Suzhou city launches China's first holographic-sensing highway supporting Level 4 autonomous driving

Beijing (Gasgoo)- On October 24, Suzhou city, Jiangsu Province inaugurated China's first holographic-sensing smart highway, designed to meet the requirements for level 4 autonomous driving, including vehicle-to-infrastructure communication.

Smart highway; photo credit: Suzhou Fabu

Test vehicles equipped with autonomous driving systems can now achieve a high level of autonomous driving (L4) via C-V2X methods, with minimal human intervention required in most situations.

This innovative highway features intelligent lamp posts placed every 230 meters on both sides of the road. Each lamp post is equipped with two LiDAR sensors, two cameras, and one blind spot detection LiDAR. 

Beyond enhancing road safety, this project serves a crucial purpose by providing a closed-loop testing environment for car manufacturers, algorithm developers, and equipment suppliers. It offers the necessary testing data for highway scenarios, completing the scene from smart connected urban roads to highway testing.

The newly launched highway spans a total of 56 kilometers, covering the Suzhou-Taizhou Expressway S17 (Huangdai Interchange to Xiangcheng Junction) and the Shanghai-Yixing Expressway S48 (Xiangcheng Junction to Yangchenghu North Interchange). A dedicated 6.5-kilometer section of the highway has been tailored for L4 autonomous driving testing, spanning from Weitang Interchange to Xiangcheng Junction.