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US financial research organisation Fitch Ratings has released its spring US Transportation Trends report which indicates that growth will remain healthy for all three US major transportation sectors (airports, ports and toll roads) this year. Commenting on toll roads, Fitch notes that low fuel prices have boosted growth in traffic (6.6 per cent) and revenue (8.3 per cent) since the second half of 2015. The south-east and south-west US have and will continue to lead in traffic performance. The higher rate

Q-Free has appointed Håkon Volldal as its new chief executive officer; he will take up his new position on 1 August. Volldal is currently executive vice president and head of business area for TOMRA Collection Solutions, where he has held several senior positions since 2004. “I am impressed with Q-Free’s history, solutions and ability to adapt to changing market needs over time. I really look forward to joining the Q-Free organisation and I trust I can use my experience to contribute to profitable gr

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has announced the latest project selections for the Low and No-Emission Vehicle Deployment Program, known as Low-No. Seven transit providers in five states will receive a share of US$22.5 million toward transit buses and related facilities that utilise battery-electric, fuel cell and other innovative technologies to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions and improve operating efficiency. FTA awarded the FY 2015 funds after a hi

PTV Group’s head of global research, Professor Dr Christoph Walther, has been appointed to a four-year term on the World Road Association (WRA) Road Transport System Economics and Social Development Committee. Together with experts from around the world, he will deal with issues concerning transport reliability and ex-post evaluation of transport infrastructure projects. Supported by the governments of its member countries, the WRA aims to promote international cooperation in roads and road transport. Ex

Flir’s new Certified System Engineer two-day course provides certified training on automatic incident detection and data collection solutions using Flir intelligent transportation systems visual and thermal detection systems. The interactive and hands-on training takes place in Ghent, Belgium on 14 and 15 June; topics covered include: The architecture and principles of thermal and visual detection; Camera selection and position; Safety and security in tunnels, on highways and bridges; Traffic data collec

UK company Colas will begin building and trialling the first autonomous impact protection vehicle (IPV) in the UK this year in partnership with two US companies, Royal Truck and Equipment and Micro Systems. Fitted with an electro-mechanical system and fully integrated sensor suite, the autonomous IPV has a leader/follower capability that allows it to follow a lead vehicle, unmanned. GPS position data is transmitted from the leader vehicle to the follower vehicle, which uses the data to follow the exact p

A new traffic app recently launched in Adelaide, South Australia, is helping drivers avoid roadworks and traffic jams with real-time updates. AddInsight taps into more than 400 of Adelaide’s state-of-the-art Bluetooth receivers, which monitor the city’s road network in real-time and broadcasts verbal messages to drivers in about approaching delays through a vehicle’s hands free systems and mobile phones. The free app has been released at a time when the South Australian capital’s road network has been

The Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket) has extended its contract with Q-Free for service and maintenance of the Stockholm congestion charging system. The new contract, valued at around US$1.6 million (NOK13 million), is an extension of the contract awarded in 2013 and continues the maintenance for one year from 2017. Congestion charges were introduced in Stockholm in 2006, first as a trial followed by a referendum, then permanently from 2007. “This is a confirmation of the long-standing r

The National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) has published its Transit Street Design Guide, produced in collaboration with the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE). ITE has adopted guiding principles that seek ways to improve safety and mobility in the movement of people and goods in the surface transportation system. Integral to that success is the accommodation of all forms of land uses and the associated transportation needs, be they residential, business, recreational, or

Jim Zemlin, executive director of The Linux Foundation, will take centre stage at ITS America 2016 San Jose on Tuesday, 14 June as the keynote speaker for day two of the event, The Infrastructure of Things. Before taking the helm at the Linux Foundation, Zemlin worked at startups in Silicon Valley, including Covalent and Corio. His career started in telecom at Western Wireless. Zemlin advises a variety of startups, including Splashtop, and sits on the boards of the Global Economic Symposium, Open Sou

With space increasingly at a premium in today’s cities, high quality public transport combined with a broader mix of mobility services is the answer to cutting car dependency, according to the latest publication from the International Association of Public Transport (UITP). The document, ‘Public transport at the heart of the integrated mobility solution,’ claims that the key to cutting urban car dependency is an integrated combination of sustainable mobility services. Cities with strong public transport

The US Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) today released a proposed regulation outlining new performance measures to assess travel reliability, congestion, and emissions at a national level. It calls for an increased level of transparency and accountability in establishing and achieving targets for performance impacting commuters and truck drivers. The measures address the concerns outlined in the USDOT report Beyond Traffic, which examines the trends and choices facing

Police officers across Europe are preparing for their latest Speed Marathon, taking place from 0600 on Thursday 21 April to 0600 on Friday 22 April. The 24-hour initiative forms part of TISPOL’s week-long speed enforcement operation, running until Sunday 24 April. The Speed Marathon concept was devised two years ago in the German federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Here, members of the public have once again been invited to vote on the locations where they would like speed enforcement measures to ta

Sydney, Australia, is to commence an open payments trial in 2017, enabling the city to have London-style open payments technology on its public transportation system. The trial is said to be a first for the southern hemisphere, providing a test case for other Australian cities which have been contemplating open payments. New South Wales (NSW) Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Andrew Constance, made the trial announcement at the opening session of the Future Technology Summit in Sydney. “For t

Registration is now open for the five-day 23rd ITS World Congress, to be held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre in Australia from 10-14 October 2016. More than 7,000 international delegates are expected to attend the Congress, hosted by ITS Australia, on behalf of ITS Asia Pacific, Ertico and ITS America, the Congress theme is ITS - Enhancing Liveable Cities and Communities. The Congress will include Plenary and keynote speakers, special interest sessions and more than 300 exhibitors.