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AP Photo/Virginia Mayo
# get the green light
Audi's latest cars will tell drivers when that red traffic light will turn green
The US-only feature will communicate with a city’s traffic management system so drivers know how long they have to wait.
AUDI IS BRINGING a service which will tell drivers how long they will have to wait at a traffic light before it turns green.
The first cars with this feature, which will arrive in the US this autumn, will be able to view real-time information from a city’s traffic management system.
As such a system requires information from traffic control in each city and must be done securely, the feature will only be available to a few cities to start.
While a driver is waiting at a connected traffic light, both the driver information screen and heads-up display will tell them the time remaining.
Reuters say the countdown would disappear a few seconds before the light turns green so the driver could pay attention to the road.
The system is something Audi is calling vehicle-to-infrastrucutre technology, using sensors and other data from its surroundings to help make journeys more convenient.
Future applications of the tech could see it integrated into other features like vehicle navigation, start/stop functionality and help improve traffic flow in cities.
“These improvements could lead to better overall efficiency and shorter commuting times,” said Pom Malhotra, the general manager of Audio’s connected vehicles division.
Communication between vehicles and infrastructure is one part of the puzzle which will help bring self-driving cars on roads. By communicating with their physical surroundings, be it traffic lights and other sensors, such cars will know where to stop, start and what speed it should maintain.
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