Measurement and Configuration of DSRC Radios for Vehicle-to-Train (V2T) Safety-Critical Communications

Despite the rapid development of wireless technology, there has been little application of the technology to improve railroad crossing safety. We present vehicle-to-railroad channel characterization and dedicated short range communications (DSRC) performance results at railroad crossings in rural and suburban environments. Our results show that an omnidirectional antenna provides slightly better performance in rural conditions. However, a bi-directional antenna increased warning range by more than 200 m in suburban conditions. A proper configuration of the DSRC radio provides reliable warning of an approaching train for cars near a railroad crossing.