Editing Automation (section)

===Highway systems===
{{main|Automated highway systems|Vehicular automation}}

As demands for safety and mobility have grown and technological possibilities have multiplied, interest in automation has grown. Seeking to accelerate the development and introduction of fully automated vehicles and highways, the [[U.S. Congress]] authorized more than $650 million over six years for [[intelligent transport system]]s (ITS) and demonstration projects in the 1991 ''[[Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act]]'' (ISTEA). Congress legislated in ISTEA that:<ref>''[[Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act]]'' 1991, part B, Section 6054(b)</ref><blockquote>[T]he [[United States Secretary of Transportation|Secretary of Transportation]] shall develop an automated highway and vehicle prototype from which future fully automated intelligent vehicle-highway systems can be developed. Such development shall include research in human factors to ensure the success of the man-machine relationship. The goal of this program is to have the first fully automated highway roadway or an automated test track in operation by 1997. This system shall accommodate the installation of equipment in new and existing motor vehicles.</blockquote>Full automation commonly defined as requiring no control or very limited control by the driver; such automation would be accomplished through a combination of sensor, computer, and communications systems in vehicles and along the roadway. Fully automated driving would, in theory, allow closer vehicle spacing and higher speeds, which could enhance traffic capacity in places where additional road building is physically impossible, politically unacceptable, or prohibitively expensive. Automated controls also might enhance road safety by reducing the opportunity for driver error, which causes a large share of motor vehicle crashes. Other potential benefits include improved air quality (as a result of more-efficient traffic flows), increased fuel economy, and spin-off technologies generated during research and development related to automated highway systems.<ref>Menzies, Thomas R., ed. 1998. "[https://books.google.com/books?id=pj4XHb_x1wYC National Automated Highway System Research Program: A Review]." [[Transportation Research Board|''Transportation Research Board Special Report'']] 253. Washington, D.C.: [[National Academy Press]]. pp. 2–50.</ref>