Car Insurance News from Be Wiser

Road Ahead Clear For 'Travolution'

An experimental new traffic management system which could help drivers save fuel has been given the go-ahead, it has emerged. Frustrating, fuel-sapping stops at red traffic lights could soon be the exception rather than the rule thanks to a new initiative aimed at streamlining urban traffic flow and reducing CO2 emissions.

The Travolution project supported by Audi aims for a streamlining of urban traffic flow by allowing cars and traffic lights to interact. Vehicles using the system are informed of when a light will change to green and calculates the speed they need to travel to pass through the lights.

"A network of 46 of the 'intelligent' traffic lights has been installed in the centre of Ingolstadt," commented a spokesman for Audi. Phasing of lights in the German city has been optimised to reduce stopping times to help lower fuel consumption and ease pollution.

Audi drove test cars around the city for several days and recorded how the time loss in the road network changed with the new system. The results showed that the savings in both time and money were significant with a daily average of over 20% less waiting time.

Some new cars come installed with a stop-start system that cuts off the engine automatically when the vehicle brakes at the lights in order to save on fuel.

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