Air Quality & Weather Systems

Greenowl’s voice-only congestion warning smartphone app alerts drivers to problems ahead and could be the way ahead for traffic information. If there is one point Matt Man, CEO of Canadian company Greenowl, wants to make clear from the start, it is that his company’s app is not a navigation system. He says: “Our system does not direct drivers to their destination because we mainly focus on commuters who know how to get to where they are going and only need information about any delays and incidents ahead of

IBM has developed a new transportation management solution to help minimise congestion and improve traffic flow for the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA). The solution, which is part of NJTA's advanced traffic management program (ATMP), will serve both the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway, two of the most heavily travelled highways and busiest toll roads in the United States. The system, which manages almost a thousand devices, provides traffic management professionals at the NJTA

Five prism signs have been installed Swarco Traffic to manage traffic control approaching an Enforcement Checksite operated by the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) on the M74 motorway in Scotland. The signs have been installed at strategic points along the M74 by Beattock Summit to guide heavy vehicles into the nearside lane and direct selected vehicles into the weighbridge and inspection area. The signs feature a combination of control solutions with urban traffic management and control (UTMC)

According to the FTA Logistics Carbon Review 2015, Logistics Carbon Reduction Scheme (LCRS) members are leading the way in making significant progress in reducing carbon emissions – compared to the rest of the logistics industry. Released at the Freight Transport Association’s annual Logistics Carbon Reduction Conference last week, the report incorporates the fifth annual results of the LCRS and reveals that the freight industry is contributing to national climate change reduction targets. Rachael

Swarco Traffic’s new, fully programmable variable message sign (VMS) delivers exceptional levels of clarity, durability and life-expectancy, says the company. An evolution of its proven 3G optic, the new version is available with 3G6 or 3G7 optic and is a full colour RGB matrix sign featuring significantly reduced power consumption for longer-life operation and further improved reliability.

David Crawford looks at a US model which, for modest federal funding, is producing substantive results. Outward and upward is the clear message emerging from the US$458,000, 2015 workplan of the US government’s ENTERPRISE (Evaluating New TEchnologies for Roads PRogram Initiatives in Safety and Efficiency) joint funding scheme for ITS research.

Siemens and Duisburger Hafen (duisport) are to cooperate on the joint development of innovative concepts for optimising traffic management in multimodal transportation hubs, based on Siemens’ integrated truck guidance system. The system will be piloted at the port of Duisburg in Germany, where truck data will be recorded and bundled with regional real-time traffic data such as travel times, traffic situations and disruptions. This data will then be forwarded to mobile devices and LED traffic message boar

The UK’s cities are under unprecedented pressure to improve air quality, as Supreme Court justices in London order that air quality plans to comply with European Union (EU) law on limits for nitrogen dioxide (NOx) in the air must be submitted to the European Commission no later than 31 December 2015. The case was brought by ClientEarth, a group of lawyers dedicated to environmental issues, which says the ruling means the Government must start work on a comprehensive plan to meet pollution limits as soon

A US$1 billion project, which will add 24 kilometres of extra lanes to one of Victoria’s busiest and most important roads and reduce congestion and travel time to Melbourne airport, is set to be unveiled. Minister for Roads and Road Safety, Luke Donnellan, has announced that the Victorian Government and Transurban had signed a new, robust agreement to deliver the CityLink Tullamarine Widening Project. The Australian and Victorian Governments and Transurban will jointly fund the project, which also inc

California’s transportation systems are set for a radical overhaul following Governor Jerry Brown’s Executive order to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to 40 per cent below 1990 levels by 2030. Figures from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) show that transportation accounts for 199.3 million tonnes of CO2 - almost 60 per cent of the state’s CO2 emissions, while the next largest is industrial production (62.9 million tonnes), followed by electric power at 36.5 million tonnes, residential us