The ADS for Rural America project launched in October 2021 and has completed its first phase of data collection. See an example map and learn more about the roles of the safety driver and co-pilot.

Ben Berhow and Wil Comer—two seniors majoring in mechanical engineering at the University of Iowa—both landed part-time jobs with the miniSim team at the National Advanced Driving Simulator this past year, giving them valuable on-the-job experience. 

In an important step toward identifying who is too impaired to drive due to cannabis use, a team of researchers from the University of Iowa and Advanced Brain Monitoring found there are specific markers in brain activity linked to cannabis intoxication that consistently and negatively impact driving performance.

Research Scientist Timothy Brown, PhD, at the National Advanced Driving Simulator discusses his extensive experience in drugged driving research studies: specifically, his work on the dangers of prescription drug and marijuana use while driving.

Want to ride in a partially automated vehicle with us? We’re now looking for people who are age 65 or older, have a disability that affects their mobility (age 25 or older), or have low vision impairment (age 25 or older). We’ll be stopping in Iowa City, Hills, Riverside, and Kalona.

Another successful Driving Assessment conference is in the books! Student award winners included Linda Pipkorn of Chalmers, Erika Ziraldo of University of Guelph, and Katelyn Schwieters of University of Minnesota.

We've had a great time so far this summer attending local outreach events to talk to people about our ADS for Rural America project. We've been to three of the four communities along our project route: Riverside, Hills, and Iowa City.

In a study published in Traffic Injury Prevention, our researchers found that effects on driving performance after cannabis use can depend on the type of high that the user experiences. Cannabis use that produces more stimulation results in less impact on driving, while use that produces a more stoned or high feeling results in worse driving performance.

Check out our Director Dan McGehee’s expert take on teen driving safety and a ranking of the best states for teen drivers. Do you agree with Iowa’s ranking?

Learn more about our ADS for Rural America project and our newly-equipped Ford Transit shuttle bus, set to be on Iowa roads later this summer.

Congratulations to Dr. Elizabeth O'Neal, a postdoctoral research scholar at the National Advanced Driving Simulator and the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, for receiving a K99/R00 Award from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

Our tech partners Hexagon | AutonomouStuff in Morton, Illinois, have been busy with the final software integration and testing of our new automated vehicle, set to hit Iowa rural roads this summer.

KCRG TV9 News reports on the rise in distracted driving, what law enforcement has seen, and the research being done on distracted driving at the University of Iowa National Advanced Driving Simulator.

NADS Director Dan McGehee talks with KWWL on the dangers of distracted driving, especially on Iowa's unforgiving roads.

April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month. 3,142 people were killed from distracted driving in 2019 – a 10% increase from 2018. NADS researchers work to reverse that trend.

NADS Director Dan McGehee appeared on Iowa Public Radio's River to River, toward the end of the hour talking about next generation transportation.

The Transit shuttle bus for the University of Iowa's ADS for Rural America project has been equipped with automated driving technology by Illinois-based AutonomouStuff.

Advertising campaigns have been overestimating vehicle’s capabilities since the 1960s, but with today’s technology, hyperbolic language has the power to be dangerous. NADS Director Dan McGehee explains.

How do people in rural areas who can’t drive get where they need to go? Decades down the road, “AVs could allow these people to continue to live independently,” says Omar Ahmad.

NADS recently wrapped up a multi-year project connecting multiple people interacting in the same virtual environment.