News

UK Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin has confirmed a £1.2 billion order for more state of-the art trains to transform rail travel on one of Britain’s busiest intercity routes. The 270 carriages will be manufactured in Britain by Hitachi Rail Europe as part of the government’s overall £5.8 billion Intercity Express Programme (IEP). The trains will operate on the East Coast Main Line from 2019 and will deliver significant benefits to passengers, including boosting capacity by 18 per cent, improving trai

Oklahoma Turnpike (OTA) is in discussion with Kansas Turnpike and North Texas Tollway (NTTA) on the viability of electronic interoperability between the three companies. It is close to agreement with North Texas Tollway and billing of each other’s customers should be in operation by the spring or summer of 2014. Discussions with the Kansas Turnpike are a little further behind and interoperability is likely to happen by the second half of 2014. Director of operations at the OTA, David Machamer, says much o

London’s Southwark Council, with help from highway technology and survey company Yotta DCL is developing a comprehensive capital investment programme for network repairs and maintenance. Southwark will use Horizons, Yotta DCL’s web-based visualised asset management platform to target work schemes more precisely, resulting in better return on investment and improving its network. Southwark weights its network according to priorities to users. Using Horizons, the Council can identify and map the roads and pat

The Dartford-Thurrock River Crossing’s proposed free-flow payment system is set to be introduced from next year, UK Roads Minister Stephen Hammond has announced. The technology will provide flexibility for drivers travelling over or under the River Thames while also ensuring a steady traffic flow, reducing congestion. Motorists will be able to pay via telephone, text message, online and through retail outlets, instead of stopping at the crossing’s barriers. "The Dartford Crossing is vital to the local and

The Norwegian Public Road Administration has extended its contract with Q-Free to operate the country’s central tolling system. The contract was due to expire in November 2014, but has been extended for a minimum of 7.5 months. The extension has a minimum value of approximately US$5.6 million. The CSNorway contract was initially signed in 2007 and included the development of the system and conversion of all existing systems into one common central system. Around forty different concessions are running on th

Centracs MMS, Econolite’s new automated field asset and management system for the intelligent transportation systems (ITS) industry, is a simple-to-use Geographic Information System (GIS)-based proactive ITS asset management and maintenance management tool. It enables Departments of Transport, Metropolitan Planning Organisations and signal maintenance organisations to track assets in real-time and through the entire life cycle. Offering both workstation and mobile device interfaces, it supports preventativ

PennDOT's modernised field data collection process recently received an international achievement award for its innovative use of geographic information system technology. The Special Achievement in GIS (SAG) Award recognises vision, leadership, hard work and innovative use of technology and was presented at the Esri International User Conference in San Diego. PennDOT received the award for its use of technology to collect information on local roads and bridges such as location, condition and structure type

The INTRASME Smart Mobility Market Opportunity Workshop in Turin, Italy on 25 September will see successful SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) share their insights into emerging opportunities in intelligent transport systems (ITS). The workshop will hear from leading policy makers in ITS, research on future trends in the transport industry and experts in funding opportunities. The Smart Mobility Market Opportunity workshop will appeal to policy makers, researchers and SMEs that are keen to understand

Miami Dade Expressway Authority is procuring a new comprehensive all-electronic toll (AET) system for the 112-Airport Expressway and the 836-Dolphin Expressway with the option to add new equipment at its smaller toll facilities. The request for proposals has been issued and proposals are due by the end of July. The main portion of the work will cover: mainline toll zones and ramp toll zones on the 836-Dolphin Expressway; mainline toll zones on the 112-Airport Expressway; and an optional add-on to the main c

The national network of motorways and trunk roads in England will get extra lanes, smoother, quieter surfaces, improved junctions and new sections in key areas under a plan launched this week by Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin. £28 (US$42.5) billion of investment, which includes a trebling of funding for motorways and major A-roads, will lead to the biggest ever upgrade of the existing network. The focus will be on cutting congestion and minimising the environmental impact of roads, including an extr

The state of Utah will soon deploy Help’s 360SmartView truck screening technology throughout its network of truck inspection facilities to focus on at-risk carriers. 360SmartView is a cloud-based truck-sorting system that will electronically assess all trucks entering weigh stations and present roadside officers with a real-time, complete and correct snapshot of compliance with state and federal safety and weight requirements. According to Help, States that have deployed 360SmartView in the past have report

Following a 34-year career with the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), latterly as secretary of transportation, Paula Hammond has been named senior vice president and national transportation market leader at Parsons Brinckerhoff. In her new position, Hammond will be responsible for working with transportation agencies across the US, including the US Department of Transportation (USDOT), and will continue her involvement with the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Of

Travellers in Mildura, Australia, now have access to up to date information on regional transport options, thanks to a recently unveiled transport app. Deputy Premier Peter Ryan launched the Transport Connect phone app, saying it would direct users to wherever they wanted to go by whatever means they wanted to travel, including walking, cycling, driving, bus, taxi and plane. "All the user has to do is type in where they want to go and the app will select the appropriate transport mode for that journey," Mr

Developed by Highway Resource Solutions (HRS), Intellicone, a modular, easy to deploy workzone safety system for the road maintenance, construction and utility sectors, has won the highly coveted Construction News Product Innovation of the year award. HRS, in association with highways service provider A-one+, were presented with the award, the judges commenting “this is what we call innovation and one that comes from the heart. This brilliant solution in one of the most dangerous sectors of construction can

Schneider Electric is working with Microsoft on CityNext, an initiative designed to help governments, businesses and citizens envision what is next for their cities. Through the CityNext initiative, Microsoft and Schneider Electric will help leaders to do “new with less,” by combining the power of technology with innovative ideas to connect governments, businesses and citizens with city services that increase efficiencies, reduce costs, foster a more sustainable environment and cultivate communities where