Skip to main content

Intelligent rail transport system needed to enhance Gulf rail projects

Speaking ahead of the MENA Rail and Metro Summit 2013 in Abu Dhabi 28-30 October, Yiwen Wang, chief technology officer, MEA Government and Enterprise Business, ZTE Corporation, spoke of the need for an intelligent rail system to enhance the approximately US$250 billion worth of rail projects planned or under way in the GCC countries. He said intelligent as applied to rail transport has two aspects: “One is to introduce mature next generation communication technology into the rail transit system, the othe
October 21, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
Speaking ahead of the MENA Rail and Metro Summit 2013 in Abu Dhabi 28-30 October, Yiwen Wang, chief technology officer, MEA Government and Enterprise Business, ZTE Corporation, spoke of the need for an intelligent rail system to enhance the approximately US$250 billion worth of rail projects planned or under way in the GCC countries.

He said intelligent as applied to rail transport has two aspects: “One is to introduce mature next generation communication technology into the rail transit system, the other is to integrate IT innovations and ideas with the rail transport system.”

With plans to build more than 33,712km of mainline routes and 3,004km of metro, monorail and tramlines across the Middle East and North Africa, an intelligent rail transport system is vital to ensure an efficient, clean rail transport.

Intelligent transport system technology provides innovative services relating to different modes of transport and traffic management and enables users to be better informed and make safer, more coordinated and smarter use of transport networks, helping rail operators to reduce manpower requirements and improve operational efficiency.

Related Content

  • June 5, 2015
    Mega trends will challenge transport technology
    Jon Masters investigates some of the longer term trends that will shape transportation over the next 20 years. Business analysts and investors have already placed their bets on a future of technological smart mobility services. In December last year, the Wall Street Journal reported that Uber, the on-demand taxi and lift share smartphone app and start-up business, had been valued at $41.2 billion which, as the Journal reported, is an incredible vote of confidence for a company only five years old.
  • June 30, 2021
    Smart Cities: a journey, not a destination
    As technologies evolve, cities of the future should prepare for expansion by establishing scal­able systems, suggest Benjamin Ho and James Birdsall of Parsons
  • September 12, 2012
    Preparations building for French national truck toll
    The Autostrade led Ecomouv consortium is developing the next big system of truck tolling likely to be introduced in Europe – France’s ‘Eco-tax’. Jon Masters reports. Since October last year, a consortium of companies has been working on developing the technological and administrative systems necessary for a national system of truck tolling in France. Eco-tax, France’s truck toll, is not necessarily going to be implemented. The Ecomouv consortium has been set up as a long term concessionaire, but so far only
  • March 29, 2017
    Why the US said ‘yes’ to public transportation on 8 November
    Historic funding boost reflects America’s awareness of transit’s contribution to economic growth and quality of life. Something unexpected happened on Election Day 2016, a result nobody expected; public transportation was a clear winner. There were 49 transit-related funding initiatives on ballots across the nation, of which about 70% were passed.