The novel coronavirus has increased interest in robots, drones, and artificial intelligence, even as some testing of autonomous vehicles pauses on public roads. These technologies can help deal with massive staffing shortages in healthcare, manufacturing, and …
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Titanium dioxide proven for disinfecting trains (RailTech)
Titanium dioxide has proved its efficiency for cleaning and disinfecting trains. It reduces the number of bacteria inside the carriages up to 99 per cent. The tests have been carried out by the Polish regional …
Continue readingFree EBike loan for London health workers (TheVerge)
Key National Health Service (NHS) workers in London are being offered a three-month e-bike loan to help them commute to work while social distancing. There are currently 20 Gocycle GS loaner e-bikes available, with more …
Continue readingSNCF deploys hospital TGV for COVID (RailwayGazette)
SNCF has started transporting Covid-19 patients using a TGV Duplex trainset that has been has adapted as a mobile hospital unit. It is being used to evacuate recuperating patients from hot spot areas where the …
Continue readingMore robots assisting railways (RailTech)
The spread of coronavirus around the world and particularly in Europe has made the use of unmanned technologies more vital. In this regard, robots could be a solution for cleaning and disinfecting trains or stations. Where …
Continue readingAir pollution & spread of COVID-19 infection (SIMA)
To date, several scientific studies focused on viruses diffusion among humans demonstrated that increased incidence of infection is related to airborne particulate matter (PM) concentration levels [1,2]. It is known that PM fractions (e.g., PM2.5 …
Continue readingCOVID-19 highlights need for freight analytics (GreenBiz)
COVID-19 shines a spotlight on flexible, digital freight – not enough masks and ventilators in one COVID-19 country hotspot. A lack of testing kits in another. Toilet paper, baby wipes, milk and eggs emptied off …
Continue readingGermFalcon Airliner UV sterilizer (IEEESpectrum)
Flight of the GermFalcon: how a potential Coronavirus-killing airplane sterilizer was born. Dimer UVC’s ultraviolet germ zapper took some very hands-on design work. Dr. Arthur Kreitenberg and his son Elliot got some strange looks when …
Continue readingB’ham to reopen Camp Hill Line for pax (RailBusiness)
The reopening of a former railway line in south Birmingham moved a step closer after a local passenger train travelled the route for the first time in nearly 80 years. The Camp Hill line has …
Continue readingHydrogen bus BRT line rolls out in France (SmartCitiesWorld)
A hydrogen bus fleet rolls out in France. The new service will see eight 18-metre long Van Hool buses operate on a 6km dedicated line in the centre of Pau. The world’s first hydrogen-powered bus …
Continue readingUBir reopens aerodynamic train facility (UKRRIN)
The University of Birmingham’s Transient Aerodynamic Investigation (TRAIN) facility, based in Derby’s Rail Technology Centre (RTC) business park, has reopened following a £1.5 million renovation and upgrade. The TRAIN rig is a unique facility which …
Continue readingGov’t to Councils: build over railway stations (Construct’nIndex)
Housing secretary Robert Jenrick has published proposals for more changes to the planning system to encourage more house-building in town centres and above railway stations. Next month the government will launch a register of brownfield …
Continue readingMTR deploys robots to disinfect trains (Int’lRailJ)
HONG Kong’s Mass Transit Railway (MTR) is deploying 20 Vaporised Hydrogen Peroxide (VHP) robots to deep clean trains at depots as well as stations to improve protection against the spread of coronavirus. The VHP Robot …
Continue readingUK’s 5 rail crunch points (PoliticsHome)
If the new Chancellor wants to ‘level up’ UK rail, he needs to overcome five crunch points, writes Darren Caplan, Chief Executive of the Railway Industry Association. In the Spring Budget, we have the chance …
Continue readingSick of tech disrupters, LA becomes one (CityLab)
In spring 2018, Seleta Reynolds, the general manager of the Los Angeles Department of Transportation, issued a grave warning about the new generation of urban transportation companies such as Uber. “A lot of these private …
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