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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

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

To cater to the needs of the growing population of the city of Auckland, New Zealand, Auckland Transport has adopted technology solutions from Microsoft’s new initiative, CityNext to upgrade the city’s transportation services and core infrastructure. CityNext offers cities a broad portfolio of technology solutions such as business software, devices and apps, cloud solutions, and big data platforms, from Microsoft and its partners to help city governments overcome urbanisation and governance challenges in ar

Intelligent Transport Systems Australia has praised the National Infrastructure Plan presented to the Council of Australian Governments last week. ITS Australia Chief Executive Officer Susan Harris said this Plan recognises some realities that challenge infrastructure management in Australia and it recommends a clear set of actions to force reform in policies and processes. Among the key actions recommended in the National Infrastructure Plan are: Reform of current infrastructure funding methods; Wider appl

Econolite has promoted Melvyn Haxby to the position of director of International Business Development, following the retirement of Ed Ehrman, the company’s former director of International Business. Haxby joined Econolite December 2012 as regional manager for Latin America; prior to that he was international sales director of Iteris, managing the development of international markets and sales. He previously held posts with HSBC, Odetics Europe, Comdisco and Eunetcom.

Intelligent transport system (ITS) solutions provider, Mobile Visual Information Systems (MVIS), played a crucial role in the traffic management plan for the UK’s 2013 Royal Ascot 2013, helping to prevent congestion around the event. MVIS supplied Royal Ascot’s traffic management team with three trailer-mounted solar powered Solar 2012 CCTV cameras, enabling the team to monitor the number of vehicles approaching the event and to respond instantly to heavy traffic by activating a reroute plan. This meant th

London’s Mayor’s Roads Task Force (RTF) has set out a bold new vision for the future of the city’s roads and streets to ensure the capital can cope with major population growth, support jobs and thousands of new homes, while remaining one of the most attractive, vibrant, accessible and competitive world cities. A range of proposals includes: roofing over arterial roads to create new surface space; changing the way goods and services are delivered, such as shifting HGVs and freight out of peak hours; embraci

The UK’s Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) and US consulting engineering firm GCA have reached an agreement to share knowledge and staff on projects to maximise market position and provide their customer base with technology, resources and best practice worldwide. For GCA, this offers access to knowledgeable experts in the field of traffic control and modelling on a worldwide application basis, whilst TRL has access to GCA’s expert knowledge relating to transportation engineering technology and applicatio

As part of its three-year Sustainable Urban Mobility campaign, Do the Right Mix, the European Commission has released the names of a further eighteen campaigner-led projects to be awarded funding. Each action will receive up to EUR 7000, which can be used to strengthen activities promoting sustainable urban mobility, from cycling courses, to car-sharing, fun activities for children and more.

A Bill that will provide the legislative mandate and funding to start to build and implement the first Road Usage Charging Legislation in the USA has been passed by the Oregon State Legislation. The Bill now goes to the Governor who will sign the bill into law. It is now expected that Washington State and several other states will follow in Oregon's pioneering footsteps for reliable and sustainable funding to maintain, upkeep and expend its surface transportation assets.