REPORT

How in-vehicle data can improve UK road safety

Connected vehicle data has the potential to end the scourge of potholes, improve driver behaviour and reduce the impact of incidents on UK roads, according to a new Catapult report.

We conducted a stakeholder workshop seeking to understand what challenges would need to be overcome to unlock the value of this data in the UK. Challenges like improving public and business trust in data sharing, lack of awareness of existing standards and technology maturity levels.

The research follows a report published by the SMMT stating that in 2019 71% of new vehicles registered in the UK were connected, reaching 100% by 2026 – creating a rich data stream which will enable further innovation in the sector.

Unlocking the benefits of in-vehicle data
File Type: pdfFile size: 0.6MB

A key theme highlighted throughout the research was the need for a more strategic approach across the sector, which brings together isolated and uncoordinated development activities and joins existing information.

Industry leaders who took part in the research called for a number of activities to be launched in the UK before 2025 to address these challenges. These included tasks around skill development, technology development, identification of business benefits and updating regulation.

Henry Tse, CPC Director of New Mobility Technologies, commented:

“There is a market need to pull data and insights together and increase knowledge-sharing across the connected vehicle sector, rather than it be stored in disparate locations. Doing this will unlock a host of benefits which could improve road safety for users, unlock economic benefits through a more efficient transport system and create innovative new businesses and services.

“We are now recommending the establishment of a consortium which can support and guide the activities and projects in this area, create a clear industry vision and accelerate the value the UK gets from this data in the new decade”

Iain Forbes, Head of the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles, said:

“In-vehicle data offers a host of potential benefits to UK consumers. This roadmap is a useful contribution to the essential work on how this data could be used to unlock exciting new services in a safe and sustainable way.”

A full summary of the findings can be found here.

Notes

The key benefits identified with in-vehicle data are:

  • The key benefits identified with in-vehicle data are:
  • Driver behaviour monitoring
  • Road condition monitoring
  • Predictive maintenance
  • Supporting MaaS journey platforms
  • Identifying ‘abnormal’ traffic behaviour
  • The key risks identified are:
  • No agreements on standards for safety data
  • Commercial models limit consumer choice or impact pricing
  • Detrimental impact on aftermarket competition
  • The scale of data is too big to handle/process
  • Hacking of vehicle controls
  • The workshop attendees identified 12 barriers to exploitation:
  • Competition between organisations
  • High equipment and testing costs
  • Difficulty accessing complete data sets
  • Lack of awareness of standards
  • Local authorities have limited resources
  • Missing business case/evidence
  • Lack of public trust
  • Politically challenging to implement
  • Reduced convenience to travellers
  • The unwillingness of organisations to share data
  • Vehicle data ownership
  • Vehicle sensing capability

Media Contact

Stephen Lynn
Marketing and Events Director
Email: stephen.lynn@cp.catapult.org.uk
Tel: +44 (0) 7496 437907

About Connected Places Catapult

The new Connected Places Catapult accelerates smarter living and travelling in and between the places of tomorrow. We focus on growing businesses with innovations in mobility services and the built environment that enable new levels of physical, digital and social connectedness. The Connected Places Catapult operates at the intersection between public and private sectors and between local government and transport authorities. We convene the disparate parts of the market to help innovators navigate the complexity of doing business, creating new commercial opportunities and improving productivity, socio-economic and environmental benefits for places.

About CCAV

The Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV) works across government to support the market for connected and automated vehicles (CAVs)

The government believes that CAVs could change the way we travel, making road transport safer, smoother and more accessible to those with mobility issues. To this end, CCAV, a joint Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and Department for Transport (DfT) policy team, was established in 2015. By working closely with industry, academia and regulators, it aims to make the UK a premier development location for connected and automated vehicles.

We are providing over £250 million in funding, matched by industry, to position the UK at the forefront of CAV research, development and use. This will contribute to UK economic growth and help the industry to develop safe, efficient systems to move goods and help people get around.