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Australian Start-up Chargefox has secured AUS$15 million to build an ultra-rapid network of charging stations for electric vehicles (EV) in the south-eastern state of Victoria. The company says the chargers will allow drivers to travel between major cities. The EV chargers are expected to supply 400km of range in 15 minutes with a power output of up to 350kW. The fund was provided by grants from the Victorian government and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency. It also includes an investment from

Kapsch TrafficCom and oil and gas company OMV will deploy a Europe-wide cashless tolling solution for trucks. The OMV Smart Europe will be available in Austria and Hungary from November. The toll box, designed by Kapsch, is expected to extend the OMV card’s capabilities by allowing users to pay for tolls without having to deal with local toll systems or different toll boxes. Benedikt Hans, head of card at OMV, says the solution will aid the European Commission’s ambition to harmonise toll systems in

Teledyne e2v says its Emerald 2M sensor helps to lower the cost of a full HD camera system as it is compatible with low-cost 1/3” optics. The CMOS image sensor is optimised for machine vision applications and includes 5° chief ray angle compensation, the company adds. According to Teledyne, Emerald 2M’s global shutter and MIPI CSI-2 interface allow it to utilise image signal processors available for mobile applications. The sensor comes with digital functionalities such as multi region of interest, subs

Tattile will showcase its intelligent camera at Vision 2018 in Stuttgart, Germany. The Vega 1 is designed for single lane vehicle tracking, traffic limited areas and priority lanes as well congestion charge. Vega 1 comes with an automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) engine and local storage means it can work when connectivity is interrupted. The single lane intelligent traffic system provides colour video streaming via standard RTSP protocol. According to Tattile, the camera is expected to o

Nextbike Polska, a developer of bike sharing systems, will focus on the Polish market, which it anticipates will have up to 60,000 city bikes by 2025. The company says this growth will stem from an increase in the current 26,000 bikes in use today as well as the deployment of new models. A report by The First News says Nextbike plans to streamline its organisation and will focus on expanding in Finland, where it has already deployed 300 bikes. By the end of the year, Nextbike estimates it will s

Ford is to be the first company to test autonomous vehicles (AVs) in Washington, DC – with a view to starting a commercial service there in 2021. The car company – which already has AV trials in Detroit, Pittsburgh and Miami - will begin testing in the US capital early next year. An operations centre will be set up in the city and Sherif Marakby, CEO of Ford Autonomous Vehicles, says fleet deployment will be done in a way that aids job creation. The company plans to work with local officials to tes

Econolite has hired one of the best-known names in the ITS industry: Kirk Steudle is joining the company with a remit to fulfil two key roles. Steudle, the former director of Michigan Department of Transportation (MDoT), will be senior vice president, leading Econolite’s Transportation Systems Group and also in charge of CAVita, its connected and autonomous vehicles (C/AV) subsidiary. His responsibilities will include all C/AV projects and large-scale systems projects. Steudle had spent his entire

Volocopter will trial its air taxis in Singapore’s urban environments in the second half of 2019. The initiative is expected to lead to public demonstration flights. The company says the eVtols, based on drone technology, can carry two passengers for a distance up to 30 km. These air taxis can manoeuvre safely around skyscrapers to ensure a smooth ride for passengers, Volocopter adds. Volocopter will work with the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) to establish the scope of the trials

UK proposals to alter existing advice in a bid to make vulnerable road users (VRUs) safer have been criticised by safety campaigners. The Department for Transport is considering a change to the Highway Code which would mean motorists should give way at all times to pedestrians and cyclists crossing at side roads. But IAM RoadSmart says this does not go far enough – and insists that longer-term measures to keep drivers and cyclists segregated in a safer cycling environment must be introduced. As things