TRAFFIC CONGESTIONS WORLDWIDE * USA - For commuters in America, the future is now

Concept of commuting is approaching a turning point

(Video by Paul Moseley -July 23, 1010: Technicians at the Texas Department of Transportation monitor Tarrant County highway traffic with remote cameras from the TransVision headquarters in Fort Worth)

Forth Worth,TX,USA -The Star-Telegram, by Gordon Dickson -Jul. 24, 2010: -- Fed-up motorists are turning to technology to escape bumper-to-bumper traffic or at least make it more palatable. Several scientists and transportation experts say it's a trend in its infancy; during the next 20 years, huge segments of the population may dramatically redefine how they live, work and drive... Features once thought to be the stuff of science fiction could become part of everyday life. People may get around in cars that drive themselves. Employees may take part in conferences held in a virtual world -- where co-workers across town, or around the globe, appear close enough to touch... With technology taking the monotony out of the daily commute, workers may find that the physical distance between home and job no longer matters much. Families may live farther from city centers in search of a Utopian life -- setting the stage for a renaissance in suburban fringe areas as well as rural towns... The know-how to make these changes is emerging quickly, somewhat under the radar of a traveling public that may be too busy surviving the rat race to see what's coming... The costs of traffic are clear: tens of thousands of fatalities a year, environmental damage, loss of productivity. Efforts by federal and state officials to add highway lanes and build their way out of the problem have failed... With the help of technology, and a hankering to do things differently, motorists are ready to find their own way through the gridlock...


* Europe - EU adopts new Intelligent Transport Systems plan

Brussels,Belgium -Mobile Synergetics -July 13, 2010: -- The European Parliament has just approved a new Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) directive, aimed at creating a cleaner, safer, and more efficient transport system throughout Europe. The new is intended to accelerate the deployment of innovative transport technologies across Europe... Traffic congestion currently costs Europe around one percent of its gross domestic product (GDP). The Commission estimates that this can be reduced by some 10 percent through effective deployment of ITS technologies. Additionally, intelligent technology in cars and trucks could help prevent more than 5,000 deaths in road accidents annually, according to the Commission... The Directive authorizes the Commission to adopt functional, technical, organizational, and services specifications that address the compatibility, interoperability, and continuity of ITS solutions throughout Europe. Additionally, the Commission plans to establish a European ITS Advisory Group, comprised of representatives from relevant ITS stakeholders, to advise the Commission on the business and technical aspects of implementing and deploying ITS throughout the EU...


* Brazil - Shaky Infrastructure. Poor infrastructure tops the challenge among local and foreign companies.

San Paulo,SP,Brazil -Latin Business Chronicle, by Economist Intelligence Unit (USA) -August 2, 2010: -- Car makers may rejoice, but it is the millions of drivers that have to negotiate the dangerously unpaved roads that prevail everywhere except the main routes – and even many of these are potholed or need resurfacing. Poor infrastructure is one major reason that Brazil scores low in the Economist Intelligence Unit’s business environment rankings (based on 12 key business operating criteria), which places Brazil 40th out of 82 countries despite the expectation of some mild improvements in coming years... But ask local businessmen with international ambitions about their greatest concern, and the parlous state of the infrastructure will almost certainly top the list. In our survey, nearly one half of respondents (49%) point to “low standard or costly infrastructure including telephones, transport networks and utilities” as the main operational obstacle, far more than selected corruption, poor governance (34 percent) or skills shortages (32 percent), the state of transport infrastructure is particularly dire...

In spite of some improvement in logistics, freight depends on costly road haulage; there are few railroads; the potential for waterways remains largely unexplored; and ports and airports are congested. This can add one quarter or more to the cost of getting goods to market, say investors... High public spending commitments are crowding out the paltry 1 percent of GDP that is proposed for investment in infrastructure, while limited private sector investment in transport will not make up the shortfall. Little more than 10 percent of Brazil’s road network is paved, and even these are poorly maintained. The exceptions are the main toll roads managed by private operators since the late 1990s, such as the main São Paulo-Rio de Janeiro motorway. As well as growing car usage (with 25 million vehicles now on the roads) more than 60% of cargo transportation is by truck, even though this method is slow and costly. Many fleets comprise owner drivers with ageing vehicles, and this makes it hard for a company to develop an overarching view of its logistics needs... The problem is that no-one takes “end-to-end” responsibility for the whole logistics journey... (Photos: Google Images & Claus Bunks - CONGESTED Brazil's ports and airports are congested, adding further costs to transport. Here San Pablo's Guarulhos airport and Santos port)