News

Volvo Car Corporation has announced it is taking the next step in the company's electrification strategy by producing test cars with range extenders - electric cars that are fitted with a combustion engine to increase their effective range. The projects, supported by the Swedish Energy Agency and the EU, encompass three potential technology combinations. Tests of the various concepts will get under way in the first quarter of 2012.

The International Association of Public Transport (UITP) has reached a new official position on ‘Combined Mobility’. The document shows how traditional public transport can overcome some of its shortcomings and offer high flexibility and convenience so as to meet mobility demand of modern fellow citizens: by building up the so-called ‘sustainable mobility alliance’ with car-sharing, cycling and taxis, public transport is able to offer a full mobility portfolio and compete with the private car in terms of co

TomTom has launched Custom Area Analysis, a historical traffic product which gives customers access to highly granular speed and bottleneck information for road networks around the world. The product supports traffic modelling and analysis of road conditions and traffic performance. By providing a complete view of what is happening across the global road network, TomTom claims that Custom Area Analysis enables enterprises and governments to better understand and more efficiently manage their local areas.

Fears that the closure of a heavily congested stretch of highway in the US city of Los Angeles would lead to massive gridlock over the weekend proved groundless. The demolition of the Mulholland Overpass crossing above I-405 required a 53 hour closure of the busy highway along a 16km stretch. The highway carries amongst the heaviest traffic volumes of any stretch of road in the US and there has been concern that the necessary closure would cause chaos on the city as the inhabitants rely heavily on passenger

New York Mayor Bloomberg has unveiled a new, technology-based traffic management system that allows city traffic engineers to monitor and respond to Midtown Manhattan traffic conditions in real time, improving traffic flow on the city’s most congested streets.

New York Mayor Bloomberg has unveiled a new, technology-based traffic management system that allows city traffic engineers to monitor and respond to Midtown Manhattan traffic conditions in real time, improving traffic flow on the city’s most congested streets.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is planning to provide the Bulgarian capital of Sofia with a series of loans to support the modernisation of the city’s public transport system. The financial package of four loans worth a total of €24.96 million (US$35.6 million) will increase the quality, safety, accessibility and also the energy efficiency of transportation in the city.

A court-appointed trustee has selected Russian entrepreneur Boris G. Zingarevich, whose investment operations are based in St. Petersburg, Russia, as the winning bidder for Think Global electric vehicle manufacturer, following a bankruptcy proceeding initiated by the Norwegian carmaker last month. In addition, Zingarevich has signed a memorandum of understanding with American advanced lithium-ion battery maker Ener1, and Finnish automobile engineering and manufacturing concern Valmet Automotive, to cooperat

UK company, CA Traffic, having launched the Evo8 fully integrated Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) system in 2009, has announced a number of evolutionary developments offering customers what it says are unique capabilities in the world of ANPR.

TransCore has announced it participated in two winning projects announced at the ITS New York 18th Annual Meeting and Technology Exhibition. Of the six projects to receive awards, TransCore participated in the Outstanding Project of the Year in Traffic Control Systems for Integrated Adaptive Traffic Signal Control Decision Support and the Outstanding Project of the Year in Roadway Management for the New York State Thruway's Woodbury Toll Barrier - Highway Speed E-Z Pass system.

The US Department of Transportation will be holding a free public meeting and webinar to provide details on the Connected Vehicle research programme. The public meeting will take place on 2-4 August, 2011, in Chicago and will include sessions related to connected vehicle safety, future policy implications for connected vehicles, and connected vehicle safety for commercial vehicles and transit vehicles. The webinar service will be available all day on August 2nd and 3rd and during the morning only on August

The US Department of Transportation will be holding a free public meeting and webinar to provide details on the Connected Vehicle research programme. The public meeting will take place on 2-4 August, 2011, in Chicago and will include sessions related to connected vehicle safety, future policy implications for connected vehicles, and connected vehicle safety for commercial vehicles and transit vehicles. The webinar service will be available all day on August 2nd and 3rd and during the morning only on August

Trimble has signed an agreement to acquire privately-held PeopleNet, a leading provider of integrated onboard computing and mobile communications systems for fleet management. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2011.

The GCC Gulf Transport Report Highlights a massive programme of construction projects in hand in the Middle East. In the United Arab Emirates the report says that at present, there is over US$58 billion worth of road and bridge projects planned or underway. Abu Dhabi Roads Transport (DoT) has a master plan to develop surface transportation for the emirate. The project will be planned and implemented in collaboration with municipal organisations of different areas of the emirate. One of the most significant

ECOtality has announced a partnership with Car2go, a subsidiary of Daimler North America Corporation, to provide electric vehicle charging infrastructure to support what is being claimed as the first 100-per cent electric car sharing programme in North America. With plans for approximately 300 Smart Fortwo electric drive vehicles, the programme in San Diego represents the largest fleet of EVs in the United States.