The Italian tests on smart mobility and autonomous cars promoted by the Municipality of Turin in collaboration with the Ministry of Infrastructures and Transport (MIT), will begin in September in the Italian automotive capital. The aim of the ‘Smart Road’ project is to activate systems for autonomous driving, testing new technological solutions to adapt the Italian infrastructure network to new smart services and autonomous vehicles. Turin has been chosen for its important know-how and constant commitment to research and development, however, the MIT’s objective is to subsequently extend the model at a national level.
With a decree, the Ministry defined in detail the functional requirements that the roads must meet to become ‘Smart Roads‘ through a digital transformation of the road network, and the conditions for the testing of autonomous cars, with the purpose of streamlining traffic and making roads safer. The first tests will be carried out, in collaboration with a series of 16 partners, in an area closed to traffic. In a second phase, the trial, with all the due safety measures necessary to guarantee maximum safety, will move on open roads, in an area that goes from Mirafiori Sud to Corso Regina Margherita, passing through San Salvario, Santa Rita, the city center, and San Donato.
Councillor Paola Pisano, responsible for the Innovation Department, explained: “We defined a rough circuit, with the aim of having a laboratory city in which citizens test the innovations. The area has been approved by the municipal offices and the local police, but it could still undergo some changes.” She also highlighted that “the area identified includes every type of possible situation and, above all, responds to the request of the City to connect the area hospitals at the stations.”
Ilona Catani Scarlett