This initiative includes controlled highway test facilities and builds on the existing environment at Bruntingthorpe
Proving Ground to provide a comprehensive, flexible set of highway intersections. These will be able to mimic a wide variety of UK road junctions from high speed smart motorways to rural A and B roads in order to allow CAVs to be tested in a representative, yet safe and secure manner.
The 6km of extensions to the track will be designed by Applus+ IDIADA (a consortium partner with Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground), who has experience of designing and operating some of the world’s most comprehensive proving grounds. This is significant for two reasons, it delivers foreign direct investment to the UK testing and development scene for the first time, and investment in Bruntingthorpe to bring it into the UK’s world class network of testing sites.
The upgraded proving ground will be able to test almost any vehicle under almost any scenario in a fully connected, representative environment in a repeatable and controlled manner.
David Price, Innovation and Technology Manager from Appplus+ IDIADA, the consortium lead said Applus+ IDIADA and Bruntingthorpe are delighted to become a part of Meridian's vision for the future CAV testing ecosystem in the UK. The site at Bruntingthorpe, together with IDIADA's experience in designing and operating proving grounds will allow us to develop a world class CAV facility which will attract intelligent vehicle development activities to the UK. The project will deliver a highly configurable set of road junctions, ranging from smart motorways to rural roads, all within a fully connected and carefully controlled environment.
About Applus+ IDIADA
With over 25 years of history, Applus+ IDIADA is a leading engineering company providing design, testing,
engineering and
homologation services to the automotive industry worldwide. The company is present in the UK since 2004, with offices in Cambridge, Nuneaton, Warwick proving electronics, vehicle dynamics, brake development and testing and homologation services. The company has an international network of subsidiaries and branch offices in 24 countries with an international team of more than 2,500 engineers.
About Meridian
Meridian was created by government and industry to focus on key areas of UK capability in the global CAV sector which is predicted to be worth £907 billion by 2035. These areas include advanced development and validation, connected environments, data and cyber security, and new service development. Government and industry have committed an initial £100 million through Meridian to develop a coordinated national platform of CAV testing infrastructure. For more information please visit:
meridianmobility.tech