Results from Field Verification Tests of Green Wave Advisory System

This paper describes the results from field evaluation tests of the “Green Wave Advisory (GWA)” system – a vehicle-infrastructure cooperative system that is designed to reduce wasteful fuel consumption at signalized intersections. The first field test, conducted at Yugi Road, evaluated the effectiveness of the system in reducing energy consumption and revealed that GWA could in fact reduce energy consumption. Trial calculations showed that the reduction of annual carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions at Yugi Road would be 2.75 tons. A second field test at Kasaibashi Street evaluated the effect on the following vehicles at times of heavy traffic, and conducted a survey of the drivers’ levels of acceptance. Based on analysis of video images, we concluded that the majority of the following vehicles continued to maintain a safe distance from the test vehicle as it decelerated. The survey revealed that drivers tend to respond positively about the system’s usefulness and its improvement of fuel efficiency. On the other hand, it also revealed that drivers tend to worry about the following vehicle’s behavior, and hesitated to decelerate when the traffic signal was green or in the presence of a GWA non-target intersection between the vehicle and the GWA target intersection.