STA Annual Conference 24 November 2015: Programme Available

26 October 2015

The Programme for the STA Annual Conference and Awards Ceremony is available here.

This one-day landmark event brings together key opinion leaders and business professionals to explore the current and future states of Smart Transportation Infrastructures. In a unique and dynamic atmosphere delegates are invited to participate in-person on virtually through our state-of-the-art online platform.

This first edition takes place in the heart of Europe – Brussels, Belgium – on Tuesday, November 24, 2015. Offering the opportunity to reflect on current issues, learn about new trends, and engage with key thought-leaders, decision-makers and practitioners from across the globe. Register by email at info@smart-transportation.org.

Recondition & Reuse of Crash Barriers - STA Technical Report 3/2015

16 October 2015

The “STA Technical Reports” provide an in-depth review of the process, progress, or results of a technical or scientific research or the state of a technical or scientific research problem related to transportation infrastructures.

Steel material presents excellent mechanical characteristics. As well as strength it possesses high deformation capacity, which not only makes it suitable for cold or hot forming, but also allows it to be able to deform and absorb energy, notably in case of impact.

For this reason steel is one of the materials whose use is most indicated for the manufacture of crash barriers. In fact it can not only resist high loads without breaking but, in addition, absorb energy, which greatly increases survival chances for the vehicle occupants.

The third issue, downloadable from the ¨Publications¨ section of the STA website, is entitled “Recondition & Reuse of crash barriers after impact: features & risks”.

STA Discussion Paper 3/2015 reviews 'Smart' Infrastructure Investments

16 October 2015

A new STA Discussion Paper reviews smart infrastructure investments as a way to tackle growing demands. As developed nations continue to strengthen their economic competitiveness they have expanded investments. The linear expansion model for transportation infrastructures has been unable to solve all mobility problems and has even increased public debt or financial stresses. Additionally, environmental and land use issues associated with the linear growth model are a growing concern to society.

The third Discussion Paper of the year tackles this question by analysing a node growth model approach to transportation infrastructure.

STA General Meeting 5/2015 held 15 October 2015

15 October 2015

The meeting regrouped the STA membership for the 5th time during the year and served to make the final decisions leading to the STA Annual Conference & Innovation Awards to be held in Brussels (Belgium) on 24 November 2015.

NEWS OF INTEREST

NEWS OF INTEREST

ISOM Business School H2020 Masterclass, 12-13 November 2015, Brussels (Belgium).

A two-day crash course designed to respond to the professional development needs of professionals and organisations from both the for-profit and non-for-profit sectors looking to build successful H2020 projects.

The EU's new R&D Framework Programme, Horizon 2020 (H2020), has not been in operation for more than a year. H2020 brings immense opportunities to promote co-funded research and innovation projects for organisations that:

• Have scientific and/or technological connect or idea of Europe-wide interest,

• Bring together a solid pan-European consortium covering the complete technological value chain, and

• Match the priorities highlighted by the EU in the relevant Call for Proposals.

Road Safety Annual Report 2015

The IRTAD Road Safety Annual Report 2015 provides an overview for road safety performance for 2013 in 38 countries, with preliminary data for 2014, and detailed reports for each country. It includes tables with cross country comparisons on key safety indicators.

Currently, more than 70 organisations from 38 countries are members or observers of IRTAD - representing a wide range of public and private bodies with direct interest in road safety. The most visible product of the IRTAD Group is the International Road Traffic and Accident Database. The report is based from this database.

nsight: ‘Smart Ships’ Talk to ‘Smart Containers’

Smart containerships are a new generation of container ship that can potentially have a big impact on port operations, as they are able to utilise Big Data technology and communicate this data to ports and terminals. This article aims to explain what a smart container ship is and how it can be integrated into ports.

Don Miller, Director of Global Sales and Marketing at Globe Tracker, said: “In the evolution of the technology ‘Smart Ships’ talk to ‘Smart Containers’. This allows for the seamless flow of data on cargo container arrival and real time cargo status at the port. Particularly useful is temperature or CO2/O2 alert information for refrigerated containers or even Pressure and G-Force alarms from dangerous goods, high value and special cargo containers.

Explaining the Digital Railway

The much-publicised advent of a Digital Railway by Network Rail has raised questions in the eyes of many engineers working in the rail industry. What does it mean, when digital technology has been in use for many systems since the late 1960s?

The railway has seen spectacular growth since privatisation. Passenger numbers have doubled in twenty years and this trend is set to continue. The rail freight business needs to change its shape with a decline in the traditional train-load consignments of coal, oil and steel but growth of multi modal, e-commerce and international traffic, and expansion to more routes and terminals. Future rail strategies based on the four Cs of carbon, customer, capacity and cost, plus performance and safety, have to be managed as a total railway and these objectives are made more difficult in the disparate railway that now exists.

New Traffic App and Disaster Prevention Technology Road Tested

A new smartphone traffic app tested by citizens in Dublin, Ireland allows users to give feedback on traffic incidents, enabling traffic management centres to respond quicker when collisions and other incidents happen around the city. The ‘CrowdAlert' app, which is now available for download, is one of the key components utilised in the EU-funded INSIGHT project and a good example of how smartphones and social networks can be harnessed to improve public services and safety. 

The INSIGHT project was officially completed at the end of August 2015, and the consortium has made real traffic data publicly available in order to promote further research interest in this field.