Open research questions in Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks (VANETs)

What the literature leaves open

• The study recognizes the need to promote safety and efficient merging in traffic flow. The paper highlights the importance of harmonizing the velocities of main-road and ramp traffic during the merging process.

  Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems: The Impact of C-V2X Communication Technologies on Road Safety and Traffic Efficiency · 2025 · DOI

• The paper identifies the need to analyze the impact of communication technologies on vehicular safety. The study highlights the gap in understanding the efficacy of C-V2X in collision mitigation and prevention. The paper recognizes the importance of exploring how C-V2X technology improves communication latency and enhances vehicle communication efficiency.

  Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems: The Impact of C-V2X Communication Technologies on Road Safety and Traffic Efficiency · 2025 · DOI

• The lack of built-in security features in the CAN protocol. The need for a lightweight and efficient IDS for CAN networks.

  Adaptive Autoencoder-Based Intrusion Detection System with Single Threshold for CAN Networks · 2025 · DOI

• The need for a systematic analysis of threats encountered at each layer and proposed targeted countermeasures to mitigate risks. The lack of exploration of future trends in IoV security.

  Security for the Internet of Vehicles with Integration of Sensing, Communication, Computing, and Intelligence: A Comprehensive Survey · 2025 · DOI

• The proposed OTP framework shows marginally lower throughput than ETP framework at shorter distances (R < 30 m) with high channel gain (g = 1), indicating a limitation in the framework's performance in near-field scenarios.

  Integrated V2V Communication System · 2026 · DOI

• The simulation results are limited to medium-range radar-based ISAC systems with distances from 10 m to 150 m; extension to longer-range scenarios and different radar types is not explored.

  Integrated V2V Communication System · 2026 · DOI

• Traditional routing protocols are insufficient for VANETs due to their static nature. There is a need for adaptive routing protocols that can handle the dynamic nature of VANETs.

  Simulation-Based Evaluation of Reinforcement Learning-Enhanced Location-Aware Routing in Urban Vehicular Ad-hoc Networks (VANETs) · 2026 · DOI

• Traditional VANET systems are based on centralized architecture and reactive intrusion detection, which is insufficient for contemporary cyber attacks. There is a need for a predictive and secure communication framework for VANETs. The proposed framework aims to address this research gap.

  DT-EdgeGNN: Digital Twin–Driven Edge Intelligence with Graph Neural Networks for Predictive Secure VANET Communication · 2026 · DOI

• Existing systems suffer from privacy leakage and lack of user motivation. Traditional approaches introduce high computational overhead and fail to address these challenges effectively.

  Credit Coin: A Privacy-Preserving Blockchain-Based Incentive Announcement Network for Communications of Smart Vehicles · 2026 · DOI

• Future research can focus on improving the security and privacy of VANETs. Future research can explore the use of VANETs in other application domains, such as smart cities and intelligent transportation systems.

  Bridging the Gap Between Vehicles and Infrastructure for Enhanced Communication and Mobility: Comprehensive Study · 2026 · DOI

• The gap between infrastructure and vehicles is a major challenge in transportation systems. The lack of real-time information exchange and collaboration between infrastructure and vehicles is a concern.

  Bridging the Gap Between Vehicles and Infrastructure for Enhanced Communication and Mobility: Comprehensive Study · 2026 · DOI

• The lack of proactive traffic management and attack foresight predictive intelligence in current VANET solutions. The lack of scalable, secure, and predictive solutions for future generation vehicular communication systems. The need for a framework that combines digital twin-based simulation, spatio-temporal graph neural networks, and federated learning with differential privacy.

  Fed-DT-EdgeGNN: Privacy-Preserving Federated Digital Twin Edge Intelligence for Secure VANET Communication · 2026 · DOI

• Further research can focus on improving the detection performance of the proposed IDS for unknown frame-level message-injection scenarios. The proposed IDS can be integrated with other security mechanisms to provide comprehensive security for in-vehicle networks. Future research can explore the application of the proposed IDS in other domains.

  Hardware–Software Co-Optimized Lightweight Real-Time CAN Intrusion Detection and Prevention System for ECUs · 2026 · DOI

• Existing IDSs have limited real-time capability, complex preprocessing, and high computational cost. There is a need for IDSs that can detect and respond to attacks in real time within vehicles. The lack of authentication and encryption mechanisms in the CAN protocol makes it vulnerable to attacks.

  Hardware–Software Co-Optimized Lightweight Real-Time CAN Intrusion Detection and Prevention System for ECUs · 2026 · DOI

• Existing intrusion detection methods are inadequate for detecting real-time threats in dynamic and heterogeneous automotive environments. There is a need for an advanced real-time intrusion detection system that can detect and mitigate evolving cyber-attacks in connected vehicles.

  Optimized PRNN-ENet for robust IDS in IoV networks · 2026 · DOI

• The paper identifies the need for a unified neighbor quality metric that can adapt to varying network conditions.

  DPCI-GPSR: A Directional Propagation Capacity Index for Enhanced GPSR Routing in VANETs · 2026 · DOI

• To explore the application of the framework in other domains.

  DT-EdgeGNN: Digital Twin–Driven Edge Intelligence with Graph Neural Networks for Predictive Secure VANET Communication · 2026 · DOI

• We have proposed a Cognitive Seamless Service Migration framework to resolve the latency bottlenecks inherent in the Internet of Vehicles (IoV). Unlike reactive protocols such as IACMT, our approach relies on predictive anticipation, a shift that is essential for maintaining service continuity in high-mobility scenarios. Performance evaluations confirm the efficacy of this proactive strategy.

  Robust service migration for autonomous vehicles leveraging deep learning and cooperative V2V protocols · 2026 · DOI

• Investigating the application of TrustEdge-V2X in real-world settings, - Evaluating the performance of the proposed framework with different datasets and scenarios, - Exploring the use of other AI models and techniques for vehicular…

  TrustEdge-V2X: Deployment-Aware Edge Intelligence for V2X/IoV Intrusion and Misbehavior Detection · 2026 · DOI

• Small number of nodes (five vehicles), - Limited maximum speed (60 km/h), - Controlled environmental conditions (tests conducted at night under good weather conditions), - Sampling time limited to 2-3 min per speed, - The prototype is not designed or certified to meet automotive safety…

  Experimental Evaluation of a VANET Prototype Using ESP-NOW for Collision Avoidance: Latency, Packet Loss, and Statistical Performance in Urban Environments · 2026 · DOI

• Studies with higher vehicle density to evaluate performance degradation caused by interference among multiple nodes, - Evaluation of the impact of rain, fog, or extreme temperatures on signal propagation, - Longer sampling times to evaluate the link's temporal stability and capture variations due to changes in network…

  Experimental Evaluation of a VANET Prototype Using ESP-NOW for Collision Avoidance: Latency, Packet Loss, and Statistical Performance in Urban Environments · 2026 · DOI

• Recent surveys do not provide a study-level synthesis of cross-layer effects in V2X communication - Lack of validation maturity and communication-to-outcome evidence in prior…

  Beyond Line of Sight: A Cross-Layer Survey of Vehicle-to-Everything Communication for Intelligent Connected Vehicles · 2026 · DOI

• Investigating the application of the proposed model to other vehicle models or networks - Exploring the use of other machine learning algorithms for intrusion detection in CAN networks - Developing more advanced attack scenarios to test the robustness of the proposed…

  Adaptive Autoencoder-Based Intrusion Detection System with Single Threshold for CAN Networks · 2025 · DOI

• Finally, we discuss major open problems regarding multi-agent task allocation scalability, complexity, communication overhead, resource allocation, security, privacy, etc.

  Multi-Agent Reinforcement Learning for task allocation in the Internet of Vehicles: Exploring benefits and paving the future · 2025 · DOI

• Evaluating the proposed technique in real-world scenarios. Improving the performance of the proposed technique using other optimization algorithms. Applying the proposed technique to other domains, such as industrial control systems.

  Optimized PRNN-ENet for robust IDS in IoV networks · 2026 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks (VANETs)

• A Tutorial on 5G NR V2X Communications · IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorials · 2021 · 967 citations
• Intelligent transportation systems for sustainable smart cities · Transportation Engineering · 2024 · 369 citations
• Cybersecurity for autonomous vehicles: Review of attacks and defense · Computers & Security · 2021 · 362 citations
• An intrusion detection system for connected vehicles in smart cities · Ad Hoc Networks · 2019 · 351 citations
• A Survey of Autonomous Vehicles: Enabling Communication Technologies and Challenges · Sensors · 2021 · 349 citations
• A Survey on Cyber-Security of Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CAVs) · IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems · 2021 · 345 citations
• Efficient and Secure Routing Protocol Based on Artificial Intelligence Algorithms With UAV-Assisted for Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks in Intelligent Transportation Systems · IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems · 2021 · 337 citations
• Intrusion Detection System Using Machine Learning for Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks Based on ToN-IoT Dataset · IEEE Access · 2021 · 303 citations
• Mobility Digital Twin: Concept, Architecture, Case Study, and Future Challenges · IEEE Internet of Things Journal · 2022 · 302 citations
• PA-CRT: Chinese Remainder Theorem Based Conditional Privacy-Preserving Authentication Scheme in Vehicular Ad-Hoc Networks · IEEE Transactions on Dependable and Secure Computing · 2021 · 302 citations

Most recent work

• A survey of learning-based intrusion detection systems for in-vehicle networks · Computer Networks · 2026
• Velocity-Adaptive Access Scheme for Semantic-Aware Vehicular Networks: Joint Fairness and AoI Optimization · IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing · 2026
• Enhancing Trust Management System for Connected Autonomous Vehicles Using Machine Learning Methods: A Survey · IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems · 2026
• Toward Secure Task Offloading in Vehicular Edge Computing Networks · IEEE Transactions on Dependable and Secure Computing · 2026
• Intrusion Detection for Internet of Vehicles CAN Bus Communications Using Machine Learning: An Empirical Study on the CICIoV2024 Dataset · Future Internet · 2026
• Multi-Agent DRL for Multi-Objective Twin Migration Routing With Workload Prediction in 6G-Enabled IoV · IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing · 2026
• Vehicle-Side Lightweight Conditional Anonymous Double Authentication Framework With Password Robustness in VANETs · IEEE Transactions on Dependable and Secure Computing · 2026
• EQAI: Explainable Quantum-Empowered Antispoofing Intelligence for Trustworthy Connected Autonomous Vehicles Communication · IEEE Internet of Things Journal · 2026
• A reliable cyber-attack detection architecture for cyber-physical systems in SDN-enabled internet of vehicles · Cluster Computing · 2026
• Advances in machine and deep learning for intrusion detection in VANETs: a comprehensive survey · Cluster Computing · 2026

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