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Swiss-based u-blox has acquired Swedish company connectBlue AB, a provider of industrial-grade short range radio modules which support Bluetooth and IEEE 802.11/wi-fi industry standards that enable the last hundreds of metres of connectivity between equipment and the internet. According to u-blox, the acquisition greatly enhances its portfolio of positioning and cellular wireless communications solutions with short range communication products and broadens the u-blox module offering bringing millions of

A new report from the World Economic Forum, Accelerating Infrastructure Delivery: New Evidence from International Financial Institutions, examines how the experience of international financial institutions (IFIs) can help bridge the growing infrastructure deficit. To accelerate economic growth, global levels of installed infrastructure, which currently stand at around US$45 trillion, need to grow to nearly US$100 trillion by 2030. To achieve this, governments need to increase public sector spending as a

A Manchester firm that specialises in software for the transport industry has been acquired by listed Leeds group Tracsis in a cash and shares deal worth US$7.5 million. Datasys, which employs 17 staff, provides rail management software systems, business applications and hosting services for the majority of the UK's train operating companies, such as First Group, Go-Ahead, Stagecoach, National Express, Arriva, and Virgin. Tracsis believes that the products, services and development capabilities of Da

An innovative project at a busy UK retail park could provide the blueprint for a new approach to pedestrian safety, according to its developers. The system utilised hard-wired active flashing LED road studs from Rennicks UK to delineate the crossing, in conjunction with LED warning signs from Swarco. Pole-mounted C-Walk pedestrian detectors from Flir activate the high performance LED studs to create a striking visual warning for motorists approaching an internal crossing at Giltbrook, near Nottingham.

Xerox and Holland Container Innovations (HCI) are the joint winners of the 2014 Promising Innovation in Transport Award, awarded by the International Transport Forum at the OECD, an intergovernmental organisation for the transport sector with 54 member countries. Xerox receives the award for its Merge system, a city-wide sensor-based, smart parking solution that reduces traffic and congestion through guided parking with demand-based pricing. HCI receives the award for their 4FOLD ISO-certified foldabl

According to a new market research report by MarketsandMarkets, Electronic Toll Collection System Market by Products, Technology Applications and Geography - Analysis & Forecast 2013-2020, the market for electronic toll collection (ETC) is expected to grow at a CAGR of 11.1 per cent from 2013 to 2020, and reach US$9.5 billion in 2020. The overall global electronic toll collection system market is segmented into four major areas: products, technologies, applications and geography. All the major segments a

Jenoptik’s Traffic Solutions division has received a major order from Singapore’s NCS Communications Engineering. The company will install its latest TraffiStar SR520 red light enforcement systems for the Singapore Police Force at 240 locations in the south-east Asia city. The order also includes the supply of Jenoptik’s TraffiDesk pro back office software for efficient and secure incident processing and adjudication. Deliveries will take place within the second half of 2014. The TraffiStar SR520 stat

Ericsson has been chosen by Telefonica Vivo to integrate the smart parking and smart lighting for its digital city project in Aguas de Sao Pedro, Brazil. Collaborating with leading technology partners, Ericsson will be responsible for providing smart lighting and smart parking solutions and system integration. The design, installation and rollout of the project are all included in the scope of the agreement, as is responsibility for managed services, including operations and maintenance, once it has bee

Applications to the US Department of Transportation for its sixth round of Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants totalled US$9.5 billion, 15 times the US$600 million set aside for the program, demonstrating the continued need for transportation investment nationwide, according to an announcement by Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. The Department received 797 eligible applications, compared to 585 in 2013, from 49 states, US territories and the District of Columbia.

European vehicle manufacturers, including BMW, Opel and Mercedes-Benz and MAN, are taking part in a new project to develop advanced driver assistance and traffic management systems for cities. The focus is on the human element in all aspects of mobility and traffic and takes the form of three approaches: Cognitive Assistance; Networked Traffic Systems; and Human Factors in Traffic. The four-year UR:BAN project (from a German acronym for Urban Space: User-oriented assistance systems and network managemen

Emergency response teams in the densely populated town of Brookhaven, New York, respond to more than 5,000 emergency calls every month. To enable fire-fighters and emergency services to meet the demand, town officials made the decision to upgrade to Opticom GPS priority control technology on more 500 fire trucks and at almost as many intersections. Opticom GPS uses a global network of GPS satellites to calculate vehicle speed, direction and precise location to pre-empt signals even around corners or obs

On 4 March 2013, Redflex Holdings announced a summary of its four-month long, independent, internal investigation into its subsidiary’s (RTSI) Chicago contract and associated matters and announced the departure of several US employees for violating company policies and the adoption of enhanced compliance activities, concluding that some of the activities “would likely be considered bribery by the authorities”. Today, the US Department of Justice arrested John Bills, a former employee of the City of Chica

German PTV group has signed a new agreement with Greek software company Emisia to incorporate the COPERT Australia database of CO2 emissions and fuel consumption in its routing and optimisation solutions. COPERT Australia is a specific database for Australia's route network and will be embedded into the PTV xServers, a range of advanced software components for route and trip planning. This will enable detailed calculation of CO2 emissions for heavy duty vehicles on trip and stop level in accordance with

Millions of people rely on public transit to get around and since 2007 Google has worked to include public transit routes and schedules in Google Maps. In its latest blog, Google says it makes it even easier to get around on public transport with the addition of public transport information for Vancouver, Chicago and every 2016 Olympic Games host city in Brazil. David Tattersall, Google’s product manager, Public Transit says in his blog: “Our transit data spans six continents, 64 countries and more th

The challenges of congested city transport systems and safety were the hot topics at the intelligent transport systems (ITS) business exchange conference held recently in Melbourne featuring speakers and delegates from Asia, Australia, Europe, USA and New Zealand. Hosted by ITS Australia, the conference attracted 200 participants from seven nations and facilitated an international exchange about innovative technologies and successfully deployed solutions to major transport issues across public, private a