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Old 11-13-2009, 10:43 AM   #1 (permalink)
MetroMPG
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BMW advocating for smarter traffic lights abroad and in U.S.

Source: BMW Pushing For Smart Traffic Lights To Aid Fuel Efficiency - The Car Connection

BMW's Traffic Technology and Traffic Management group has been doing some research...



Quote:
Traffic signals have been one of the initial research subjects for the group. In its initial research, the group studied so-called Green Waves—a minimum of four signals in sequence that can be synchronized for better traffic flow.

Simply by changing the timing of traffic lights on a test stretch of roadway in Munich, the engineers were able to nearly double the fuel efficiency of a BMW 530d test vehicle—from 22 mpg to 42 mpg. [not clear if that's US or Imperial gallons]

That being an idealized situation, the company expects an overall 10 to 15 percent decrease in urban fuel consumption due to smart traffic signaling.
This is good to see an automaker pushing this topic.

Of course, they're absolutely right that better traffic light timing saves fuel... but it doesn't change the vehicle's government fuel economy ratings. Which makes me wonder...

Aside from the PR, what incentive does the company have for pursuing this?

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