News

The US Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has selected 61 projects in 41 states, the Virgin Islands and Indian Country to receive a share of nearly US$211 million to replace, rehabilitate and purchase transit buses and related equipment and construct bus-related facilities. Among the projects selected to receive 2016 Bus Program funding are the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, which will receive approximately US$5.8 million for the expansion and replacement of transit veh

Australia’s first real-world trial of road charging options has found that motorists are open to a different way of paying for the nation’s roads. Transurban chief executive officer Scott Charlton said the first stage of the Melbourne Road Usage Study suggested a user-pays system could work in Australia, providing fair, sustainable and flexible funding for the infrastructure. The 18-month study, led by Transurban and supported by independent research and technology specialists, looked at how people used

Car-sharing network Zipcar has exceeded the million member milestone with operations in more than 500 cities and towns in eight countries across the globe. Zipcar’s annual member survey revealed that nearly 10 percent of members get rid of a car after joining, and 32 per cent would have purchased a vehicle without the presence of Zipcar. As a result of Zipcar’s global membership in eight countries

French autonomous vehicle manufacturer Navya is to partner with transport operator Keolis, supported by Lyon Metropole, in a pilot which will see driverless minibuses on the streets of Lyon.

Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Capital Metro) in Austin, Texas, has partnered with HaCon and Bytemark to develop trip planning tools for both web and mobile platforms. The CapMetro App, which has already been downloaded more than 250,000 times, now features updated traveller tools that provide door-to-door trip planning and real-time data visualisation on a predictive live map.

According to a new survey of almost 1,200 people by road safety charity IAM RoadSmart, 74 per cent of drivers think insurers should provide cover for damage caused by hackers accessing control systems in driverless cars. The results of this survey have been used to guide IAM RoadSmart’s response to the Centre for Connected & Autonomous Vehicles’ consultation, Pathway to Driverless Cars.

US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has announced 18 infrastructure projects across the country that will receive federal grants as part of the new FASTLANE program. The grants, totalling nearly US$800 million, will be combined with other funding from federal, state, local and private sources to support US$3.6 billion in infrastructure investment in 15 states and the District of Columbia.

Michigan would no longer require a driver to be inside a self-driving car while testing it on public roads, according to Associated Press. The legislation was passed unanimously this week by the state Senate, where backers touted the measures as necessary to keep the US auto industry's home state ahead of the curve on rapidly advancing technology.

Exemplar, the developer of Fitzroy Place, one of London’s most high-profile and successful new mixed-use developments, has appointed Swarco company Evolt to supply and install 38 single outlet AC wall mount electric vehicle (EV) charge points.

Car maker Volvo and the New Zealand Traffic Institute (Trafinz), New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) and the Ministry of Transport are to demonstrate an autonomous vehicle as part of the national Trafinz transport conference. Volvo will demonstrate the technology on a 10-15km stretch of public road in November.

The Ford Motor Company is to collaborate with three 2016 Techstars Mobility start-ups, Spatial, HAAS Alert and Cargo, to pursue next-generation mobility solutions, including navigation, connectivity and ride-sharing initiatives. Spatial is a Cincinnati-based company that provides a dynamic, human-driven layer of social intelligence to create mapping and navigation. Chicago-based HAAS Alert is a connected notification platform that warns motorists when emergency vehicles are approaching, while Cargo, a New Y

Vitronic will present its Enforcement Trailer for the first time in Australia at the ITS World Congress. This autonomous enforcement system has been successfully deployed in several countries across Europe and the Middle East with about 300 units in France alone by the end of this year.

Australian company Mercury Innovation is set to launch a range of smart signs that deliver real-time information to road side users. The company claims that, for the first time, these ‘smart signs’ will allow for the cost-effective delivery of customised site-specific messages/conditions to single individual signs or groups of signs in a network of interconnected devices within a Smart City network.

Germany-headquartered Init will use the ITS World Congress Melbourne to highlight the company’s revolutionary ID-based ticketing solution that helps public transport companies to offer their passengers more convenience while streamlining their sales.