By providing many incentives and adopting a few strict regulations, Germany has succeeded in shifting its travelling population towards public transport. Its ongoing efforts towards greener transport are worth emulating. Well known transportation expert Manfred Breithaupt, along with Mael Martinie, writes on the initiatives. Between 1990 and 2007, passenger transport in pass-km increased by 52% in Germany and between 2002 ...

Tender SURE, an initiative of Bangalore City Connect Foundation along with the Government of Karnataka, the City Corporation and Bangalore Metro Rail, has changed the very premise and procedure of designing and maintaining roads. Implemented on Vithal Mallya Road, the City Connect project rests on one basic principle ? if people outside of government can work with the government on ...

The operation of the iconic Sydney Ferries was privatised last year by the Australian Government. A look at the history, operations, significance and privatisation of these ferries. There are lessons in its roller coaster ride : Perseverance and constant efforts at making a public mode of transport successful do yield results. What is needed is a strong will to learn ...

Mumbai-Goa Highway and Mumbai-Pune Expressway have been in news over the last few years for severe accidents resulting in many deaths. It is time we made these connections safer. Vidyottama Sharma on the causes of accidents and possible remedies. Mumbai-Goa Highway: April 25, 2013: Four people, including three women, died and a woman injured in Raigad district, 140km from Mumbai, ...

While talking about the need for a clear national road safety policy, Deepak Darda, Head-India Operations, IBI Group, underlines sustainable transport solutions such as transit oriented development. ?Congestion, health and safety requirements necessitate that we think of sustainability now?, he says.   What projects are you carrying out in India? In India, we have two offices: in Gurgaon and in ...

Laser Technology Inc (LTI) recently hosted its annual International Traffic Safety Dealer Conference at its world headquarters in Centennial, Colorado, USA. LTI manufactures laser-based products used in law enforcement and other industries around the world. Forty five international guests representing dealerships from thirty countries attended the three-day conference. Representing LTI?s products in India, Iqbal Singh Jagdeva, Managing Director and Jagpal ...

Mail and express trains in the country will soon have fire-proof coaches. The new, stainless steel, superfine coaches are being manufactured at the Rail Coach Factory at Kapurthala in Punjab on a trial basis. Technical experts have already approved the design and other safety measures on the coaches. The curtains and other fittings inside the coaches will also be resistant ...

The Chennai Municipal Corporation is planning to make exclusive pedestrian and cycling zones in crowded areas of Chennai with cycles forming a feeder transport to the mass rapid transport system. The city will get bicycle-sharing programme on the lines of the ones in cities such as London and Paris. There will be bicycle stands at bus stops, railway stations and ...

Scientists at the Gujarat Energy Research and Management Institute (GERMI) have proposed to use major roads in the country as solar power generators. A paper published by Tirumalachetty Harinarayana, director of GERMI and Pragya Sharma, a co-worker, in the International Journal of Energy, Environment and Engineering, outlines the concept of generating solar power by laying a roof of photovoltaic panels ...

Yojiro Oshima, a design student at the Craft & Industrial Department at Musashino Art University in Tokyo, has designed a completely hand-crafted wooden bicycle. The wooden bike features a sculptural wooden frame that softens the ride while retaining an optimal level of stiffness. Yojiro used hollowed-out 6-12mm sections and bonded them together to create a network of rims and spokes. ...