Major improvements begin on UK M18 motorway
Major improvement work has begun at junction 5 of the M18 motorway in the UK. The US$8 million pinch point scheme will widen the junction and install traffic signals, improving congestion and reducing journey times at this junction near Doncaster.
Debut of Eastern Europe transport ticketing conference
The Transport Ticketing Central and Eastern Europe conference made its debut in Warsaw in October, welcoming 200 transport executives from across the region to discuss the ways to make paying and accessing public transport fast, efficient and flexible.
German road toll to cost foreign drivers up to €130 a year
The German government has introduced a controversial road toll which will force foreign car drivers to pay up to €130 (US$162) a year for using Germany's autobahn motorways.
India moves towards national ETC
Motorists in India will soon be able to travel the length of a national highway without making a single toll stop with the government’s centralised and interoperable electronic toll collection (ETC) system which is set to begin operations by March 2015, according to a report in the India Times.
German design award for Jenoptik
Jenoptik’s new TraffiTop mobile speed camera housing has received the German Design Award – Special Mention from the German Design Council in the Transportation and Public Design category.
Passive RFID grows by 1.12 billion tags in 2014 to 6.9 billion
More than five years later than the industry had expected, market research and events firm IDTechEx find that the passive RFID tag market is now seeing tremendous volume growth.
Market research and events firm IDTechEx find that the passive RFID tag market is now seeing tremendous volume growth - more than five years later than the industry had expected. Most of the growth is based on retailer adoption of UHF RFID for shelf-level stock replenishment, with the latest example being fashion retailer Zara r
Viajeo Plus sustainable urban mobility showcase
Viajeo Plus, an EC funded FP7 international cooperation project for implementation of innovative and efficient urban mobility solutions, has organised a City Showcase in Chengdu Heritage Park, China, on 11 November.
The event aims at facilitating knowledge exchange and experience sharing between China and Europe on sustainable urban mobility. It will gather technical experts, policy makers and researchers to present their achievements on sustainable urban mobility solutions, to discuss their needs and to
Glasgow City Council invests in new parking terminals
Glasgow City Council has awarded parking management solutions provider Parkeon a contract to install 325 Strada pay and display parking terminals, which will aid the council in its drive to increase parking areas for residents in the city and provide a wider choice of parking payment methods.
The Strada Transfer pay and display terminals have an easy to use interface and are solar powered and recyclable, making them environmentally friendly.
A spokesman for Glasgow City Council commented: “The Council
ITS awards for highways technology company
Two projects which highways technology company Rennicks says could set the blueprint for a fresh approach to road safety have sparked a double celebration for the company.
It has landed the title of Road Marking Project of the Year at the recent Highways Magazine Excellence Awards for a ground-breaking scheme in Scotland using solar-powered active road stud technology. And the company also clinched an ITS Ireland ITS Excellence award after providing the largest solar-powered variable message signs for t
Westminster launches parking app
Westminster Council in London has launched the ParkRight app to enable drivers to find a parking space in central London. The Council has installed sensors on 3,000 roadside spaces in the city, and through the app motorists can identify streets with available bays to avoid driving around searching for a spot.
Features include live ‘red, amber, green’ status for over 3000 spaces and locations of over 41,000 on and off-street parking spaces, with detailed information including number of spaces, operating h
Wi-Fi win-win for mass transit
David Crawford explores passenger and operator benefits of on-board Wi-Fi Urban commuters’ growing demand for continuous – and reliable - internet connectivity is spurring network operators into the rapid installation of high-grade Wi-Fi access on their surface and underground networks, as well as in their stations. Such moves are often a key part of strategies to maintain and increase ridership levels.
AAA camera research finds 46 per cent improvement in blind-zone visibility
Tests carried out by the American Automobile Association (AAA) on rear-view camera systems found that they improved rear visibility an average of 46 per cent. These systems are intended to improve driver awareness of the area immediately behind the vehicle in order to reduce the instance of back-over fatalities. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration requires a rear-view image in all passenger vehicles beginning in 2016, with full compliance by May 2018.
In conjunction with the Automobile Clu
Traffic accidents ‘number one worldwide cause of death among the young’
A new study released by the Allianz Center for Technology (AZT) found that traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for youths, regardless of a country’s economic well-being. Thirty-one percent of all traffic-related deaths in the world are youth and young adults aged between 15 and 29 years. This translates to more than 400,000 lives lost per year, which exceeds youth deaths caused by diseases, drug use, suicide, violence or war-related events.
Whether a traffic-related death of a youth occurs i
ITS Australia: used vehicle imports ‘a risk to safety’
Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) Australia has highlighted the risks to Australian transport safety that would be created by allowing parallel new vehicle and used vehicle imports. The warning is part of ITS Australia’s submission to the Federal Government 2014 Review of the Motor Vehicle Standards Act 1989.
Infrastructure and Regional Development Minister Jamie Briggs’ terms of reference for the 2014 Review emphasises “ . . . reducing regulatory burden (red tape) on business . . .” and whether the Ac
Parsons Brinckerhoff wins consultancy services contract
Engineering consultant Parsons Brinckerhoff has secured a nine-year contract with Somerset County Council in the UK to provide engineering consultancy services.
Anticipated activity under the framework contract will cover a diverse range of services, including: transportation studies; design of transport improvement and maintenance schemes; environmental planning and consultancy; highways safety studies; structures inspections; and construction management.
The contract has been drafted to enable othe
Joint venture delivers integrated parking payment
Mobile payment solutions provider Parkmobile USA is to partner with SP Plus Corporation (SP+) in a joint venture that will combine two parking transaction engines to deliver on-demand and prepaid transaction processing for on- and off-street parking and transportation services.
Parkmobile will contribute its on-demand parking transaction engine that allows consumers to transact real-time payment for parking privileges in both on- and off-street environments. SP+ will contribute its proprietary Click and
Satellite navigation 'has made drivers lazy'
A majority of UK drivers have no idea of how to read a map and are likely to find themselves hopelessly lost without their satellite navigation (satnav) system.
That's the shocking finding of a UK vehicle leasing company which has found that people rely on their electronic devices so heavily that they often have no idea of the route they've taken to reach their destination.
In addition, Flexed.co.uk has found that virtually everybody who has used a satellite navigation device has found themselves lost
UK’s M3 gets smart
Work begins shortly on the initial phase of a US$278 million project to improve the M3 between the M25 and Farnborough.
The section between junctions 2 and 4a will become a smart motorway, adding a fourth lane in both directions in place of the hard shoulder and adding enhanced on-road technology to keep traffic moving safely and reliably, providing a boost for businesses and the wider economy. The road will also be resurfaced with a new, low noise material. The main works are due to be completed by the
Cubic Technology to upgrade Los Angeles Metro ticketing system
Cubic Transportation Systems is to upgrade the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) TAP universal fare collection system to provide a Payment Application Data Security Standard (PA DSS) certified application as well as extensive system-wide hardware and software upgrades. The US$9 million contract is an add-on to the original Universal Fare System (UFS) awarded to Cubic in 2002 to deliver the TAP system.
The initiative will support new payment applications and Metro's resulti
British Columbia gets real time passenger information
Init has partnered with BC Transit in British Columbia, Canada, to supply an advanced automatic vehicle location and real-time passenger information system for the Kelowna RapidBus line on almost 30 kilometres of Highway 97 in Kelowna.
The project included the implementation of Init’s onboard computers, interactive driver terminals, emergency alarms, digital signage and audio announcements on the buses. External passenger information displays were installed at 12 newly constructed bus shelters along the