October - 2018

Archive

Tom Everett Set To Become FHWA Executive Director

Tom Everett (seen above) will step into the role of executive director of the Federal Highway Administration on Oct. 22; a longtime agency veteran who is considered a “national authority” on developing and implementing highway infrastructure policies and performance standards. He replaces Cheryl Walker, FHWA’s acting executive director since June 1, who took that role following the retirement of Walter “Butch” Waidelich Jr., FHWA’s executive director since March 2016. Everett

Twin Studies Say Marijuana Legalization Can Increase Vehicle Crashes

Two recent studies, one by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the other by the Highway Loss Data Institute, showed that motor vehicle crashes are up by as much as 6 percent in Colorado, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, which have all legalized marijuana for recreational use, compared to neighboring states that have not. [Above photo by the U.S. Dept. of Defense.] HDLI’s study estimated that the frequency of collision claims per insured vehicle year rose a combined 6

Report: Driving On Deteriorated Urban Roads Costing Motorists $1,049 Annually

A new study issued by TRIP Inc. claims that driving on deteriorated urban roads costs U.S. motorists an average of $1,049 annually in additional vehicle repair needs, extra maintenance, higher fuel consumption and tire wear, plus accelerated vehicle deterioration and depreciation. [Above photo by VDOT.] “Drivers are paying a hefty price for our nation’s crumbling roads and bridges,” noted Kathleen Bower, AAA senior vice president of public affairs and international relations,

CA: Transportation is Changing Fast, Even if Self-Driving Cars Aren't Ready

The world may still wait years for autonomous vehicles to emerge from their test phase. Meanwhile, transportation continues to get greener, thanks to electric power, and cars are getting more connected to the cloud, smartphones and each other, according to speakers at a Smart Mobility Summit in San Francisco this week. "How often do we get to see, much less be part of, such a big shift in technology?" said Doug Newcomb, senior industry analyst for mobility at Wards Intelligen

Hyperloop Transport System ‘Most Feasible’ For I-70 Corridor, Study Finds

A “feasibility study” conducted by global infrastructure firm Black & Veatch reportedly “verifies” that the first long-distance route proposed by the Virgin Hyperloop One company for its high-speed passenger and freight transport system along the Interstate 70 corridor through Missouri is “safe and sustainable.” [Above photo by Virginia Hyperloop One.] “We worked collaboratively with stakeholders across the region to examine the technology, constructability and the economics

The smarter stop point

Using technology to improve safety at rural stop-controlled intersections Intersections offer a challenge to traffic safety professionals across the country because a third of all fatal crashes occur at intersections. This is primarily caused by right-angle crashes that result from a driver failing to recognize the hazard of oncoming traffic or misjudging the distance or speed of the oncoming traffic. Intersection Conflict Warning Systems (ICWS) offer a flexible intermediate

NHTSA approves adaptive driving beams for headlights

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) last week said it was moving to allow advanced headlights known as “adaptive driving beams” to be used in vehicles on U.S. roads that could help prevent nighttime crashes. The agency said it was acting in response to a petition filed by Toyota Motor Corp. in 2013 to allow the lights, which provide more illumination than existing lights without a glare to oncoming motorists by using additional sensors to automatic

NHTSA orders driverless shuttle to stop transporting Florida school kids

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (U.S. DOT) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) ordered a transit operator last week to immediately stop transporting school children in Southwest Florida on a driverless shuttle. The NHTSA on Friday issued a letter to Transdev North America directing the company to halt usage of their EZ10 Generation II driverless shuttle as a school bus for students in the Babcock Ranch community. The agency said Transdev’s use of th

Ford experiments with V2V system without need for stoplights

Ford believes future connected cars could coordinate their movements in order to pass through intersections without stopping. The company is testing the idea in the U.K., and believes it could save time and reduce crashes. Ford’s experimental “Intersection Priority Management” system is currently being demonstrated on the streets of Milton Keynes in southern England. The system uses vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, allowing the cars to send and receive signals with oth

Movement rises to keep humans, not robots, in the driver's seat

Car enthusiast McKeel Hagerty's future changed in March 2017. He was at a car event in Vancouver, British Columbia, when a stranger involved in developing self-driving cars took Hagerty by the elbow, looked him in the eye, and laid forth the future. " 'I'm putting you out of business,' he said to me," Hagerty recalled. "He said, 'I'm serious. You have to find something else to do.' Then, he repeated it, 'I'm putting you out of business.' " Hagerty, 50, is the CEO of a Travers

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