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Boston-Power, a provider of next-generation lithium-ion battery cells, modules and systems, has announced a multi-year agreement to provide battery systems to Beijing Electric Vehicle Company (BJEV), the electric vehicle delivery arm of Beijing Automotive Industry Company (BAIC). Under terms of the agreement, Boston-Power’s battery systems are expected to support multiple BJEV models and brands. Availability of pre-ordered vehicles begins in fourth calendar quarter 2012 with the C70 sedan, which is based on

US-based provider of management and technical support services, AECOM, has been appointed to undertake 15 per cent concept designs for a bus rapid transit (BRT) system in Western Australia. The system will be between Bassendean and Ellenbrook train station in Perth and 6,500 people are expected to use BRT daily by 2031. AECOM says it expects to complete the design work by March 2013 and it will do planning for stations, park and ride facilities and integration for existing and future usage of land.

EC Harris has secured as role in plans for a US$9.87 billion metro system in Doha. As part of a project management team led by Jacobs Engineering of the US, EC Harris will provide commercial risk management for the 'red' metro line. Jacobs and two other consortia were appointed by QRail to manage the scheme in July 2012. The 'green' line will be managed by Hill International, while the 'gold' line and two major stations will be managed by Egis Rail and Louis Berger.

Speeding tickets have brought US$398 million in revenue to the French government over the first six months of 2012. Antai, the national agency for automated processing of traffic violations expects US$830 - $860.5 million in revenue for the full year compared to $785.56 million in 2011. The number of speed cameras deployed throughout France is expected to reach 2,200 by late 2012. The expansion programme cost nearly $246 million in 2011 and it is believed that the budgetary policy will change after 2013. Ra

Brazil's government has given private engineering company Estruturadora Brasileira de Projetos (EBP) 150 days to prepare technical studies for seven road stretches which are earmarked for privatisation. The concession auctions will involve 5,700km of state roads, the largest being a 1,423km stretch linking three motorways in Mato Grosso do Sul (BR 163, BR 267 and BR 262) to the Mato Grosso/Sao Paulo border.

According to Centauro-ASAPS data, hit and run accidents in Italy increased by 33 per cent in the first half of 2012. Out of a total 461 accidents, 57 resulted in fatalities, up by four per cent year-on-year, while the number of casualties increased by 35 per cent to 564. Police managed to find those responsible for hit and run accidents in 265 instances out of the total 461. Out of 25.7 per cent of identified perpetrators, 68 of them were drunk and nine of them, corresponding to 13 per cent, tested also pos

The Danish city of Aarhus, which has the second-largest urban area in Denmark after Copenhagen, has chosen BlipTrack to measure travel time and traffic flow following eight months of thorough testing of the system. The results showed that Blip Systems’ small and non-intrusive Bluetooth solution could offer the same exact information as alternative and more expensive solutions.

The government of Malta has launched a major campaign to encourage the islands’ drivers to switch to electric vehicles by offering a 25 per cent government rebate of up to €4,000 (US$4,950) on the purchase of an EV, preferential parking spots and the promise of some 100 charging points to be installed across the Malta and Gozo. The licence for EVs has already been reduced from €75 to €10.

The 2013 Ford C-Max Energi, a new plug-in hybrid coming to the market towards the end of this year, will reach a top speed of 137 km/h (85 mph) in full electric mode. And with a push of a button on the centre console, the C-Max Energi will go into full electric mode with a range of about 32kms before the engine kicks in to extend the range to 885kms (550 miles). The driver can select an ‘EV later’ mode that saves some plug-in power for later use, such as when the vehicle comes off a highway and transitions

Iteris, which operates 511 systems in 11 states, is soliciting proposals for sponsorship opportunities of Georgia's 511 NaviGAtor traveller information system. The request for proposal (RFP) package is available to download at GDOT 511 RFP. Sponsorship opportunities of the Georgia 511 NaviGAtor system include the 511 telephone system, which receives 1.6 million - 2 million calls annually; 511 website, which exceeds three million hits annually; over 600 roadway signs statewide, reaching more than three milli

The UK Highways Agency is trialling a system to add commercially available traffic data to its existing sources to monitor how well traffic is flowing on England's motorways and strategic roads. Similar data sources are already used by satellite navigation devices, smartphones, and applications like Google maps. Better real-time data will allow agency staff to respond more quickly to incidents and identify delays and communicate them to drivers so they can take alternative routes if necessary.

By gaining Intertek ETL (Electrical Testing Labs) safety approval, Swarco Traffic Americas has announced it has reached a key milestone in an effort to build a US-based operation and deliver a superior roadway lighting solution to a market that is moving toward integrated LED solutions. "We've gone from zero to one-hundred in six months opening our US headquarters, building a team, getting our Futurlux manufacturing in California off the ground and getting Futurlux approved for ETL for use throughout the co

Efkon India has announced that is has provided design, installation, and commissioning solutions for the three main toll plazas and three ramp toll plazas of the Yamuna Expressway Project (YEP) - a 165km highway stretch connecting Delhi with Agra – that will be inaugurated today. The toll plazas comprise a total of 129 lanes and all main plazas have 32 lanes furnished with fully automatic and semi-automatic fare collection system. The solution includes 24 weigh-in-motion (WIM) systems across all main plazas

Efkon India has announced that is has provided design, installation, and commissioning solutions for the three main toll plazas and three ramp toll plazas of the Yamuna Expressway Project (YEP) - a 165km highway stretch connecting Delhi with Agra – that will be inaugurated today. The toll plazas comprise a total of 129 lanes and all main plazas have 32 lanes furnished with fully automatic and semi-automatic fare collection system. The solution includes 24 weigh-in-motion (WIM) systems across all main plazas

Efkon India has announced that is has provided design, installation, and commissioning solutions for the three main toll plazas and three ramp toll plazas of the Yamuna Expressway Project (YEP) - a 165km highway stretch connecting Delhi with Agra – that will be inaugurated today.

Soti, a specialist in mobile device management (MDM), has announced the successful implementation of its MobiControl MDM solution for JJ Food Service which is using the system to manage its entire mobile workforce of over 700 employees and 200 trucks across the UK. According to Rif Kiamil, IT manager, JJ Food Service, "While it is difficult to assign a monetary value to how MobiControl has improved our business, we fully realise that our mobile projects would not have been as successful without Soti MobiCon

French authorities have started sending fines to Belgian citizens for road traffic violations observed in France using roadside speed cameras. Foreigners account for more than 20 per cent of road traffic violations in France but up until recently there was no mechanism for taking action against them once they had returned to their home country. In June 2012, Belgium opened its car registration database to the French, Spanish and German authorities so that violators can be traced and fined.

Sophisticated vehicle technologies will derive from a new investment by a Chinese manufacturer into UK research. Car company FAW is providing Nottingham University with a US$1.57, three-year research contract. Under the terms of the agreement, Nottingham University will work with FAW on the development of a number of low carbon technologies. These will include thermal management and heat transfer, which have been identified as key challenges for both hybrid electric and pure electric vehicles as these opera

The total in-car navigation market has been in continual decline for the last three years, but ABI Research believes it has now reached its lowest ebb. While pure navigation is unlikely to reach the highs of 2008 again, the overall market is reaching a revenue plateau, creating a solid platform on which connected in-car services can bring a new generation of revenue growth. Senior analyst Patrick Connolly stated,” When we look at the decline from 2008 to 2011, there is a perfect storm of economic conditions

Harman, the global audio and infotainment group has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Interchain Solution, based in Bangalore, India. The company has an array of cost-effective hardware platforms which are deployed for fleet tracking, connectivity, telematics applications and an Android-based Infotainment solution for automotive OEMs. Some of Interchain’s current customers include TeleAtlas, Aljacs Toyota, MapmyIndia and government institutions such as police and transport departments of variou