News

Kapsch TrafficCom experienced stable business development in the first three quarters of 2014/2015 with existing installation and operation projects. The Group was also able to obtain a number of new orders in Australia during the third quarter, although new major orders, upon which the innovation and growth plans are based, remained elusive due to the lack of corresponding invitations to tender. Revenue of the Group during the first three quarters of the 2014/15 fiscal year was US$283.5 million, slightly b

The Department for Transport is to contribute US$4.6 million to help create a digital road map that will give the most detailed information yet to councils and emergency services. The new map, developed by Ordnance Survey, has the potential to transform how all levels of government maintain and improve roads by detailing information such as road widths, traffic calming measures and height and weight restrictions. This dataset could also be linked to other information held by government, including planned ro

The UK’s Institute of Advanced Motorists has responded to the Department for Transport study carried out by the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) into the prevalence of illegal mobile phone use while driving, saying that the results are disappointing but not at all surprising. The figures show that, in 2014, 1.1 per cent of drivers in England and Scotland were observed holding a phone in their hand with a further 0.5 per cent observed holding the phone to their ear, equating to more than 470,000 motorists

Iteris has announced that Abbas Mohaddes has resigned as president and chief executive officer to pursue other opportunities. Mohaddes also resigned from the company’s board of directors. Kevin Daly, currently a non-executive director of Iteris, will serve as chief executive officer on an interim basis until the Company finds a permanent replacement for Mohaddes, who has agreed to provide transitional support services for a limited period as requested by the Company. Greg Miner, chairman of Iteris, commente

Helsinki Region Transport (HSL) and the Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT) are to launch an extensive joint pilot to introduce light-weight electric buses in Helsinki, where the demanding climatic conditions provide an excellent test environment. The first 12 buses, made from aluminium and developed by Linkker, will purchased by HSL and be in service by late summer. The buses will be equipped with sensors to collect data and a real-time monitoring and control system will be developed to receive info

Moscow, which has to contend with heavy congestion on its arterial and ring roads during rush hour, relies heavily on its newly-implemented intelligent transportation system (ITS). At the heart of the system is PTV Group’s model-based PTV Optima, which delivers accurate traffic information in real-time and enables dynamic forecasting for a timescale of 60 minutes. PTV Optima collects, compares, validates and combines data from multiple sources to produce a coherent and detailed traffic picture. Using a comb

According to the IDTechEx report, Electric Vehicle Forecasts, Trends and Opportunities 2015-2025, to benchmark new technology for electric vehicles it is vital to look at all of the off-road, on-road, water and airborne e-vehicles analysed in. For example, electric cars will have at least six types of energy harvesting variously converting ultra violet, infrared, visible light, vibration, vertical, lateral and forward movement into electricity but also heat differences. However, none of these first appear i

International Road (IRD) has announced strong results for the three months and year ended 30 November 2014, with net earnings up 50 per cent for the year and revenue up US$1.2 million for the year on solid growth in key geographic markets and product segments. The company also reported fourth quarter gross margin percentage increases on profit gains in Latin American markets and a stable financial position with positive working capital of US$7.7 million.

Western Australia’s transportation agency, Main Roads, has prepared a report, Automated vehicles: Are we ready?, that highlights the implications of the introduction and wider use of automated vehicles (AVs), or driverless cars on Western Australian roads. The report says that AV technology is developing so rapidly that these cars may be seen on the Western Australia road network sooner than expected, fundamentally changing the transport network. Driverless trucks have been operating in some Western Austra

The US Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has announced $2.571 million in grants to expand the use of real-time travel information in 13 highly congested urban areas across ten states. Known as integrated corridor management, or ICM, the grants will help selected cities or regions combine numerous information technologies and real-time travel information from highway, rail and transit operations. Such tools can help engineers make better decisions about congestion managemen

Q-Free has been awarded five new contracts by the Norwegian Public Roads Administration for its AutoPass roadside tolling systems. The contracts, at an estimated value of US$6.8 million, are for projects located in Bodø, Harstad, Svinesund, Helgeland and Tresfjord in Norway. The delivery comprises installation of charging points, including gantries and roadside equipment, together with service and maintenance after the completion of the installation. The contract also includes option for extension of the se

TransCore has expanded its presence in the Middle East with a contract worth US$100 million to provide the Arriyadh Development Authority (ADA) of Saudi Arabia with an advanced traffic management system to improve the flow of traffic for the seven million people living in Riyadh. TransCore will deploy its TransSuite software solution to manage traffic signal operations at 350 of the city’s busiest intersections. The system automatically adjusts traffic signal timing in response to real-time traffic conditio

Launched in 2012, the European Commission's Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SUMP) Award aims to encourage local authorities across Europe to adopt and develop their Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMPs). It also recognises outstanding achievements in each year’s SUMP chosen priority area. Seventeen applications from ten EU countries were submitted for the 2014 awards and the finalists announced as: Bremen (Germany); Dresden (Germany); and Ghent (Belgium). European Commissioner for Transport Violeta Bul

At the end of his four-day Grow America tour, US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx announced a proposed rule to increase oversight responsibilities of State Safety Oversight Agencies (SSOAs) by replacing the existing outdated regulatory framework with one designed to better evaluate the effectiveness of a rail transit agency’s system safety program. The proposed rule, issued by the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), would give states more resources to increase oversight over rail transit systems. It