A stretch of Route 1 linking Brunswick and Bath will be home to a new traffic hazard warning system after the project received federal funding.

The new technology, C-V2X (cellular vehicle to everything), automatically informs drivers of traffic hazards, weather and road conditions, bridge height and weight restrictions, and more.

The Maine Department of Transportation received $5.2 million for the project through the Federal Highway Administration Transportation Technologies and Innovating (ATTAIN) grant program, which recently awarded $200 million for projects involving bridge, rail, port and other safety projects across the state.

Maine DOT expects to start installing the system in the spring of 2027 after about two years of planning.

Three other stretches of Maine roads will receive similar upgrades under the statewide connected vehicle hazard notification project, including the Interstate 95 Palmyra-Carmel segment between Pittsfield and Bangor, and Aroostook County along U.S. Routes 1 and 11.

The Route 1 corridor experiences daily congestion lasting 30-60 minutes most weekday evenings. Maine DOT plans to install traffic monitoring cameras and radar-based motor vehicle detection systems at three interchanges along Route 1.

Images will be shown on the New England 511 website, where commuters can access videos of the corridor before driving on the road. One of the cameras will include a roadway weather information system to monitor and report road conditions. New vehicles with the connected vehicle technology built into the operating systems would automatically receive messages about congestion and weather advisories.

Any other driver can download a free application on their phone for verbal and text messages.

The traffic safety technology upgrades are expected to reduce the number and severity of traffic crashes and bridge hits by alerting drivers to hazardous weather conditions and low-clearance bridges, according to state officials.