Zoox unveils driverless electric vehicle
Amazon’s newly-acquired subsidiary, Zoox, has unveilled an electric driverless pod which can travel at up to 75 miles per hour and go for 16 hours between charges. The company says the vehicle is designed for dense, urban environments. It offers bidirectional driving capabilities and four-wheel steering, which enables manoeuvring through compact spaces and changing directions […]
INRIX reports on Covid’s safety impact on the country’s roads
New data from traffic data analysts INRIX suggests major roads around seven key British cities have seen significantly fewer collisions this year when compared to the same period in 2019. it says across the cities analysed, collisions are down 36% for the April to October period Across the UK’s cities, Birmingham has seen the smallest […]
ARTSM sets up working group to represent Highways services sector
The Association for Road Traffic Safety and Management has long represented the highways industry in contributing to, and driving changes in regulations and specifications, and ensuring product compliance, however recently whilst reviewing its role in the highways industry it was identified that a large portion of the highways industry was not represented fully by the […]
HE tests moveable barrier in readiness for Brexit
As the Brexit transition period draws to a close, Highways England has tested a contingency on the M20 in Kent to cope with lorries waiting to cross the Channel. The London-bound carriageway between Maidstone and Ashford has a moveable barrier to create a contraflow for non-goods vehicles so that the coastbound road can be used […]
Khan considers fee to enter Greater London by car
London’s mayor is considering charging drivers £3.50 to enter London every day in an attempt to plug the capital’s finance gap. The Daily Telegraph reports that Sadiq Khan has asked Transport for London officials to investigate the feasibility of introducing the “Greater London Boundary Charge”. It means the price for entering Central London could rise […]
Dubai self driving challenge finalists announced
13 companies have been shortlisted for the finals of the Dubai World Challenge for self-driving transport – but no British one is among them. The competition is designed to realise the emirate’s vision of having 25% of all trips there smart and driverless. Seven global companies have qualified for the final stage of the Challenge […]
Lockdown traffic higher second time around – TTF
A Transport Technology Forum comparison of travel data during England’s two national lockdowns suggests that, while there was a significant drop in traffic at the beginning of the November restrictions, traffic levels only dropped to 70% of baseline levels overall, compared to 25% of baseline in March. Analysts gathered data about travel on city, town […]
M4 speed limit cut in west Wales
The speed limit on a section of the M4 near Swansea is being cut to 50 mph over fears the stretch is “potentially dangerous”. Walesonline reports that Welsh Government ministers are introducing the “temporary” limit between junctions 45 and 46 because of the “likelihood of danger to the public or of serious damage to the […]
Highways UK confirms 2021 dates
The UK’s premier highways and transport show, Highways UK, has confirmed it’ll be held at the NEC in Birmingham on 3 and 4 November next year. The organisers say that they set out to bring together the people responsible for planning, developing, managing, maintaining, and future-proofing the nation’s roads networks, by combining a high-level multi-stream […]
Cruise begins driverless testing
General Motors’ driverless vehicle division, Cruise, has begun on-road testing in San Francisco. It announced back in October that it’d been given a permit to test, and was planning to begin the trials before the end of the year. Forbes reports that it’s achieved this with about three weeks to spare, and that it is […]