Connected-Car Technology Sought to Counter Rising Traffic Deaths

The Transportation Department is planning to bring industry and states together later this year to develop a road map for advancing technology that allows cars to communicate wirelessly, an agency official said Tuesday.

Transportation officials and industry are looking to speed the deployment of technology that would allow cars to communicate with other vehicles, infrastructure, and pedestrians, but challenges remain around regulatory uncertainty and wireless interference. Proponents see the technology as a way to counter rising traffic deaths. Roughly 43,000 people died in crashes last year, the most since 2005, according to federal estimates.

The technology, called V2X or vehicle-to-everything, ...