Vehicular Communications in 5G and 6G: Technologies, Architectures, and Challenges for Future Mobility
A special issue of Sensors (ISSN 1424-8220). This special issue belongs to the section "Physical Sensors".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 May 2026 | Viewed by 717
Special Issue Editors
Interests: 5G; vehicular communications; mobile and wireless communications; simulation and modelling; radio resource management; machine learning
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: V2X communications (5G‑NR to 6G) and roadside/edge deployments, autonomous and connected vehicles; radio‑access and physical‑layer optimization; system‑level cost and capacity trade‑offs; big‑data/API services for QoS; sustainability
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleages,
Vehicular communications are evolving rapidly as 5G networks mature and 6G technologies emerge, enabling increasingly intelligent, automated, and sustainable transportation systems. These developments are central to a wide range of advanced mobility services—from connected traffic management and cooperative safety to high-precision navigation and automated driving.
While 5G is already laying the groundwork for large-scale deployment of vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, many technical challenges remain. Among the most demanding use cases are those associated with high levels of vehicle autonomy (Level 4 and Level 5), which will require ultra-reliable, low-latency, and context-aware communication architectures. However, the exact communication requirements, system architectures, and integration pathways for such autonomous systems are still under active investigation. The interplay between perception, communication, and computation will be critical to safely and efficiently enabling full autonomy.
Looking ahead, 6G is expected to bring transformative capabilities to vehicular communications, including extremely low latency, integrated sensing and communication (ISAC), high-capacity links at sub-THz bands, and pervasive AI across the network. These technologies may unlock new modes of interaction between vehicles, infrastructure, and the cloud—especially for cooperative perception, distributed decision-making, and large-scale environmental awareness.
Moreover, advances in mobile edge computing (MEC) and digital‑twin frameworks are vital for supporting the ultra‑low latency and context‑awareness required by Level 4/5 autonomy, while cutting‑edge RAN designs—including resource‑block allocation, antenna placement and selection, and channel estimation—ensure reliable V2X links. System‑level studies on capacity planning, computational and deployment costs, break‑even analyses, and business models will help bridge theory and large‑scale roll‑out. Finally, big‑data‑driven API services and green communication strategies play a key role in maintaining service quality and minimizing carbon footprints in future ITS deployments.
This Special Issue invites high-quality original research addressing the challenges and opportunities of vehicular communications in 5G and 6G systems. Both theoretical studies and practical implementations are welcome. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:
- 5G and 6G architectures for vehicular communications;
- Communication requirements and models for level 4/5 autonomous vehicles;
- Integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) for vehicular systems;
- Communication for cooperative perception and vehicle coordination;
- AI/ML for mobility-aware network management and optimization;
- Edge/fog/cloud computing integration in vehicular networking;
- Ultra-reliable and low-latency communication (URLLC) techniques;
- Cross-border, cross-operator, and heterogeneous V2X environments;
- Green and sustainable vehicular communication strategies;
- Security, privacy, and trust in vehicular communications;
- Testbeds, simulations, and field trials for V2X in 5G/6G context.
Dr. David Martín-Sacristán
Dr. David Garcia-Roger
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- vehicular communications
- V2X
- 5G/6G
- sensing and communication
- autonomous vehicles
- artificial intelligence/machine learning
- mobile edge computing (MEC)
- digital twin
- big data/API driven services
- sustainability/green communications
- modelling and simulation
- field trials
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