News

The Swiss National Council has approved a motion by Ulrich Giezendanner regarding the misuse of speed cameras. Giezendanner is convinced that the cameras are used to rip off motorists and he believes that they do not actually increase road safety on the majority of the country’s roads. If the Swiss Council of States votes for the motion as well, the Swiss Federation will only be allowed to approve radar speed cameras on Swiss national roads in areas that are prone to accidents. It is estimated that this wou

The mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi, has announced that he no longer wishes to participate in the test of Zapa zones (Zones d'Actions Prioritaires pour l'Air), the goal of which is to reduce polluting gas emissions by 10 per cent by reducing car traffic in certain zones. Along with Paris Saint-Denis, Lyon, Grenoble, Aix-en-Provence, Bordeaux and Clermont-Ferrand, Nice on France’s Mediterranean coast had signed up for a three-year government pilot programme. However, Estrosi now says that the city’s own ove

Siemens Vietnam and Vietnam Motors Industry Corporation (Vinamotor) headquartered in Hanoi have entered into a cooperation agreement to apply Siemens Elfa hybrid drive technology for city buses in Vietnam. Siemens will supply all necessary components and provide technical support, while Vinamotor will prepare the platform and manufacture remaining parts of the bus for operational readiness.

Parsons Brinckerhoff has named Greg Kelly to the newly created position of global chief operating officer (COO). Clifford Eby succeeds Kelly as president of Parsons Brinckerhoff’s Americas Transportation operating company. “The COO position is being created to ensure the continued success of each of our operating companies and to enhance their abilities to work together across our expanding global operations,” said George J. Pierson, president and CEO of Parsons Brinckerhoff. “Greg Kelly has led our large

Bosch has received the Global NCAP Award 2012 for developing and launching the electronic stability programme (ESP). The award, which is conferred by the Global New Car Assessment Programme, was presented during the consumer safety organisation's annual meeting in Malacca, Malaysia. Global NCAP’s rationale for this award was ESP’s high level of effectiveness and its ability to significantly reduce the number of road accidents and fatalities – thereby supporting the aims of the UN Decade of Action for Road S

International Road Dynamics (IRD) has been working with the Washington State Patrol (WSP) and the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to support delivery of a customised weight enforcement and commercial vehicle inspection solution which integrates vehicle identification, credential screening and data collection for the Spokane Port-of-Entry (POE) Weigh Station on I-90. Yesterday, the station’s grand opening was held at the POE which is located on Interstate 90 one mile west of the Washing

The number of insurance telematics users in Europe will grow from 1.5 million in 2010 to 44 million in 2017, initially driven by the UK and Italy, according to ABI Research. Despite aggressive efforts from Progressive, North America will continue to lag behind the European UBI market, it says. Vice president and practice director Dominique Bonte comments, “While insurance telematics or usage based insurance (UBI) is far from a recent phenomenon, renewed interest in this market has been observed from both es

The US Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) will host a two-day summit on 26-27 June on advancing the culture of traffic incident management (TIM) throughout the country. US Department of Transportation (USDoT) Secretary Raymond LaHood and Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez will welcome the group and provide opening remarks demonstrating the commitment of FHWA and USDoT senior executives in support of safe, quick traffic incident responses on the nation's roadways. Those attending this summit incl

Euro NCAP (New Car Assessment Programme) has published the results of its survey on the availability of autonomous emergency braking (AEB) systems in Europe and reveals that its vehicle safety rating assessment programme will include AEB technologies in its star rating from 2014. Real world performance data suggests AEB systems can reduce accidents by up to 27 per cent. Although the introduction of these active safety technologies is reducing road deaths and injuries, the availability of AEB in Europe is fa

Wabco has expanded its long term partnership with Kögel through a new supply agreement for the company’s TrailerGuard system, a state-of-the-art telematics technology for trailer fleet management. Kögel, one of the largest manufacturers of commercial trailers in Europe, is headquartered in Burtenbach, Germany.

The Intelligent Transportation Society of New York (ITS-NY) has announced the 2012 ITS-NY Project of the Year Winners at its Nineteenth Annual Meeting and Technology Exhibition in Saratoga Springs, NY. “These winning projects feature ITS and technologies at work in New York State to improve traveller mobility and safety, as well as the efficiency of New York State’s transportation system across all modes of travel,” said Dr Isaac Takyi, ITS-NY president. Winning Projects were announced in the following ITS

Jenoptik is strengthening its activities in the South American market with the formation of Jenoptik do Brasil which will be located in São Paulo. The Industrial metrology division is expanding its service offering as a first step and positioning itself more closely to its South American customers in the automotive and automotive supplier industry. ”By opening up another key region we are consistently pursuing our approach of being close to the customer through having our own local presence,” said Jenoptik

Cellcontrol, a leading developer of distracted driving solutions, has launched what it claims is a first-of-its-kind programme with specialist member-owned insurer Pure (Privilege Underwriters Reciprocal Exchange) to help prevent distracted driving incidents caused by teenage drivers. As part of the pilot, Pure has offered complimentary devices and a full year’s subscription to Cellcontrol’s technology to drivers under the age of 18, and will be providing the technology at a discounted rates to the entire P

A team of experts funded by an IBM Smarter Cities Challenge grant has provided government leaders with initial recommendations for a more effective and efficient public transport system in Rabat and nearby Sale and Temara, in Morocco, by 2020. Rabat won a Smarter Cities Challenge grant from IBM which sent some of its top employees to work and live in the city for three weeks. There, they studied the area's transportation opportunities and created a plan to improve the urban public transport system.

New York City officials have this week launched a request for qualifications for possible private firms to operate parking meters in the city. The meters cover over 80,000 parking spaces in five boroughs. Spokesperson for the city's mayor, Julie Wood, said that the privatisation would allow for innovative methods to improve quality and efficiency of the city's parking services. She added that the city will proceed cautiously with the plan, stating that any possible deal would see the city maintaining full c