News

Florida’s Traffic Engineering Research Laboratory (TERL) has added Daktronics’ most recent transportation innovation, a single-line 20mm high-resolution (HRFC), full-colour dedicated dynamic message sign, the VM-1020 series LED display, to its approved product listing. In addition to expanding Daktronics product offering, the VM-1020 features variable character and background colours such as black letters or numbers on a white background. The sign’s HRFC capabilities allow agencies to match the display’s

Germany-based software company PTV Group has been awarded the prestigious 2015 Global Leadership Seal awarded by the business publisher German Standards (Deutsche Standards). The new edition of the Encyclopaedia of Global Market Leaders, published by Deutsche Standards, details the position and power of innovation of German companies, documenting their outstanding global position in their sectors. Publisher Dr Florian Langenscheidt says: "World market leaders from Germany stand for quality and technol

A new report by think tank the Institute of Economic Affairs looks at an alternative to expanding the rail network in the UK. The report, Paving over the tracks: a better use of Britain’s railways?, by Paul Withrington and Richard Wellings outlines how commuters could pay over 40 per cent less for their journeys and more passengers could enjoy the luxury of a seat if the industry was sufficiently liberalised to allow some commuter railways in London to be converted into busways. The success of the bu

A recent seminar in Krakow, Poland, on proactive marketing for sustainable rural transport, delivered as part of the EC-funded project SmartMove, provided advice to local authorities and others on the use of individualised marketing to maximise patronage of rural transport systems on tight budgets. About 40 people attended the event, including several local politicians and public transport stakeholders in Poland. The SmartMove project is based on a successful pilot project carried out in 2009 in a rural

Jacobs Engineering Group has been awarded three contracts by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to provide services for various projects state-wide. The three contracts will see Jacobs provide: traffic engineering and planning studies primarily in the El Paso District; engineering services for the preparation of plans, specifications and estimates (PS&E) and related documents for various on-system and off-system bridge replacements state-wide; and professional land surveying services within

Swarco has deployed what it says is the most customer-friendly parking system in Linköping, Sweden. The system utilises Swarco’s latest solution in hands-free parking, SWAPPACCESS, which provides quick access to the car park via the integration of contactless cards and licence plate recognition. Drivers with a SWAPPACCESS account can download an app to their mobile phone which gives details of available parking spaces and provides contactless parking payment. At car parks with barriers, the licen

Around 90 ITS stakeholders participated in the fifth iMobility Forum Plenary meeting , which discussed the high level framework necessary to implement a roll-out of C-ITS and vehicle automation in Europe, the respective roles of business and policy makers in terms of infrastructure investments, data protection, communication efforts for public acceptance; and who should take the lead in which area. The meeting also debated the regulatory framework needed for global implementation. Opening the meeting, E

São Paulo state court TCE-SP has ordered a halt to the tender of São Paulo state's US$732 million project to build an underwater tunnel between the coastal cities of Santos and Guarujá. The project calls for the construction and operation of a 900 metre, six-lane submersed tunnel between Brazil's coastal cities of Santos and Guarujá. To be submerged at a depth of 21 metres, the tunnel would give the Santos port navigation channel a draft of 17 metres. Construction was scheduled to start in 2014 and c

The European Commission has approved US$332 million from its Cohesion Fund for five major projects to improve sustainable public transport services in the largest Polish cities of Warsaw, Łódź, Szczecin and Poznań. These investments aim to modernise the public transport systems in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way and will provide commuters and visitors with improved travel conditions, higher comfort and shorter journey times. They are all financed under the Polish Infrastructure and Environ

Announcing President Obama’s US$94.7 billion Fiscal Year 2016 budget for the US Department of Transportation, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said, “Our budget proposal lays the foundation for a future where our transportation infrastructure meets the demands of a growing population and an economy that depends on the free flow of freight,” said Secretary Foxx. “This Administration is looking towards the horizon – the future – but to do this we need Congress’ partnership to pass a long-term reauthorisa

Jenoptik’s Traffic Solutions division is to participate in an 18-month Germany-wide section speed control (or average speed enforcement) pilot project. Jenoptik technology will initially be tested in Lower Saxony. Jenoptik will supply its laser scanner-based TraffiSection technology for the project in order to monitor the speed limit on a section of highway just under three kilometres in length on Federal Highway 6 south of Hanover. The system uses measuring systems and cameras installed at the entry an

London’s cycling revolution accelerated last year, with 2014 seeing new records for usage of the capital’s cycle hire scheme and overall cycling on the Transport for London (TfL) road network. Across the TfL road network, London’s main roads, cycling levels in quarter 3 of 2014/15 (14 September to 6 December) were ten per cent higher than in the same quarter the previous year and the highest since records began in 2000. It was the fifth record quarter in a row. By the end of 2014/15, TfL forecasts a 12 p

The webinar on 6 February from 1400-1500 CET, From Advanced Active Safety Systems to Automated Systems: From interactIVe to AdaptIVe and beyond focuses on the evolution from driver assistance systems to automated driving. This is based mainly on two large scale EU integrated projects: interactIVe and AdaptIVe. The webinar will discuss the interactIVe project, its objectives, main outcomes and lessons learned and provide an overview of the objectives and vision of automated driving functions that will be

According to Belarus official news agency (BelTA) the country is to expand its network of toll roads under the BelToll system by more than 300 kilometres in 2015. Belarus currently has 1,189 kilometres of toll roads. The five-year state program for the development and maintenance of roads states that by 2020 the toll road system will include 1,968 kilometres of highways. BelToll, a digital system designed to collect tolls by using short-range radio technology, went live in Belarus in August 2013. In A

Sustainable transport group Transport & Environment has welcomed the announcement by Violeta Bulc, the EU’s head of transport, of plans to develop a Europe-wide scheme to charge lorries and cars for using roads. Bulc stressed that the scheme would be optional, meaning that countries could opt out if they want to. She also emphasised that the fee should be based exclusively on the distance driven and should not be time-dependent, which would bolster more efficient use of roads. European countries curre