Ontario Hot Mix Producers Association (OHMPA)’ s special 40th anniversary Fall Asphalt Seminar, Dec. 9 at the Scotiabank centre in Niagara Falls, will present a bold look to the future of road travel.
Stephen Erwin, head of the Ontario Ministry of Transportation’s Intelligent Transportation Program and Bob Burrows, CEO of G4 Apps will speak to seminar delegates on the emergence and consequences of driverless vehicles – a technology closer to reality than most realize. “The (automated) vehicle is an extension of the information world with internet access to support the driver”, says Erwin. “Connected vehicles are here now and we’re starting to see subcomponents of automation.” For example, brake-assist, blind-spot monitoring and parallel-park assist are often standard on new vehicles. “Autonomous vehicles will take the driver out of the equation,” Erwin goes on. “Ideally we’ll have vehicles that are both automated and connected.”
The benefits for drivers are substantial. Automated vehicles project to be safer and more fuel-efficient. Connected and automated cars calculate their speed to ensure they hit green lights, they automatically take the least traffic-congested route, and they can receive and interpret driving condition information from other connected vehicles up ahead.
Automated transportation will have dramatic effects on the road-building industry. Mr. Erwin and Mr. Burrows’ presentation will outline the development of this compelling new technology, and forecast how it will impact government policy, infrastructure and the asphalt industry.
Registration for the special 40th anniversary edition of OHMPA’s Fall Asphalt Seminar is underway and the association is encouraging everyone from asphalt producers and contractors, to road owners and consulting engineers, to researchers and academics to make plans to attend.
For more information or to register for the seminar please visit www.ohmpa.org.