News

The four-year Best Practice Factory for Freight Transport (BESTFACT) project collected, developed, evaluated and disseminated innovative ideas for city logistics, green logistics, co-modality and e-freight, has closed. A new handbook, which includes 157 sustainable best practice examples from across Europe, is now available. The aim of the project is to help reduce negative environmental effects, improve transport execution efficiency and present the positive results of such measures. The knowledge platf

Western Australia is to trial a driverless and fully electric shuttle bus later this year. Developed by NAVYA SAS, a French company specialising in intelligent transport systems, the shuttle bus can transport up to 15 passengers and has a maximum speed of 45kmh with an average speed of 25kmh Announcing the trial, Transport Minister Dean Nalder said the Department of Transport was working closely with the RAC to ensure compliance with road and vehicle safety standards while they trialled an autonomous sh

A letter to Google, the US federal transport regulator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), appears to pave the way for self-driving cars, but adds the proviso that the rule-making could take some time. Google had requested clarification of a number of provisions in the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSSs) as they apply to Google’s described design for self-driving vehicles (SDVs). “If no human occupant of the vehicle can actually drive the vehicle, it is more reasonable

The New South Wales (NSW) government in Australia is launching a 12 month program to uncover the trends and technologies that it claims will revolutionise the way the government and customers plan, build and use transport. Announcing the Future Transport program, NSW Minister for Transport and Infrastructure Andrew Constance said he was calling on the world's brightest tech minds to find the next big idea that would shake up transport in the state. Future Transport will kick off with a two-day summit

What is said to be the UK’s first ‘video ticket office’ NextAgent has arrived at Stansted Airport as transport provider Abellio and Cubic Transportation Systems (CTS) trial an innovative solution to improve ticket purchasing options for rail passengers. The new NextAgent, developed by CTS, will provide passengers with the benefit of a walk-up ticket office that will connect passengers via a live video-link to an Abellio Greater Anglia ticketing expert. The system is currently being trialled at Stans

A recent drink-drive enforcement operation saw police conduct 1,134,924 roadside breath tests for alcohol, of which 15,791 were positive. Motorists were also checked for drugs in the operation, and 3,157 offences were detected. The operation was organised by TISPOL in 27 countries between 7 and 13 December 2015. TISPOL general secretary Ruth Purdie said: “These figures show a continued decline in the proportion of drivers who fail breath tests, which is good news. “However, if we scale up that proport

NEC Corporation has signed a long-term partnership agreement with Bristol Is Open, a smart city initiative in the UK and a joint venture between Bristol City Council and the University of Bristol. It aims to create the world’s first open, programmable city to support the creation of innovative new smart services for people, business and academia. It intends to pave the way for improvements in a wide range of services, including traffic congestion, waste management, entertainment, e-democracy, and energy

To provide emerging transportation leaders with leadership training geared specifically to the toll road industry, the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA) has convened its 2016 Leadership Academy, 1 to 12 February at the Washington Marriott Georgetown in Washington, DC. Selected through a competitive application process, the 36 global participants will participate in this intense, one-week course taught by internationally recognised toll industry leaders, business partners, mana

Dutch company Nedap has installed its parking sensors as part of the Polish Tristar intelligent transportation systems (ITS) project, which aims to improve congestion, parking and public transport information in the Polish cities of Gdansk, Sopot and Gdynia, known as Tri-City. Nedap’s Sensit wireless parking sensors detect the occupancy of an individual parking bay in real-time. Parking solutions integrator Green Center deployed the cities’ parking guidance system utilising Nedap’s Sensit wireless parkin

Announcing President Obama’s US$98.1 billion Fiscal Year 2017 Budget for the US Department of Transportation (DOT), Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said, “Meeting future challenges will require a long-term vision for the transportation sector that includes more and cleaner options, and expands those options to communities across the country. This budget brings us closer to that vision.” The Budget addresses the DOT’s top priority, safety, with investments in the safe integration of emerging techno

Mobility-as-a-service company MaaS Finland commenced operations on 1 February with funding from private investors and the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation Tekes. Other investors are Transdev, a French transportation organisation, Karsan Otomotiv Sanayii and Ticaret, a Turkish car-industry company. Other shareholders include InMob Holdings of Cyprus; Neocard; Korsisaari; GoSwift; MaaS Australia; Goodsign; IQ Payments; and Delta Capital Force. MaaS Finland founder Sampo Hietanen holds a

With an expected 7,000 attendees from all over the world, the 23rd ITS World provides an opportunity for participants to create business opportunities and connect with industry buyers, partners, investors and developers. Exhibition booths are selling fast, view the floor plan for remaining prime positions, or contact our Sales Manager directly at [email protected].

TU-Automotive has just released a new 60-page report, Cyber Security in the Connected Vehicle 2016, which looks at the role of robust cyber security practices and systems in the connected vehicle now and in the future of the automotive industry.

A Delaware, US, court has dismissed all claims brought by Neology against Hong Kong-based Star Systems International (SSI) under two patents held by Neology, namely US Patents US 6,690,264 and US 6,229,443. Neology had previously alleged that any 6C-compliant transponder infringed the two patents. SSI has been one of the defendants in a lawsuit brought by Neology in 2014 against several RFID companies in the US District Court for the District of Delaware. In summary, Neology asserts that various pate

Medium-sized cities across the US have submitted applications for the US Department of Transportation (USDOT) Smart City Challenge. According to US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, 77 cities from Reno to Rochester and Anchorage to Albuquerque have applied to enter the competition, which seeks to create an innovative, fully integrated model city that uses data, technology and creativity to shape how people and goods move in the future. The USDOT will award the winning city up to US$40 million to imp