ITS Monday: Edition 25, 2022

Brisbane confirms order for 60 all-electric “trackless trams” with flash charging

As the headline says, Brisbane City Council’s ‘Brisbane Metro’ project has officially placed an order with Swiss manufacturer Hess for 60 high-capacity battery electric “trackless trams”. An announcement of the plan to place the order was made in 2019, but now that order has in fact been placed. Delivery of the vehicles is expected to commence from late 2023 (this detail isn’t in the linked article, however there is more detail in the Hess media release, HESS gets green light on full Brisbane Metro fleet order).

Changes in Travel Behaviour During the Pandemic: Exploring Why Public Transport is Not Back to Pre-Pandemic Levels

A new paper from Susanne T. Dale Nordbakke. of the Institute of Transport Economics, Norway. “This study explores why shares using public transport in autumn 2021 remained well below 2019 pre-pandemic levels, even after most COVID-19 restrictions had been lifted. Based on an interview survey of 1145 workers in the Oslo region in Norway,”

E-scooters help Australia’s net-zero goals, but medics warn about long-term injuries

Stats and injury types from regional Queensland. There’s also an acknowledgement that e-scooters, “.. do have a big role to play in Australia’s net-zero goals”, along with recommendations from that organisation that it has passed along to e-scooter rental companies.

Related iMOVE project: Safer cycling and street design: A guide for policymakers

Nader takes on Tesla’s autonomous algorithms

America’s long time consumer advocate warrior has Tesla in his sights. In a recent blog post he said, ““Tesla’s major deployment of so-called Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology is one of the most dangerous and irresponsible actions by a car company in decades. Tesla should never have put this technology in its vehicles. I am calling on federal regulators to act immediately to prevent the growing deaths and injuries from Tesla manslaughtering crashes with this technology.”

Related iMOVE project: Safely introducing CAVs into integrated transport networks

Rex Airlines announces plan to retrofit existing fleet with electric-propulsion engines in regional trial

What the headline says. An initial trial will take place in 2024 in Mount Gambier, South Australia. “It will be the first airline in Australia to trial electric commercial flights. Other smaller aviation companies have said they would be looking to do something similar by the end of the decade.”

Related iMOVE project: Experiments on consumer preferences for sustainable airlines/a>

Paris to become 100 percent cycling city

Paris: City of light. And city of cycling. “The French capital under Mayor Anne Hidalgo has already made significant improvements that continue to captivate the iconic town and combined with the pandemic have resulted in a massive local cycling boom. And now we know what Paris is planning for an encore.”