Audi Co-Develops System That Allows Cars to Talk to Traffic Lights

Sick and tired of waiting at red traffic lights? Well, if Audi gets its way, annoying and more importantly, gas-guzzling stops at red traffic lights could soon be the exception rather than the rule. The experimental ‘Travolution’ system, co-developed by Audi and traffic management experts in Germany creates a communications link between cars and the traffic light network. The car’s onboard system is able to calculate the speed which the driver needs to maintain to pass through the next set of traffic lights on green, and displays this via the Multi Media Interface display. -Continued

As part of the 1.2-million Euro pilot project, 46 ‘intelligent’ traffic lights have been installed in the center of Audi's home town in Ingolstadt, Germany. Of the 46 lights, three have been upgraded to enable communication with the specially modified A5 and A6 Avant models provided by Audi. A further 20 cars and 50 light installations are to be incorporated in the near future.