Automated cars, future interstate topics at Marana chamber meeting
by Emily Dieckman | Marana News
The Marana Chamber of Commerce’s quarterly luncheon on transportation saw the discussion of several topics, including the funding of controversial road plans such as the Sonoran Corridor portion of the proposed Interstate 11.
Larry Head, professor of systems and industrial engineering at the University of Arizona, took the stage first to speak about the future of automated driving vehicles. He mentioned some recent high-profile accidents (like a case in Tempe last March) which occurred when automated vehicles ran through traffic signals.
Head suggested that when building new roads, engineers take more time to consider the expected primary sources of traffic. For example, he suggested that projects like the Tangerine Road Corridor, which aims to connect North La Cañada Drive to Interstate 10 and provide an alternative route for heavy trucks, contain few traffic signals because large trucks pollute heavily when accelerating and damage asphalt when pulling to a stop.
