News

From 1 March 2017, UK drivers caught using a phone while driving will face tougher penalties. Under new legislation announced by the Department for Transport, offenders will receive six penalty points on their licence and a £200 fine, up from the previous three points and £100 penalty.

A new study from Sweden’s National Road and Transport Research Institute (VTI) which aims to improve understanding of the differences between inhalable particles in highway versus railway environments has indicated that older types of trains produce more particulate emissions in railroad tunnels than do newer ones. Dust binding, improved paving and reduced studded tyre use could reduce coarse particle levels in road tunnels.

Spanish connected vehicle systems developer Ficosa has presented its latest connected car and autonomous vehicle technologies at Mobile World Congress 2017. Sharing a stand with Panasonic the company showed its latest connectivity solutions for different sectors, from retail and automobile, to communication, security and logistics.

Tolling arrangements for the new Mersey Gateway in the UK have been announced. Both the new bridge and the Silver Jubilee Bridge will be tolled from autumn 2017. The Mersey Gateway is a new road bridge across the River Mersey and the Manchester Ship Canal in north-west England, which began construction in May 2014.

The Renault-Nissan Alliance and Transdev have agreed to jointly explore development of mobility services with fleets of electric driverless vehicles for public and on-demand transportation. The companies will collaborate to develop a comprehensive, modular transportation system to enable clients to book rides, and mobility operators to monitor and operate self-driving car fleets.

HNTB Corporation national director of priced managed lanes and vice president, Matthew Click, AICP, has been appointed by the Transportation Research Board to its Standing Committee on Managed Lanes. Bringing more than two decades of industry experience, Click, who has been active in TRB for more than 12 years, joins the group of transportation professionals for a three-year term.

Established four years ago by Telematics Valley, which aims to promote the use of telematics in transportation, the European working group DOITS (Data Openness in Transport Solutions) has taken on the challenge to identify and prioritise key ECO-driving measures that need to be harmonised.

Improving the capital’s infrastructure, through Crossrail 2, a new runway at Heathrow and East London river crossings, is key to the city’s future success and ability to compete, according to the latest CBI/CBRE London Business Survey. More than eight in ten of London’s companies see Crossrail 2 as being central to the capital’s successful expansion. Meanwhile, a similar number of firms think sticking to the Government’s current timetables for building Heathrow’s third runway is vital to London’s attractive

VMS manufacturer Bartco UK will use Traffex 2017 to showcase its integration of ITS products which aim to increase road safety. The company is working with SRL Traffic Systems on the integration of its HD Quattro portable variable message sign (VMS) with temporary traffic lights, designed to show basic safety information during temporary traffic light installation and road works.

Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) and Mastercard are jointly launching a pilot of account-based ticketing (ABT) for public transport, by allowing the usage of contactless credit and debit cards for fare payments. Commuters holding Singapore-issued Mastercard contactless credit or debit cards can apply to join the pilot via the TransitLink ABT Portal. LTA and Mastercard hope to attract at least 100,000 commuters to participate in the pilot.

Taxi drivers in Melbourne, Australia, have staged a ‘go slow’ during morning rush hour on one of the city’s busiest roads, Tullamarine freeway, in protest at changes to state government industry reforms that would regulate ride-sharing app Uber and scrap taxi licences.

Consistent expansion in the key emerging consumer and construction rail freight markets both in the latest quarterly and the accumulative annual Office of Road and Rail (ORR) figures, demonstrates confidence and the potential of the sector, according to Freight on Rail. According to the figures, consumer traffic¸ which has increased all year, grew over five per cent in quarter three compared to last year, setting a new record for the highest amount of freight moved per quarter since quarterly figures wer

The second edition of the Institution of Engineering & Technology's Local Authority Guide to Emerging Transport Technology has been launched in association with ITS (UK). The updated guide is targeted at local government officers, elected members and their consultants and aims to explain how technology can aid delivery of a range of policy objectives, from reducing emissions to assisting smooth traffic flows. It also features a variety of case studies, demonstrating how innovative technologies are alr