e. to engineer the future CAV traffic flow as an efficient artificial fluid. To this end, the project will develop and deliver the necessary vehicle movement strategies for various motorway and urban road infrastructures, along with microscopic and macroscopic simulators and traffic management actions.TrafficFluid risk stems from the immense challenge of designing a new traffic system from scratch; however, we expect that the project will trigger a whole new path of international innovative research developments and testbeds that would pave the way towards a new efficient traffic system in the era of CAVs." Fields of science engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringsensors Programme(s) H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme Topic(s) ERC-2018-ADG - ERC Advanced Grant Call for proposal ERC-2018-ADG See other projects for this call Funding Scheme ERC-ADG - Advanced Grant Coordinator POLYTECHNEIO KRITIS Net EU contribution € 2 495 500,00 Address Building e4, technical university campus counoupidiana 731 00 Chania Greece See on map Region Νησιά Αιγαίου Κρήτη Χανιά Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Other funding € 0,00 Beneficiaries (1) Sort alphabetically Sort by Net EU contribution Expand all Collapse all POLYTECHNEIO KRITIS Greece Net EU contribution € 2 495 500,00 Address Building e4, technical university campus counoupidiana 731 00 Chania See on map Region Νησιά Αιγαίου Κρήτη Χανιά Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Other funding € 0,00
