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Continental has released a short-range radar which it says offers a right-turn assist function for passenger cars to help protect cyclists and pedestrians. It intervenes if the driver wants to turn right when a cyclist is about to pass along the right-hand side of the vehicle. If the radar sensors detect a cyclist, they transmit a signal to the brakes to stop the car, the company adds. According to Continental, the radar generation operates using 77GHz technology, allowing the radar sensor to detect

Arriva is working with TomTom Telematics with the aim of reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from 15,000 buses across the UK and nine European countries. Arriva says TomTom’s telematics system will provide bus drivers with feedback around braking, acceleration and idling to cut carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by up to 72,000 tonnes a year. Thomas Schmidt, managing director of TomTom, says: “Our fleet management solution, Webfleet, gives Arriva powerful insights into areas for improvement across its ex

A group of US cities have formed the Open Mobility Foundation (OMF) to develop and govern digital mobility tools aimed at improving how cities manage transportation. Growing from a collaboration between the Los Angeles Department of Transportation and the city of Santa Monica, the OMF intends to bring together academic and municipal stakeholders to develop the technology. Eric Garcetti, Los Angeles mayor, says: “The OMF will help us manage emerging transportation infrastructures, and make mobility more a

Navya has received approval from the Japanese government to operate autonomous vehicles (AVs) on open roads. The company is demonstrating its Autonom shuttles in Minato Ward, the business and diplomatic district of Tokyo, until 5 July. Navya received approval to carry out the demonstration following an agreement with SB Drive, a subsidiary of SoftBank, and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. A safety driver will remain on board to and intervene in the event of an emergency.

The District Department of Transportation (DDoT) in Washington, DC is working with CurbFlow to carry out the next phase of its kerbside pick-up and drop-off (PUDO) programme. DDoT says the programme allocates kerbside space for PUDO activities, allowing passenger and commercial loading to occur at the kerb and out of travel lanes. Jeff Marootian, DDoT director, says: “By exploring new kerbside management options through this partnership with CurbFlow, DDoT is able to keep traffic flowing, maximise effic

Lack of investment is the biggest challenge to smart city development, according to half the people who took part in a poll. Wi-Sun Alliance says a fifth of participants in its survey point to security and privacy issues while 14% see interoperability as a major factor for progressing deployments. Wi-Sun – whose members include Cisco and Toshiba - seeks to accelerate the implementation of open standards-based field area networks and the Internet of Things (IoT). Phil Beecher, CEO of Wi-Sun, says

Renault has partnered with Nissan and Waymo to explore the commercial and regulatory issues related to autonomous mobility services in France and Japan. The French car manufacturer says the partners will work together to develop long-term autonomous mobility services operations. As part of the agreement, Renault and Nissan will create joint venture alliance-focused companies in both countries dedicated to these services. John Krafcik, CEO of Waymo, says its Waymo Driver can deliver “mobility solutions t

Bolt is to expand its ride-hailing service to three additional urban centres in Kenya, according to a report by Capital FM Kenya. Ola Akinnusi, the Bolt country manager in Kenya, says: “After Nairobi and Mombasa cities, it was natural that Bolt would gradually expand across the country. We now intend to build new communities in Kisumu, Kakamega and Thika as we continue to gain the trust of the Kenyan people.” According to Akinnusi, the company has provided safety features such as ‘Share your ETA’ which al

A group of 11 companies including Audi and BMW have released a paper to help developers create safer automated driving solutions. Safety First for Automated Driving (SaFAD) says 12 principles - such as vehicle operator-initiated handover and operational design domain - were used to devise a possible overall structure for creating vehicles which will avoid hazards. SaFAD is designed to offer developers and operators a system for clear traceability that proves AVs are safer than the average driver thro

Wejo is to send anonymised traffic flow updates from seven million vehicles using its Adept platform to support TraffiCast’s mobility services in the US. Tech firm Wejo says Adept is a cloud-based data exchange platform that makes sharing and accessing connected car data simple. The data is expected to provide TraffiCast’s services with advanced commuter information, precise arrival time predictions, alternative route suggestions, reduced congestion and carbon footprints and improved traffic forecasting

Autonomous vehicles (AVs) will not be widely adopted unless tech issues and business cases are sorted out, says an expert at the World Economic Forum (WEF). In an interview with CNBC, Michelle Avary, head of autonomous mobility at the organisation, said: “Really making sure that the technology is working in the areas of perception, which is vision — being able to identify objects and then understand how to move around them. That has yet to be solved.” Speaking at the WEF’s Annual Meeting of the New Ch

Highways England is trialling two electric powered roadworks vehicles with the aim of improving air quality along motorways and major A roads. One vehicle is being used across the East Midlands and the other on a major scheme on the A14 in the east of England. Martin Bolt, Highways England’s corporate group leader, operations directorate (Midlands) says: “We are actively exploring opportunities to improve air quality for those travelling on, or living near, our roads as well as reduce exposure for road wo

Bird is rolling out a solution which it says will direct scooter riders to 1,000 predetermined locations in Paris. These are all off the pavements in the French capital and out of the pedestrian right of way, the company adds. The company’s new app feature directs riders to set parking places using visual references points, real-time navigation and GPS-enabled alerts informing them they are with an approved parking place. Bird is rewarding riders who park in the zones with money off their next ride to

Google is improving its SOS alerts by adding visual information about natural disasters and a navigation system on Google Maps. Google says the upgrade will extend the capabilities of the SOS alerts to provide crisis information via relevant news stories and Twitter updates from local authorities to include detailed visualisations about hurricanes, earthquakes and floods. In the days leading up to a hurricane, users will receive a crisis notification card on Google Maps that appears near impacted areas.

The city of Oslo has unveiled a grant scheme allowing private companies in the Norwegian capital to develop projects that promote climate-friendly travel between home and work. The city says the Climate and Energy Fund can provide grants up to 50% of the total cost of the measure with a maximum amount of NOK 250,000 (£23,000) per company per year. It is available for travel between home and the workplace and business trips to and from the workplace during the working day. The grant will only be availabl