From Fierce Wireless:

R Street Institute, a non-profit public policy research organization, noted that since the 5.9 GHz band was set aside exclusively for vehicle safety use since 1999, the communications and transportation marketplaces have evolved in some unexpected ways. Dedicated short range communications (DSRC), the lone technology authorized in the 5.9 GHz band, did not take off as projected.

“Allowing unlicensed services like Wi-Fi and LTE-U to coexist with vehicle safety services in a portion of the 5.9 GHz band could also help maximize the utility of the band,” the institute told the commission (PDF).

In this proceeding, “the FCC should focus on vehicle safety, decide how much of the 5.9 GHz band is needed to support vehicle-safety services, and then reallocate any remaining spectrum for unlicensed services,” R Street said.

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