News

Following the signing of the SAVE Act legislation to support autonomous vehicle testing and deployment in Michigan, General Motors is to begin testing autonomous vehicles on public roads. GM also announced it will produce the next generation of its autonomous test vehicles at its Orion Township assembly plant beginning in early 2017. Testing is already underway on GM’s Technical Center campus in Warren, Michigan and will now expand to public roads on the facility’s outskirts. Within the next few months,

A broad coalition of insurance, the automotive aftermarket, leasing and consumers has joined forces to release a statement voicing their concern that consumers’ interest are not being placed at the centre of discussions around the possible technical solutions to access in-vehicle data. In addition to undermining free consumer choice, the solution promoted by some stakeholders would also undermine competition, innovation and independent entrepreneurship. The members of AFCAR: Alliance for the Freedom o

The Supervisory Board of Jenoptik has appointed Dr Stefan Traeger as future chairman of the company’s Executive Board for a term of three years. Traeger, currently a member of the Management Board of the Swiss Tecan Group, will succeed Dr Michael Mertin and is expected to take over his post in the second quarter of 2017. Traeger will manage the Jenoptik Group together with Hans-Dieter Schumacher, who has been chief financial officer of Jenoptik since April 2015.

After seventeen years and more than US$11 billion (10 billion euros), Europe’s Galileo satellite navigation system is set to go live today, 15 December. Initial services offered free of charge by Galileo include support to emergency services. Anyone placing a distress call from a Galileo-enabled beacon can now be found and rescued more quickly, since the detection time will be reduced to only 10 minutes. This service should be later improved by notifying the sender of the emergency call that he/she has

Dutch digital security specialist Gemalto is supplying its LinqUS On-Demand Connectivity (ODC) subscription management solution and the GSMA-compliant embedded SIMs (eSIMs) to telecom carrier China Mobile. The solution will enable secure connectivity for connected cars in any vehicle equipped with an embedded SIM, including infotainment, navigation support, safety or vehicle diagnostics. Chinese consumers place more emphasis on in-car technology than on price or engine performance when it comes to buying

Geo-intelligence and asset integrity solutions provider Fugro has supplied the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (MTO), Canada, with its automatic road analysers Aran 7000 and Aran 9000 to collect critical highway infrastructure data. MTO uses the systems as complementary parts of their fleet of asset management tools and utilises the data to assess the health of Ontario’s highway network in its efforts to extend the lifespan of its road network and infrastructure. The Aran 7000 is a fully port

The UK Freight Transport Association (FTA) is pleased its concerns about management and signalling on smart motorways have been addressed in the Government’s response to a Transport Select Committee report published this week. FTA raised its concerns with Highways England on Red X compliance and proper management of the signal systems on smart motorways. The Government has responded to the Transport Select Committee’s report on all-lane running, highlighting these concerns. Smart motorways use tech

Swarco Traffic has completed the installation of a network of 27 electronic variable message signs (VMS) at some of the busiest highway locations in the north-east of the UK. The signs are intended to give motorists key information to help them plan their journey and warn them of weather disruption and other potential hazards. Planning and coordinating the works involved consultation and planning with the various local authorities in the region and Swarco Traffic worked closely throughout the project wit

A new report, Zero Road Deaths and Serious Injuries: Leading a Paradigm Shift in Road Safety, setting out a new approach to road safety has won the 2017 Special Award of the prestigious Prince Michael of Kent International Road Safety Awards. The study by a group of 30 international road safety experts from 24 countries, led by the International Transport Forum at the OECD, reviews the experiences of countries that have made it their long-term objective to eliminate fatal road crashes. Originating i

Labour Party leader Jeremy Corby is considering plans to ban the sale of new petrol cars in the UK, according to The Independent newspaper. The plan would form part of a broader package of measures to transform Britain into a low-carbon nation and would mean only zero- or low-carbon vehicles being sold after a set cut-off date, dramatically reducing air pollution and potentially saving thousands of lives. Corbyn is exploring plans to reduce the powers of the big six electricity providers by allowing a