Lib Dem mayoral candidate plans pay-as-you-drive charging
The Liberal Democrat candidate for London Mayor is promising to introduce a new charging scheme to reduce road use in London, and also to scrap the Silvertown Tunnel project. In her manifesto launched ahead of next month’s election, Luisa Porritt (pictured) says she will replace London’s “arbitrary system of multiple road use charges” with a […]
New rail prices means three day commutes more costly than full season tickets
The new pricing regime for commuters who plan to work part of their week in the office and partly at home isn’t necessarily going to save them money. A different sort of season ticket arrangement has been mooted since companies had to embrace home working when the Coronavirus restrictions hit, with the idea that regular […]
Hyundai launches Transportation-as-a-Service division
Hyundai Motor Group is setting up a new Transportation-as-a-Service Division to build strategies and all aspects of global mobility services including planning, development and operations. It says the new organisation will “streamline the Group’s existing mobility services, then introduce new service models based on user data to enhance the competitiveness of its global mobility business”. […]
Shapps under pressure to act on Hammersmith closure
The Transport Secretary is under pressure from MPs in London to fund the reopening of Hammersmith Bridge, as he is being told the two-year closure had become an “international embarrassment”. The Evening Standard reports that London MPs have demanded Grant Shapps honours a pledge he made last September to “take control” of the project and reopen […]
Fibre sensing trial aims to improve air quality in Staffordshire
A new trial is testing the concept of using fibre optic sensing to detect vehicle movements using standard telecom fibres that run next to the roadside. Staffordshire County Council is working with Amey and Fotech to try the technology as part of the Department for Transport-funded £22.9m Association of Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning & Transport […]
Final chance to register for LCRIG webinar
There’s less than a week left to register for LCRIG’s next webinar which will feature a discussion around the digital challenge facing local highway authorities. Delivered in association with Fitzpatrick Advisory, the event, which is taking place next Tuesday (20 April) at 2pm, is entitled ‘Digital revolution without casualties’ and will examine the following: How […]
Politicians’ secrets revealed in this week’s Highways Voices
“I loved being a Minister, but not being an MP”. That’s the admission from two former transport ministers in this week’s Highways Voices podcast, which hears from Conservative Steve Norris, who served in the John Major government in the 90s, and Labour’s Stephen Ladyman, a minister under Tony Blair a decade later. Listen here. In […]
Last Routemaster bus service leaves London’s streets
Transport for London has decided to retire the last regular service of Routemaster buses. Twenty of the iconic buses (pictured) were running during the summer months on the Route 15, but it has been decided it is uneconomic to continue based on lower ridership due to Coronavirus and subsequent government restrictions. London’s Evening Standard reports […]
GM’s cruise launching driverless service in Dubai
The General Motors subsidiary Cruise has signed an agreement with the Dubai Government to operate a driverless ride-hailing service in the Emirate. The agreement will make Dubai the first non-US city in the world where Cruise will commercially operate these vehicles. Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority says the deployment of these self-driving vehicles is expected […]
Dominos launches driverless pizza delivery in US
The world’s largest pizza delivery company, Domino’s, has announced it’s going to be offering customers in the American city of Houston driverless deliveries. Select customers who order from a specific branch in the city can choose to have their pizza delivered by Nuro’s R2 robot, which Domino’s says is the first completely “autonomous, occupantless on-road […]