White House Shouldn't Tamper With Move to DSRC, Broad Coalition Says
A broad coalition of automotive and public safety groups and satellite companies told President Barack Obama that the administration would be ill-advised to weigh in on the 5.9 GHz band discussion in a way that compromises dedicated short-range communications (DSRC) service systems aimed at preventing accidents on the road. The letter counters last week’s letter from public interest and industry groups bent on using the spectrum for Wi-Fi (see 1604280043). The 5.9 GHz band is seen as one of the most viable bands to provide more capacity as unlicensed use of spectrum skyrockets.
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“One of the most -- if not the most -- significant advances in vehicle safety is now coming into existence,” said the letter by the DSRC advocates. “We urge you to stay the course and complete the action your Administration has undertaken to improve the safety of drivers and passengers on America’s roadways.” DSRC systems “have moved from the test bed to the roadside, into vehicles and, based on recently-completed work, smartphones used by pedestrians,” the letter said.
There were 32,675 fatalities in vehicle crashes in 2014, the last year for which complete numbers are available, the letter reminds Obama. The automotive industry already is working with Wi-Fi advocates on shared use of the band, the letter said. “We support spectrum sharing in areas where it is technically feasible and will preserve both life-saving DSRC technology and ensure the protection of the existing Fixed Satellite Service operations in the 5.9 GHz band,” the letter said. “The transportation and satellite industries have already successfully completed a sharing regime in this band reflecting our mutual commitment to operate our respective services on a non-interfering basis.”
Contrary to arguments in the Wi-Fi advocates’ letter, work on sharing the band is moving forward, the DSRC supporters said. The FCC is working with the Department of Transportation and NTIA on sharing, and tests are expected this summer, the DSRC letter said. “Changing the DSRC rules and ecosystem at this late stage would be an enormous setback for highway safety and delay the deployment of DSRC, thereby significantly limiting the potential of this technology to reduce injuries and fatalities on our roads.” The letter characterizes the Wi-Fi letter as “from the cable industry and additional stakeholders.” NCTA didn't comment.
“The auto industry is using safety as cover to grab a free spectrum windfall unrelated to safety,” said Michael Calabrese, director of the Wireless Future Program at New America. “Their letter ignores the fact that this unused band is big enough to deploy, and protect, both crash avoidance safety applications and next generation Wi-Fi that can enable faster and more affordable wireless Internet access in classrooms, public places and the connected home. Regulators in Europe have already decided that auto safety applications require at most 20 or 30 megahertz of the 75 megahertz of spectrum allocated here in the U.S. at 5.9 GHz.” The White House should force DOT to work with FCC to share the band between DSRC and broadband, he said.
NCTA, meanwhile, reported on a meeting with Erin McGrath, aide to FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly, on its recommendations about whether the agency should refresh the record on the 5.9 GHz band. "The Commission should seek comment on whether it should adopt sharing rules based on a sense-and-avoid approach or a re-channelization approach," NCTA said. "It should seek comment on what steps the Commission should take if it determines to re-channelize the band." The filing was in docket 13-49.
DSRC letter signers include: the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, Association of Global Automakers, Intelligent Transportation Society of America, Aecom Technology, American Association of State and Highway Transportation Officials, American Automobile Association, American Automotive Policy Council, American Center for Mobility, American Highway Users Alliance, American Public Transportation Association, Arizona Department of Transportation, Associations of Critical Care Transport, Auto Care Association, California Department of Transportation, Carnegie Mellon University-University Transportation Center, Denso, Econolite Group, Ford, General Motors, Honda North America, Intelsat, International Academies of Emergency Dispatch, International Association of Fire Chiefs, Kapsch TrafficCom, the Arizona and Michigan Transportation departments, Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association, National Safety Council, National Sheriffs Association, Panasonic, SES Americom, Subaru of America, Paramedic Foundation, Toyota Motor North America, Truck and Engine Manufacturers Association, University of Michigan Mobility Transformation Center, Volkswagen Group of America and Volvo Group North America.