The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), a branch of the US Department of Transportation, is backing a research project that will use blockchain technology to streamline the highway administration process. Companies interested in working on the initiative will draft proposals on how to enhance highway transportation infrastructure.
According to the notice,
“Blockchain technology also has the potential to transform the connected and automated vehicle industry or freight logistics providing a platform to share a variety of information from the infrastructure and vehicles in a secure manner.”
The agency is focused on finding solutions for car-to-car and car-to-infrastructure communications, optimizing deliveries, generating anonymized freight management data and producing highway pricing that could include dynamic and auction-based mechanisms.
“With the advent of high speed wireless technology, services for highway transportation based on blockchain technology could provide security and scalability at lower costs than current private network solutions or could provide novel functions that solve needs that technologies currently used in highway transportation do not.”
The agency’s Exploratory Advanced Research (EAR) Program will also investigate significant commercial artificial intelligence applications and alternative methods of managing waste plastic to enhance the mechanical properties of asphalt cement.
Proposals are due by March 20, 2020.
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