UTC

A group of US cities have formed the Open Mobility Foundation (OMF) to develop and govern digital mobility tools aimed at improving how cities manage transportation. Growing from a collaboration between the Los Angeles Department of Transportation and the city of Santa Monica, the OMF intends to bring together academic and municipal stakeholders to develop the technology. Eric Garcetti, Los Angeles mayor, says: “The OMF will help us manage emerging transportation infrastructures, and make mobility more a

Lack of investment is the biggest challenge to smart city development, according to half the people who took part in a poll. Wi-Sun Alliance says a fifth of participants in its survey point to security and privacy issues while 14% see interoperability as a major factor for progressing deployments. Wi-Sun – whose members include Cisco and Toshiba - seeks to accelerate the implementation of open standards-based field area networks and the Internet of Things (IoT). Phil Beecher, CEO of Wi-Sun, says

Bolt is to expand its ride-hailing service to three additional urban centres in Kenya, according to a report by Capital FM Kenya. Ola Akinnusi, the Bolt country manager in Kenya, says: “After Nairobi and Mombasa cities, it was natural that Bolt would gradually expand across the country. We now intend to build new communities in Kisumu, Kakamega and Thika as we continue to gain the trust of the Kenyan people.” According to Akinnusi, the company has provided safety features such as ‘Share your ETA’ which al

Wejo is to send anonymised traffic flow updates from seven million vehicles using its Adept platform to support TraffiCast’s mobility services in the US. Tech firm Wejo says Adept is a cloud-based data exchange platform that makes sharing and accessing connected car data simple. The data is expected to provide TraffiCast’s services with advanced commuter information, precise arrival time predictions, alternative route suggestions, reduced congestion and carbon footprints and improved traffic forecasting

Google is improving its SOS alerts by adding visual information about natural disasters and a navigation system on Google Maps. Google says the upgrade will extend the capabilities of the SOS alerts to provide crisis information via relevant news stories and Twitter updates from local authorities to include detailed visualisations about hurricanes, earthquakes and floods. In the days leading up to a hurricane, users will receive a crisis notification card on Google Maps that appears near impacted areas.

The city of Oslo has unveiled a grant scheme allowing private companies in the Norwegian capital to develop projects that promote climate-friendly travel between home and work. The city says the Climate and Energy Fund can provide grants up to 50% of the total cost of the measure with a maximum amount of NOK 250,000 (£23,000) per company per year. It is available for travel between home and the workplace and business trips to and from the workplace during the working day. The grant will only be availabl

RAI Amsterdam is to explore the feasibility of a drone hub corridor, a place where electrically-powered unmanned air vehicles can take off and land. The initiative is part of the Urban Air Mobility Demonstrator project, which seeks to explore how drones can contribute to a sustainable, safer and more accessible city. RAI Amsterdam will work with the municipality of Amsterdam and Dutch stadium Johan Cruijff Arena to investigate how this might work. Paul Riemens, CEO at RAI Amsterdam, says the partn

Baron has launched a weather forecasting model which it says can be used for ITS and traffic applications. According to Baron, the solution offers predictive parameters 66 hours into the future at 3km resolution at hourly intervals. It can also run a second set of parameters 90 hours into the future at 15km resolution, the company adds. Bob Dreisewerd, vice president of development at Baron, explained the idea behind the new launch: “First and foremost was accuracy. We wanted a more accurate weather mod

Viettel Post has developed a ride-hailing app for riders in Vietnam called MyGo for car, motorbike, delivery and transport services. A report by Vietnam+ says the postal and delivery company will add transport services by truck to its app and will aim to avoid increasing prices during peak hours. The company is now seeking driver partners on the run-up to its official launch in July. South-east Asia is fertile ground for mobility services: in January, FastGo launched its ride-hailing, delivery and cater

Via has launched an on-demand shared transit system for people over the age of 60 in the City of Newton, Massachusetts. Via says the service replaces a taxi voucher system which required passengers to make reservations at least 72 hours in advance. The company will also offer trips to a range of medical facilities outside the city’s boundaries. Using the Via app, riders can hail a vehicle from their smartphone. The company’s algorithms allow riders to share the vehicle and directs users to a nearby pick-