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Transport

BMW launched the i3 in July. Image courtesy of BMW.
transport | environment
20 September 2013

A universal plug for electric cars

A transatlantic initiative hopes to encourage more people to buy electric cars by developing a universal plug that would drive down the cost and make charging as easy as filling up at a gas station.

An artist's impression of the cockpit of a personal helicopter system of the future. © Gareth Padfield, Flight Stability and Control
transport | environment
13 September 2013

Personal helicopters could transform commuting

Commuters could be lifted out of the noise and pollution of Europe’s overcrowded cities thanks to a group of researchers who are laying down the groundwork for the development of a personal helicopter system as an alternative to land-based travel.

CHIC project hydrogen buses. © European Commission
public–private partnerships | transport | innovation union
07 August 2013

Clean energy initiative promises greener cars

Zero emission vehicles could help reduce Europe’s carbon footprint, create jobs and preserve energy security if investment in an ambitious new energy partnership pays off.

Officers and experts are trained to use forensic evidence to detect radioactive material. © ITU
transport | security
17 July 2013

Secret weapon in hunt for nuclear smugglers

Clad in white radiation suits with triple layer-gloves, police and nuclear experts carefully probe the debris of an amateur dirty bomb.

Touchscreen at the remodeled Gare de Lyon-Diderot in Paris. © RATP-Denis Sutton
transport | ict | innovation union
07 May 2013

Heavy traffic? No worries for commuters!

Imagine being able to know ahead of time if you will have to wait for your bus due to road works, or if your train is running behind schedule.

The VisLab vans took three months to drive from Parma to Shanghai. © VisLab
transport | ict
18 March 2013

Parma-Shanghai: 15 000 km without a driver

Vehicles without drivers can go far, very far. Such as the ones from the VIAC project, led by Professor Broggi from VisLab at the University of Parma, Italy. Its vans drove from Parma to Shanghai, China in three months, without much human intervention.

The SARTRE road train being tested on a motorway in Spain in 2012. © SARTRE
transport | ict
18 March 2013

Getting your car in line

Drivers may soon be able to take their hands off the wheel and their eyes off the road in their own cars, leaving the driving to modern technology. That is the conclusion drawn by the partners of the SARTRE project, after recent successful testing of road train ‘platooning’ in Sweden. However, more human barriers remain to be lifted before it could become commonplace. 

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