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Latin America ‘needs major investment in mass transit’
June 10, 2014
Latin America needs to invest heavily in mass transport services to improve living standards in urban areas, according to Norman Anderson, CEO of US-based consulting firm CG/LA Infrastructure. "Unless there is mobility, it's hard to imagine cities being successful, cities being creative, so one of the things we emphasised, and we think is really important, is the whole mobility issue," Anderson said in an interview. In its most recent report on strategic infrastructure projects in Latin America, CG/L
Indra demonstrates urban mobility solutions
June 10, 2014
Spanish consulting firm Indra will take advantage of its presence at CityTech Rome this week to present its advanced traffic and public transportation management systems and demonstrate its successful implementation of the smart mobility project developed for the city of San Sebastián, Spain. In addition to its its intelligent traffic and urban transport management systems, the company will highlight its success in San Sebastian in a presentation which will look at the smart mobility project implemented
South African agencies in dispute over road tolls
June 10, 2014
The city of Cape Town and South Africa’s roads agency Sanral are again in dispute over the proposed US$936 million N1 and N2 tolling project, with the city saying Sanral is attempting to keep the public in the dark about the costs of tolling. The Western Cape High Court last year put a temporary stop to the project until the finalisation of the city’s review application in which it is asking the court to set aside the decision to declare the N1 and N2 toll roads. Sanral initially withheld what it cons
Independent analysis finds speed cameras do not reduce accidents
June 10, 2014
An independent analysis carried out by engineer Dave Finney of Thames Valley, UK speed camera data has found an increase in injuries after the devices were installed. The analysis, to evaluate the effect of fixed speed cameras on the number and severity of collisions at the sites where they are installed, was carried out on two groups of sites. One group includes all fixed speed camera sites in the Thames Valley area (covering Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire) that were active at the start of 2
Michelin to acquire Sascar
June 9, 2014
In a deal valued at a total of US$709 million, Michelin has announced its intention to acquire all outstanding shares of Sascar, the leading Brazilian digital fleet management and freight security company. The acquisition will enable Michelin to expand its service offering for truckers and to speed the growth of its truck tyre business in Brazil, while Sascar will gain access to Michelin’s major customers in South America. of this company, whose business model has proved its worth in Brazil (33,000 f
Bristol trials new cycle safety technology
June 9, 2014
As part of an ongoing trial funded by five West of England local authorities, UK bus operator First West of England will for the first time be test driving state-of-the-art cycle safety technology on two of its buses on the busy Gloucester Road route in the city of Bristol. Developed by Fusion Processing, CycleEye technology aims to reduce the growing number of cyclist collisions and casualties across the country involving large commercial vehicles. CycleEye is fitted to the side of the vehicle and
Russia ‘hopes to agree with US on GLONASS, GPS stations’
June 9, 2014
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin hopes Russia and the United States will agree on deployment of GLONASS and GPS stations before 1 September. Cooperation with the United States in the area of navigation should continue despite problems, Rogozin said. "Despite some difficulties we have with the United States, we believe it is necessary to continue cooperation," the deputy prime minister stressed. Russia has recently made a statement that cooperation in the navigation area should be formed on
CCTV technology aids fight against UK insurance fraud
June 9, 2014
An increasing number of UK commercial fleets are turning to in-vehicle technology for protection against the sharp rise of insurance fraud, according to CCTV vehicle company, Vision Unique Equipment (VUE). Latest figures from the Association of British Insurers reveal insurance fraud is at a record high, reaching US$2.18 billion in 2013, with US$1.3 billion of fraudulent claims attributed to car insurance. ‘Crash for cash’ car insurance scams were identified as the main contributor to a 34 per cent rise
CIHT welcomes NAO report on roads infrastructure funding
June 9, 2014
The UK’s Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation (CIHT) has welcomed the National Audit Office’s (NAO) report, Maintaining strategic infrastructure: roads, which highlights how long term funding certainty is crucial to how the UK manages its road infrastructure. Funding pressures on highways authorities have encouraged efficiency and innovation in how budgets for road maintenance are spent, but public value will be lost unless funding becomes more predictable, according to the report. The r
Matrix Vision expands range
June 9, 2014
Matrix Vision’s mvBlueCougar-XD family of dual GigE vision cameras include a wide range of high-end CCD sensors from Sony with resolutions up to 12 megapixels and CMOS sensors from CMOSIS up to 4 megapixels; up to 12-bit ADC. It has an adjustable flange and is able to control a motorised lens or a video iris. In June, the range will be extended with a new version fitted with a 2.3 megapixels global shutter Sony CMOS sensors. Besides slow motion capturing, the camera features de-noising via frame avera
World Bank funds Yemen highway project
June 6, 2014
The World Bank has announced a US$133.54 million grant to support the Government of Yemen’s ambitious plan to connect the northern and southern parts of the country with a 710 kilometre highway. The largest ever infrastructure project in Yemen’s history will play a vital role in the country’s transition by targeting the root causes of instability, such as lack of access to economic opportunities and poor national integration, and rebuilding the country’s social and economic base. “This is more than just
UK infrastructure bill
June 6, 2014
The UK government’s proposed Infrastructure Bill would improve how the national infrastructure is funded, planned, managed and maintained and provide a US$4.4 billion boost to the economy over the next ten years. Proposals include: improving the funding and management of our major roads; streamlining the planning process for major projects; protecting our infrastructure from invasive plants and animals; supporting house building; making it easier and cheaper to register land and property; helping communi
Gemalto enables secure access to cloud-based services
June 6, 2014
Digital security provider Gemalto has made its Protiva Cloud Confirm strong authentication solution compatible with the HP CloudSystem for Cloud Service Providers (CSPs), under the HP Helion cloud portfolio. The easy-to-deploy solution integrates seamlessly with CSPs' existing or future infrastructures, providing secure, frictionless access to cloud-based services for HP's CSP customers and their end users. Protiva Cloud Confirm features mobile one-time-password (OTP) capabilities coupled with a multi-te
Bangalore adopts GIS-based road infrastructure system
June 6, 2014
To support the unprecedented urban growth in Bangalore, India’s third most populous city with a population of over eight million, the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has adopted GIS to completely transform the way it manages its road network. Using GeoCivic Road Infrastructure Management, a solution by CyberTech, a partner of Esri, BBMP built a geo-enabled, transparent system that provides officials with information-rich dashboards for monitoring road activities across all wards and zones. The
PTV Group signs Global Road Safety Commitment
June 6, 2014
German consulting and software group PTV has signed the Global Road Safety Commitment, pledging its support to the agreement on road safety worldwide, designed to help organisations develop a systematic approach to reducing the main risks caused by road traffic, ensuring greater safety on the roads. The annual death toll from road traffic accidents stands at over one million worldwide. The United Nations is aiming to reduce this number considerably and has declared the period from 2011 to 2020 the Decade