{"id":728,"date":"2026-09-08T11:56:02","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T09:56:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/milta.pro\/2026\/09\/08\/the-connected-road-science-or-fiction-for-european-road-transport\/"},"modified":"2026-09-12T18:10:40","modified_gmt":"2026-09-12T16:10:40","slug":"the-connected-road-science-or-fiction-for-european-road-transport","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/milta.pro\/en\/the-connected-road-science-or-fiction-for-european-road-transport\/","title":{"rendered":"The connected road: science or fiction for European road transport?"},"content":{"rendered":"

A traffic light that adapts its management when a priority vehicle approaches. Roadworks that directly warn vehicles that a lane is closed. A heavy truck that receives, before reaching it, information about a height restriction or an available truck parking spot on its route. This still sounds like a futuristic vision of the road \u2014 yet part of this infrastructure already exists. <\/p>\n<\/div>

In Germany, 1,200 mobile roadworks units now broadcast digital messages to compatible vehicles. In Flanders, 230 intersections were already equipped with smart traffic lights as of September 2025. In the Netherlands, logistics corridors allow road authorities, companies and heavy trucks to exchange certain operational information. <\/p>\n

At European level, C-Roads now reports<\/a> more than 6,000 C-ITS roadside units<\/strong>, coverage equivalent to 30%<\/strong> of the TEN-T road network, and cooperation between 21 European countries.<\/p>\n

The connected road is therefore no longer truly science fiction. But it does not yet form a homogeneous European network. That is precisely where the real challenge begins. <\/p>\n<\/div>

First, what is a ‘connected’ road?<\/h2><\/div>

The term can be confusing. A connected road is not necessarily a motorway covered with cameras, LiDAR and 5G antennas. And a C-ITS does not refer to a specific piece of equipment. <\/p>\n

C-ITS stands for Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems. The principle is to allow different components of the road system \u2014 vehicles, infrastructure, authorities, digital services \u2014 to exchange information in order to better coordinate their actions. <\/p>\n

It is the word ‘cooperative’ that matters. A standard GPS uses data to help its user. In a cooperative system, several actors in the road network can produce, receive and redistribute information: a vehicle can signal its presence, a traffic light can communicate its state, a road authority can announce roadworks, an emergency vehicle can signal that it is stopped on the roadway. Other vehicles can receive this information even before their driver physically sees the danger. <\/p>\n

C-Roads specifically defines<\/a> its role around the deployment of secure, harmonised and interoperable C-ITS services between vehicles and road infrastructure.<\/p>\n<\/div>

OBU, RSU: what equipment are we actually talking about?<\/h2><\/div>

The system generally relies on several layers.<\/p>\n

In the vehicle, a compatible system can be equipped with an OBU \u2014 On-Board Unit, an onboard unit capable of sending and receiving C-ITS messages. It is connected to the vehicle’s other systems: positioning, driver interface, sometimes sensors or advanced driver assistance systems. Depending on the service in question, the information can simply be displayed to the driver or used by other vehicle functions. <\/p>\n

At the roadside, the infrastructure-side equivalent is often called an RSU \u2014 Roadside Unit. An RSU can be installed on or near a traffic light, a gantry, roadworks equipment, or another piece of infrastructure. Its role is, in a sense, to connect the physical world of the road to the information network. <\/p>\n

But connectivity does not necessarily require inventing new objects. A traffic light already knows its phase. A variable message sign knows what it displays. An authority knows the planned roadworks. A weather station can detect hazardous conditions. C-ITS notably makes it possible to put this information into a standardised format, transmit it, and allow another actor to interpret it automatically. <\/p>\n

And contrary to a common belief, connected road does not automatically mean 5G. European systems use a hybrid approach: some messages are transmitted directly over short range between infrastructure and vehicle, notably via ITS-G5; others go through cellular networks and central systems. <\/p>\n<\/div>

What can actually be done today?<\/h2><\/div>

The possibilities become much clearer once we move away from the technical architecture.<\/p>\n

Take roadworks. Instead of relying solely on a sign visible to the driver, the roadworks equipment can digitally transmit its position and the information that a lane is closed. The compatible vehicle receives the warning in advance. <\/p>\n

Now take an intersection. The system can transmit the state or cycle of the traffic lights, but also receive certain information from vehicles \u2014 including priority uses for public transport or emergency vehicles. <\/p>\n

For freight, the possibilities become particularly interesting. In the Netherlands, connected corridor programmes<\/a> have notably worked with information on environmental zones, truck parking, speed limits and height restrictions. Information can also flow the other way, from companies and vehicles to the road system. <\/p>\n

This does not mean that a driver approaching their legal driving-time limit today automatically receives, everywhere in Europe, the best available parking spot. But several of the building blocks needed for this type of service already exist. <\/p>\n<\/div>

For freight, an infrastructure that is starting to know the constraints of trucks<\/h2><\/div>

A heavy truck does not have the same needs as a car. A height or weight restriction can make a route unusable. An environmental zone can change the permitted route. Congestion can jeopardise a delivery slot. The availability of parking can become critical when a driver is approaching their driving-time limit. <\/p>\n

Until now, much of this information has been gathered separately by the carrier, the planner, the driver or various digital tools. One of the transformations under way is to make more road data structured, accessible and digitally usable. <\/p>\n

And for international freight, a problem immediately appears: the border. A truck can leave Rotterdam, pass through Antwerp, cross Germany and end its day in Austria. What good is a connected road if it stops speaking the same language a few hundred kilometres further on? <\/p>\n<\/div>

From Germany to the Netherlands: Europe is already a full-scale laboratory<\/h2><\/div>

The degree of maturity varies greatly from one country to another.<\/p>\n

In Germany<\/strong>, this is probably one of the easiest cases to understand. Autobahn GmbH has equipped<\/a> its 1,200 mobile roadworks units to enable the broadcast of C-ITS messages: the driver of a compatible vehicle can receive an alert before reaching the affected area. The interesting thing is that this is no longer simply a laboratory demonstration \u2014 the system is now presented as a network-wide deployed service. <\/p>\n

In Flanders<\/strong>, the Agentschap Wegen en Verkeer stated in September<\/a> 2025 that 230 Flemish intersections had been equipped with iVRI, smart traffic lights capable of communicating with road users \u2014 with around 200,000 users<\/strong> already having an app that can interact with these systems.<\/p>\n

In the Netherlands, the Connected Transport Corridors covered in particular Greater Rotterdam, the south of the country and the west of Amsterdam. Road authorities, logistics companies and heavy trucks can exchange data there to improve traffic flow and safety \u2014 probably one of the best European examples of what a digital layer specifically useful to freight transport could become. <\/p>\n

In Austria<\/strong>, ASFINAG has undertaken<\/a> a significant C-ITS rollout covering notably traffic jams, accidents, breakdowns, roadworks and lane closures, with a target of several hundred roadside units spread across its network \u2014 though the announced targets should be distinguished from the exact number of units operational at any given date.<\/p>\n

In France<\/strong>, the SCOOP@F, InterCor, C-Roads France and then InDiD<\/a> programmes show a gradual shift: it is no longer just about better informing a human driver, but also about providing the automated vehicle with complementary perception \u2014 a detailed map of an intersection, the layout of a roadworks zone, an event located outside the immediate range of its own sensors.<\/p>\n

Luxembourg<\/strong> follows a slightly different logic: its Automatis\u00e9iert Fueren 2028<\/a> strategy focuses on preparing for automated driving, test environments, V2X communications and digital infrastructure, with a cross-border testing environment shared with France and Germany. It would, however, be excessive to present it as having the same level of C-ITS deployment as some major German or Austrian motorway networks \u2014 its value lies more in its role as a cross-border laboratory. <\/p>\n<\/div>