News

A joint venture partnership of UK public transport operator, Keolis, and infrastructure asset management specialist, Amey, has been named as the new operator of Greater Manchester’s Metrolink light rail network. The partners will operate and maintain the network for ten years from July 2017, taking over from RATP Dev and MPT. KeolisAmey currently runs the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) in London, which caters for more than 117 million journeys a year.

A nine-month investigation by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) into the fatal car crash involving a Tesla Model S in Florida last year has concluded that the car’s Autopilot system, which was in operation at the time, was not at fault. The decision noted that Autopilot is a Level 2 self-driving system and, therefore, requires the driver to always monitor the system and be at the ready to intervene – a stipulation that the driver failed to perform, the administration says.

Swarco and Skidata parking technology company APT Skidata has been awarded two significant contracts by UK company Land Securities to upgrade the parking systems at Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth and Lewisham shopping centre in London. Both sites will deploy APT Skidata’s new Power.Gate control columns to control entry and exit, providing operators with options to adopt alternative ticketing types in the future. The control columns at both sites will be fitted with optic scanners which will read e-ticke

A total of 15 projects have been conditionally approved to receive around US$2.5 million (NZ$3.5 million) from New Zealand’s Low Emission Vehicles Contestable Fund. Projects include the use of 100 per cent electric delivery vans, a car share scheme using electric vehicles, an electric taxi fleet trial, two electric bus trials, seven charging infrastructure projects and the establishment of a facility to convert heavy vehicles to electric power. These projects aim to help accelerate the uptake of EVs t

UK public transport operator Arriva has made an investment in its fleet, purchasing 174 new Volvo B5LH double deck hybrid buses, adding to the existing batch of 44 Volvo hybrid buses the company purchased in 2013. From the order, 123 will be incorporated into the company’s London operations and a further 51 will be used in Merseyside on local routes. The parallel hybrid Volvo B5LH, with Wrightbus bodywork, provides complete integration of the engine and the hybrid systems, all of which are designed and m

Automaker Ford is launching a multi-million pound project designed to help improve air quality in London, as it accelerates its electrification plans with 13 new global electrified vehicles scheduled for introduction in the next five years. The project, supported by Transport for London, features a 12-month trial of 20 new plug-in hybrid (PHEV) Transit Custom vans that are said to reduce local emissions by running solely on electric power for the majority of city trips such as deliveries or maintenance w

The International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA) and ITS America (ITSA) have commented on the inauguration of Donald Trump as President of the US, saying they look forward to working with him and his administration to implement the proposed investment in the country’s infrastructure. IBTTA executive director and CEO Patrick D. Jones said that IBTTA and the tolling industry are ready to work with President Trump and his new administration to find ways to realise the president's campaign

A new report published by Allied Market Research, Automotive Sensors Market by Product and End User - Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2014-2022, projects that the automotive sensors market was valued at US$22 billion in 2015 and is expected to reach US$37 billion by 2022, growing at a CAGR of 7.5 per cent from 2016 to 2022. Micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) sensors are expected to dominate this market from 2016 to 2022. Europe will continue to lead, accounting for approximately 35

Canadian company, Nyx Hemera Technologies, has been awarded a contract to install its tunnel lighting addressable control system (TLACS), along with Schréder’s luminaires, in the 2 km long Queens-Midtown tunnel in New York City. The TLACS solution will aid the installation of the new tunnel lighting system since the power line communication technology used to control the luminaires does not require the installation of control wiring. The TLACS’ local product controller, installed in both Schréder’s

UK rail operator Chiltern Railways is to partner with travel technology company SilverRail Technologies in the development and pilot of a ticket-free travel. This development will allow passengers to use their smartphones to detect commencement of travel and use Bluetooth to open ticket gates, automatically charging the customer the best price for their journey at the end of the day. At un-gated stations geo-location tools are used to locate the customer and the trains travelled on. The app will also

The US Department of Transportation (US DOT) has announced new Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) guidance (link http://www.its.dot.gov/v2i.) that aims to improve safety and mobility by accelerating the deployment of V2I communication systems. The guidance complements the Department's efforts to reduce crashes by advancing vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication technology announced in a proposed rule in December. V2I communication is an important component of a connecte

A recent survey conducted by Nanos Research on behalf of the Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships (CCPPP) indicates that 64 per cent of Canadians prefer paying tolls rather than higher taxes or going into debt in order to cover the costs of public infrastructure. The survey also suggests six in ten Canadians think governments across the country are not investing enough in public infrastructure. The same number supports a larger role for the private sector in financing and managing infrastruc

According to the Transport Research Laboratory, TRL, the UK will continue to play a key role in shaping future European transport policy following its award of the latest European Commission (EC) Automotive Safety Framework. The agreement, which follows on from TRL’s involvement in a previous eight-year framework, will see experts from TRL help EC policymakers prevent future road collisions and casualties through improved automotive safety. Areas of focus include connected and autonomous vehicles, crash

A consortium of US researchers has announced the development of a universal, free, and open-source framework to protect wireless software updates in vehicles. The team issued a challenge to security experts everywhere to try to find vulnerabilities before it is adopted by the automotive industry. The new solution, called Uptane, evolves the widely used TUF (The Update Framework), developed by NYU Tandon School of Engineering Assistant Professor of Computer Science and Engineering Justin Cappos to secure