RATP: live transit schedules on iPhone Application

Posted on July 1, 2009 by Matthieu Desiderio

RATP, Paris transit operator, developped an application specially designed for iPhone users, that allow public transport users to check live schedule of any metro, light-rail, bus that runs on RATP network. The system also provides a full clickable map of the whole network, itinerary planning, localisation of the nearest station using the iPhone’s embedded GPS, and traffic info. We provide you with a couple screenshots below:


Home Screen RATP Apps	Welcome Screen RATP Apps

RATP Clickable Network Map	RATP Clickable Network Map: itinerary planning

Category: ITS, accessibility, mobility, passengers, public transport, rail, road, transport

High-Speed Rail: what is high-speed?

Posted on June 26, 2009 by Matthieu Desiderio

Even though location might be approximate, speed is accurate (verified post trip with the driver). America needs high-speed rail to move faster forward.

The train was riding approximately at 188 mph or 300 kph. This is not top speed but… commercial speed: Marseilles to Paris in 3h08, 863 kilometers (or 537 miles)… Average speed of 171.2 mph with a stop in Avignon. What do you say?

Category: ITS, high speed rail, infos, infrastructure, mobility, passengers, public transport, rail, transport

GAO Month in Review – May 2009

Posted on June 8, 2009 by Matthieu Desiderio

Here are the latest US Government Accountability Office (US GAO) reports about transportation, published in May 2009.

Aviation Security: TSA Has Completed Key Activities Associated with Implementing Secure Flight, but Additional Actions Are Needed to Mitigate Risks. GAO-09-292, May 13, 2009 (62 pages).
http://www.gao.gov/docdblite/details.php?rptno=GAO-09-292
Federal Transit Administration: Progress and Challenges in Implementing and Evaluating the Job Access and Reverse Commute Program. GAO-09-496, May 21, 2009 (52 pages).
http://www.gao.gov/docdblite/details.php?rptno=GAO-09-496
Freight Rail Security: Actions Have Been Taken to Enhance Security, but the Federal Strategy Can Be Strengthened and Security Efforts Better Monitored. GAO-09-243, April 21, 2009 (123 pages).
http://www.gao.gov/docdblite/details.php?rptno=GAO-09-243
Motor Carrier Safety: Commercial Vehicle Registration Program Has Kept Unsafe Carriers from Operating, but Effectiveness Is Difficult to Measure. GAO-09-495, May 12, 2009 (37 pages).
http://www.gao.gov/docdblite/details.php?rptno=GAO-09-495
Responses to Questions for the Record: March 18, 2009, Hearing on ATC Modernization: Near-Term Achievable Goals. GAO-09-718R, May 20, 2009 (14 pages).
http://www.gao.gov/docdblite/details.php?rptno=GAO-09-718R

Category: ITS, air, contracts, economics, finance, freight, infrastructure, intermodal, logistics, mobility, passengers, politics, rail, regulation, road, safety, security, transport

Urban Mobility: This week, Transport Expertise read… – #1

Posted on June 4, 2009 by Laurent Diringer

Transport Expertise starts a new series of product called “This week, Transport Expertise read…”: a press review of articles selected by Transport Expertise members among their readings, to share with our visitors what we are interested in… Hereafter stands articles about Urban Mobility. We plan to provide a selection for every major topic we are working on: Rail, Roads & Logistics, Air, Urban Mobility, Maritime & Waterways.

“MTA grants Italian rail car builder more time in contract negotiations” by Maeve Reston, Los Angeles Times, May 28, 2009

Los Angeles County’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority board delayed a decision today on whether to hire an Italian rail manufacturer to build 100 cars needed for Metro’s light rail line extensions. The delay — the second since March — would give MTA officials more time to work out the details of a new offer by the firm, AnsaldoBreda, for a $300-million financial guarantee on the potential 100-car contract. [...]

Link: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/05/mta-grants-more-time-to-controversial-italian-rail-car-builder.html

“Subsidies attracting riders to mass transit” by Sean Holstege, The Arizona Republic, June 2, 2009

When Jim Wilson took a job at Arizona Public Service Co. a year ago, he figured he’d pay $75 a week in gas and $40 a month on parking to commute from Surprise to downtown Phoenix. So, when APS offered him a transit pass for free, he was thrilled. [...] Read more

Category: economics, finance, infos, mobility, passengers, politics, public transport, transport

Rail: This week, Transport Expertise read… – #1

Posted on June 1, 2009 by Pierre Billet-Legros

Transport Expertise starts a new series of product called “This week, Transport Expertise read…”: a press review of articles selected by Transport Expertise members among their readings, to share with our visitors what we are interested in… Hereafter stands articles about Rail. We plan to provide a selection for every major topic we are working on: Rail, Roads & Logistics, Air, Urban Mobility, Maritime & Waterways.

“Rail industry urges shorter trains off-peak to cut carbon emissions”, The Guardian, May 28, 2009

The rail industry is urging the government to run shorter trains in order to meet Britain’s climate change obligations. Removing carriages outside rush hour would conserve energy and reinforce rail’s reputation as one of the greenest modes of transport, says an industry manifesto published today. Network Rail, owner of rail infrastructure, and the Association of Train Operating Companies (Atoc) argue they can help reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20% by 2020 by running shorter trains at off-peak times. [...]

Link: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/may/28/railway-trains-climate-change-carbon-emissions

“Union Pacific CEO: Regulation Inflating Funding Costs” by Doug Cameron, Dow Jones Newswires, May 27, 2009

CHICAGO -(Dow Jones)- The head of Union Pacific Corp. (UNP) warned Wednesday railroads face inflated funding costs because of uncertainty about future industry regulation. James Young, chief executive, intensified his criticism of the planned reauthorization of the Transportation Act later this year, which he said could damage future industry investment. “It’s bad law,” said Young in remarks to a rail shippers conference in Chicago. [...] Read more

Category: accessibility, contracts, economics, energy, environment, freight, infos, infrastructure, mobility, passengers, politics, rail, transport

High-Speed Rail: This week, Transport Expertise read… – #1

Posted on May 29, 2009 by Matthieu Desiderio

“Florida still has chance for fast train, but other states vying for U.S. aid” by Michael Turnbell, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, May 25, 2009

A bullet train, its supporters say, could boost tourism, create jobs and get cars off Florida’s crowded roads. There’s even $8 billion in federal stimulus money available to help build the proposed Tampa-Orlando-Miami line, where trains would move at least 110 mph and zip travelers from South Florida to Disney World in less than two hours. [...]

Link: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sfl-high-speed-rail-b052509sbmay25,0,6488044.story

“Against All Odds, Florida Rail Authority Rolls On”, News Service of Florida, May 26, 2009

The Florida High Speed Rail Authority last month had one of its most high profile members resign and the rest of its members terms have actually expired. But the authority has kept the wheels on its plan to apply for federal money that can be used to build a proposed Tampa-Orlando-Miami bullet train. [...] Read more

Category: PPP, economics, energy, environment, finance, high speed rail, infrastructure, passengers, projects, public transport, rail, transport

U.S. Transportation Secretary interested in French TGV

Posted on May 27, 2009 by Matthieu Desiderio

Sometimes, a picture is better than a long story…

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray Lahood inspecting a TGV in Paris

Source: AFP

Category: energy, environment, finance, high speed rail, infos, infrastructure, mobility, passengers, politics, projects, rail, transport

Urban Mobility: This week, Transport Expertise read…

Posted on May 27, 2009 by Matthieu Desiderio

“More U.S. airports add rail service to downtown” by Roger Yu, USA TODAY, May 25, 2009

Riding the rails between downtown and the airport is becoming a reality for more U.S. travelers. With their roadways jammed with cars and shuttles, a growing number of domestic airports are building or have plans for a rail link that will connect passengers from the terminals to regional metro-rail systems, allowing road warriors and vacationers to ditch their cars. [...]

Link: http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/travel/2009-05-25-rail-lines-airport-city-center_N.htm

“Transit Authority Feeling the Pain From a Crippled Advertising Market” by WILLIAM NEUMAN, New York Times, May 24, 2009

The worst advertising market in decades has had a devastating, and well-documented, effect on newspapers, magazines and television networks. But now another recipient of ad dollars is being hurt by the market slump at a time it can little afford it: mass transit. In recent months, a company that sells many of the ads that appear on buses and trains and in stations in New York, Boston, Minneapolis and other cities has come up short in its payments to transit agencies, citing a sharp drop in ad rates and sales. New York is among the hardest hit. [...]

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/25/nyregion/25ads.html?_r=1&sq=transit&st=cse&scp=3&pagewanted=all

“S.F. supes push to gain more power over Muni” by Rachel Gordon, San Francisco Chronicle, May 27, 2009

San Francisco voters have made clear three times in the past decade that they want to limit political meddling when it comes to Muni. But a recent plan to cut bus service and raise fares has shown that City Hall influence is still very much part of the mix. The Board of Supervisors – using powers granted by the same voters who wanted to tame its influence – has been threatening for weeks to reject Muni’s unpopular $766 million budget plan approved last month by a mayoral panel. [...] Read more

Category: ITS, accessibility, contracts, finance, infos, infrastructure, passengers, public transport, transport

Press release: Beamways is one of Globe Forum’s Sustainable Innovators 100 companies

Posted on May 24, 2009 by Matthieu Desiderio

[Linköping, May 21, 2009] In competition with more than 500 candidates Beamways has been selected as one of the Sustainable Innovators 100 by Globe Forum.

The Jury of Globe Forum (www.globeforum.com) has selected 100 companies that offer the most exciting sustainable innovations and that are most likely to succeed, from more than 500 candidates from 16 countries. One of the companies selected is the Swedish developer of Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) systems Beamways AB. Being a part of the Sustainable Innovators 100 will enable Beamways to market its concept to investors and decision makers from all corners of the world, many of whom act outside the specialist networks where the Beamways concept is already well established.

Beamways CEO, Mr. Bengt Gustafsson, welcomes this opportunity. “We are proud to be selected”, he says and continues, “PRT systems are after many years as a technology playground with fanciful demonstration projects finally emerging as a serious tool to help solve the traffic problems of our cities. Our technology addresses the individual needs for flexibility in time and efficient routing while also improving the environment and public safety. We can also show that PRT can be made financially efficient for all parties in competition with other public transport systems and individual automobile traffic.”

Gustav Gorecki of the Globe Forum organization says: “Beamways is exactly the type of company we want to help develop. Early, competent and with a concept that is both perfectly in line with the targets of our organization as well as making sense businesswise.” Read more

Category: accessibility, environment, infos, mobility, projects, public transport, road, transport

First Networking Event: April 6, 2009

Posted on May 24, 2009 by Matthieu Desiderio

Transport Expertise held its first networking at Apollo Restaurant in Paris. Future events will soon be announced on our website and will be opened to everybody: members and non-members. Do not hesitate to send us your contact information if you would be interested in attenting our future meetings.

See below a couple pictures shot during the event…