IRF Members’ News

Artificial Intelligence is often seen as the answer to everything in a digital future – but when it comes to transport, the reality is more complex. While many industries are rapidly embracing AI, the transport sector is struggling to keep pace.

To understand why, TRL brought together over 60 stakeholders from across the public, private, and academic sectors in a series of workshops. The findings are now published in a new report: “Bridging the Gap: Overcoming the Barriers to AI Adoption in Transport.”

The report identifies the major obstacles preventing AI from reaching its full potential in transport, including:

• Lack of infrastructure to support AI applications
• Low levels of AI literacy and limited workforce upskilling
• Public distrust of AI-enabled systems
• Concerns about environmental impact

Despite these barriers, the consensus is clear: AI offers significant potential to improve safety, efficiency, and sustainability in transport – if deployed thoughtfully and at scale.

The report highlights practical insights from real-world attempts to use AI and concludes with five key opportunities for the sector to enable faster, wider adoption. These recommendations provide a shared framework for decision-makers and innovators across the industry.

The Infravision Foundation (TIF) hosted a groundbreaking seminar on "Decarbonising Urban Transport Using ITMS Data" at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi on 8 April 2025. The event brought together thought leaders, industry experts, academics, and practitioners to strategise on leveraging urban data for the "Vision Zero: Road Safety & Decarbonization" initiative.

The seminar focused on the transformative potential of urban big data in enhancing road safety and accelerating decarbonization efforts across India. EFKON STRABAG’s CEO, Mr. Rajat Mishra, joined an esteemed panel of experts, including Shri V Umashankar, Secretary, Ministry of Road Transport & Highways; Dr. Geetam Tiwari, Emeritus Professor, TRIP Centre, IIT Delhi; Mr Amardeep Singh Rai IPS, ADGP Traffic & Road Safety, Punjab-Chandigarh; and Dr. Manoranjan Parida, Director, Central Road Research Institute, Delhi. Together, they explored innovative approaches to harness traffic data for sustainable urban transport systems.

In his address, Mr. Rajat Mishra emphasised the critical role of children as changemakers in shaping a safer and greener future. "Children are not just the future; they are active agents of change today," Mr Mishra stated. "By educating and empowering them to understand road safety and environmental challenges, we plant the seeds for long-term societal transformation."

We extend our heartfelt thanks to all the distinguished panelists and to TIF for organising this impactful event.

The Third International Transport Conference 2025, organised jointly by the Society of Transportation Engineers Nepal (SOTEN), the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport (MOPIT); and the Ministry of Urban Development (MOUD) was held in Nepal from 11–13 April 2025. The event brought together transport experts, policymakers, researchers, and industry leaders to discuss safe, sustainable, resilient, and innovative transport solutions for Nepal and beyond. The event featured 23 International and 52 national speakers, spread across 15 technical sessions, with over 320 participants from 13 countries.

The event was supported by international collaboration with Eastern Asian Society of Transport Studies, Asian Transport Observatory, the International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP) and the International Road Federation (IRF). Other major governmental stakeholder covering federal, provincial and local government were part of the collaboration. Department of Roads, Department of Local Infrastructure Development, Construction Business Development Implementation Committee, Department of railway, Road Board Nepal, Investment Board Nepal, Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, Municipality Association of Nepal, National Association of Rural Municipality of Nepal, Kathmandu Metropolitan City, Lalitpur Metropolitan City and Federation of Contractors Association of Nepal were the collaborating partners along with support from other professional societies and sponsors.

The inaugural session featured high dignitaries. Susanna Zammataro, Director General of the International Road Federation (IRF); and Professor Fujiwara, President of the Eastern Asia Society for Transportation Studies (EASTS) provided opening remarks followed by keynote remarks from Keshab K. Sharma, Secretary of the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport (MoPIT); Professor Kaito from Osaka University; and Bindu Lohani, Chair of Clean Air Asia and former vice president, Asian Development Bank. The event was further enlightened by the presence and remarks of Hon’rable Devendra Dahal, Minister of Physical Infrastructure and Transport.

The program provided special presentation from international speakers from 12 countries representing diverse sector ranging from intermodal transportation, safe transportation system, sustainable mobility, transport connectivity, slope stabilisation, asset management, public transportation, traffic engineering, civil aviation, technology, resilient transport infrastructure and many other. The event welcomed various researchers and professional working in Nepal presenting their research, innovation, and works. With Nepal adopting federal structure, it is utmost necessary to discuss the challenges from both a provincial and local perspective, hence the conference brought experts to present them. The final technical session featured a major local government stakeholder in the transport sector to discuss about their future plans for development.

The closing session brought high delegate representation. Greg Smith, International Road Assessment Program (iRAP) and Alvin Mejia, Asian Transport Observatory gave closing remarks highlighting the importance of the conference. Similarly, Er. Sushil Gyawali, CEO of Investment Board Nepal highlighted importance of bigger transport projects to achieve the SDGs and for economic boost. Similarly, Honorable Minister Aman Maskey emphasised the role of the transport sector in provincial development and the commitment to implementing the lessons learned during this conference. Finally, Honorable Prof. Dr. Shiva Raj Adhikari, Vice Chairman of National Planning Commission presented the integration and optimisation requisite for the improvement of the transport sector and called for implementation of the conference resolution "Towards Safe, Sustainable, Efficient and Resilient Mobility". The conference concluded with an 11-point resolution which will be fundamental for future discussions and advocacy efforts.

During the conference, the Society of Transport Engineers Nepal (SOTEN) renewed its collaboration with Asian Transport Observatory (ATO), with a MoU committing for research, capacity building and knowledge sharing in transport sector.

The conference concluded in the leadership of Er. Hare Ram Shrestha, PHD. Chair of the Organising Committee and Er. Hemant Tiwari, Conference Convener. 

London, UK, March 18, 2025  – Valerann, a global leader in AI-powered, data-driven road traffic management solutions, has been awarded a €3.6M co-funded contract from the European Space Agency’s Business Applications and Space Solution (BASS) program. The contract will support the development and demonstration of an AI and satellite data-enabled traffic monitoring and incident detection platform designed to enhance nationwide road network safety and efficiency. The initiative aligns with the BASS program’s objective of supporting innovative services that leverage space technology and data in key markets, such as transportation. It is also aligned with the EU Global Gateway Strategy’s aims for seamless, sustainable, and environmentally friendly international corridor management.

Proven through deployments with leading public and private road traffic authorities— Lanternn by Valerann™ (LbV), Valerann’s flagship product, helps road operators improve road safety. The advanced data analytics platform uses deep data fusion to process very large volumes of current and historical traffic-related data to instantly deliver a holistic, real-time overview of single corridor road traffic, including risk profiling, on a single pane of glass. It enables road traffic authorities in Europe, the US, Central and Latin Americas to adopt a proactive road traffic management approach while achieving a double percentage reduction in serious traffic accidents.

Building on the success of LbV, the new transformational system, Lanternn by Valerann™ for networks, will feature crucial capabilities for managing national-scale road networks, arterial roads and intersections. These include superior holistic coverage of traffic and road assets monitoring, risk management, improvement of incident management and prioritization, while extending real-time traffic monitoring and predictive capabilities to underserved rural roads which often lack advanced monitoring systems. Satellite positioning information derived from mobile and vehicle navigation applications will play a key role in enabling these capabilities.

LbV for networks aggregates data from various sources, including street side sensors, third-party datasets, and GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) derived mobility data transforming this information into an enriched, unified dataset to ensure a cohesive view of traffic flow across complex networks, including urban and suburban roads, beyond the simplicity of a single road corridor.

Additionally, by leveraging GNSS data from fleets, LbV for networks enables real-time monitoring of emergency vehicles, patrol units, snow ploughs, and other operational assets, allowing national and municipal operators to improve response coordination and optimize road maintenance. Satellite-enabled weather alerts will inform operators of dangerous weather events such as hailstorms and ice risks, allowing for proactive planning and intervention. 

Investing in real-time traffic monitoring for both rural areas and motorways is equally important, as it can significantly improve safety, efficiency, and emergency response. 

“This funding from ESA marks a significant milestone in our mission to transform road traffic safety and efficiency,” - says Michael Vardi, CBO and co-founder of Valerann. 

“By extending our monitoring capabilities to large, complex road networks and rural  areas, we aim to further reduce accidents and improve response times, ultimately saving lives.” 

“ESA Space Solutions is pleased to support Valerann in leveraging satellite data and  AI to improve safety on our roads. Developing the capability to cover national-scale and rural networks has the potential to further support accident prevention and improve overall traffic management.” – Christopher Frost-Tesfaye, Space Applications Officer at European Space Agency.

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Following successful negotiations and the signing on 21 January, Austrian SWARCO now announces the closing of the transaction to incorporate the CITY-MOBILITY segment of French LACROIX into the SWARCO Group. The CITY-MOBILITY segment of LACROIX consists of three companies that manufacture signal heads, controllers, variable message signs, and signs for passenger information and also supply software for C-ITS and V2X communication. The number of employees is approximately 120 at the Carros (Southern France), Ploufragan (Bretagne) and Madrid (Spain) sites, with consolidated revenues in 2024 amounting to € 30.8 million.

“We are very pleased that the negotiations and all legal implications were now successfully completed and solved”, said SWARCO CEO Michael Schuch. Jointly we can now pave the way for a coordinated post-merger integration process with subsequent rebranding of the LACROIX MOBILITY segment. By uniting LACROIX MOBILITY’s expertise, geographic reach, and reputation with our market-leading ITS products, systems, and solutions, we are looking forward to make substantial advancements in France and Spain.”

For LACROIX, this divestment was driven by the desire to refocus on its businesses with strong technological synergies in order to achieve its objective of becoming a global leader in industrial IoT solutions and electronic equipment for critical applications. Vincent Bedouin, CEO of the listed LACROIX Group, said: “I am delighted with the sale to SWARCO, which will enable the City-Mobility segment to achieve its full potential over the long term.” 

On 6 March, the SWARCO leadership team will officially welcome the CITY-MOBILITY staff of LACROIX at the Carros site with a reception. 

Ireland’s national roads network plays a critical role in the country’s economic growth, mobility, and quality of life. Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) is at the forefront of ensuring that this network operates at its highest efficiency while respecting environmental concerns. As part of this mission, Valerann is working with Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) and engineering consultant Roughan & O’Donovan to implement Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) to enhance real-time operational capabilities.

Two major arteries serving Dublin city, the M1 and the M6 acted as a prime testing ground for these advancements. The M1, which already had moderate coverage of ITS infrastructure for traffic tracking, intersects with the M50 Dublin Ring Road, which is Ireland’s busiest commuter route. The project also focused on the M6, further west with lower levels of ITS infrastructure coverage.

The Need for Innovation

For these major roadways throughout Ireland, TII acknowledged that future capacity improvements would need to come from optimized traffic operations rather than physical expansion. Over the past six years, the TII team has undertaken a strategic shift toward using data-driven ITS solutions to enhance roadway efficiency. To further this effort, TII partnered with Valerann to deploy our state-of-the-art data fusion platform—Lanternn by Valerann™ (LbV).

Unlocking the Full Potential of Data

Traditional ITS solutions have relied on fixed road infrastructure, such as cameras and sensors, to manage traffic. However, the rapid growth of connected vehicles, navigation applications, and social media has exponentially expanded the availability, and opportunities to utilize, real-time traffic data. The challenge lies in making sense of this vast and often cluttered data landscape.

Valerann’s LbV platform addresses this challenge by applying AI-powered data fusion, which seamlessly integrates multiple data sources — including floating car data, roadside sensors, and third-party inputs — to create a highly accurate and actionable traffic management solution. LbV ingests and analyses data from the existing roadside infrastructure, third-party sources, historical incident data and weather data to deliver a detailed real-time overview of the road traffic situation and an accurate prediction of potential road incidents.

The project team was tasked with meeting several key objectives for the Ireland Project. These included:

1. Reduce Detection Time – Enable faster incident detection with greater context, allowing for quicker validation and response.
2. Improve Detection Rates – Increase the number of identified incidents while reducing false positives.
3. Inform ITS Planning – Assess the impact of different ITS investments to enhance long-term infrastructure planning and decision-making.

Results & Findings: A Data-Driven Approach to Safer Roads

Valerann’s AI fusion technology has already delivered tangible results in improving traffic management and road safety. Key outcomes from the project include:

Faster Incident Detection:

• A multi-vehicle collision on the M1 Southbound was detected within one minute by Lanternn by Valerann^TM’s AI fusion system, condensing 134 notifications into one event. Significantly quicker compared to traditional systems available in the control room.
• 47% of incidents on the M1 were detected 25 minutes earlier when using data fusion compared to traditional methods used in the traffic management center.
• 65% of events on the M6 were detected 35 min faster using AI fusion.

Increased Detection of Actionable Events:

• An additional one (1) actionable event per day was identified using Lanternn’s AI-powered monitoring.
• If expanded across Ireland’s entire motorway network, this could scale up to 20 additional actionable events per day.

Enhanced Data Trust & Decision-Making:

• AI fusion successfully reduced data noise and created a single source of truth, ensuring traffic operators receive only the most relevant, high-confidence alerts.
• Integration of Waze and CCTV data proved particularly valuable, demonstrating the importance of leveraging diverse data sources for optimal network coverage.

The Future of Road Management in Ireland

TII’s collaboration with Valerann marks a significant step forward in the evolution of Ireland’s road network management. By harnessing AI-powered data fusion, TII is not only improving traffic flow and incident response, but also laying the groundwork for a more sustainable and efficient transportation system.

With continued investment in ITS and real-time data analytics, Ireland’s roads are becoming safer, smarter, and more responsive to the dynamic needs of commuters and freight operators alike. The project serves as a blueprint for future deployments, demonstrating how AI-driven solutions can transform road operations and set new benchmarks for global best practices in intelligent transportation.

As TII continues to embrace innovative technologies, the vision of a seamlessly integrated, data-driven road network is quickly becoming a reality—one where safety, efficiency, and sustainability drive the future of Irish transportation.

At the beginning of February this year (2025), the construction of the Iverak – Lajkovac expressway was ended, with the completion of the subsection from Iverak to the Divci interchange and the opening of the remaining 5.8 km. 

As a reminder, the 12.4 km section from the Lajkovac link to the Divci link was opened to traffic at the end of 2023. Iverak - Lajkovac expressway, 18.2 km long, starts from the I B cateogory state road number 27 (Loznica-Valjevo-Lazarevac) from the town of Iverak, through the newly designed roundabout and the "Divci" interchange, and ends with a connection to the existing "Lajkovac" interchange of the Belgrade-South Adriatic highway.

The design solution, with graded intersections, ensures safe, high-quality connectivity as well as the passability of other state and local roads. The bridges and culverts, of which there are 26, have separate directions and different lengths, and a total length of 2.5 km.  

The longest bridge, which spans the Kolubara River, the state road and local roads, is 928 m long. Most of the route is located in the floodplain of the Kolubara River, about 52% of the route. The adopted design speed is 100 km/h, and the following elements have been applied:

- driving lanes  4 x 3.50 m = 14.0 

- edge lanes (shoulder lanes) 4 x 0.50 m = 2.0 m

- dividing strip (dividing lane) 1 x 4.0 m = 4.0 m

- shoulders  2 x 1.5 m = 3.0 m

The total width of the characteristic cross-section is 23 m.

The project includes controlled drainage of the roadway with a system for purification and protection of watercourses.

SUBSECTION IVERAK – DIVCI INTERSECTION – CHARACTERISTICS AND WORKS PERFORMED

A roundabout has been designed at km 0+536.65, which represents the connection between the city of Valjevo, the existing road, the planned Valjevo Bypass and the designed road. The route then crosses over the existing state road and railway by bridge and continues along the right side of the railway from the direction of Valjevo towards Lajkovac.

The designed Divci interchgane is a graded intersection that has the function of connecting the planned state road with the existing I B category state road number 27, as well as with the II A category state road number 150 as a connection to the municipal center of Mionica and the tourist center of Divčibare.

Exactly 8 structures - bridges were built on the section, the Krivoshije and Rabas rivers were regulated, 10 collisions of electrical and power installations were relocated, 8 telecommunication installations were relocated and protected and 4 km of new road TC infrastructure was installed, as wel as as lighting was installed at the roundabout on bridge no. 3.

Quantities of materials:

- Excavation – 5,300.00m3

- Embankment – ​​814,000.00m3

- Crushed stone aggregate – 121,000m3

- Concrete – 12,500m3

- Asphalt – 28,180 tons

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE PROJECT

The Iverak - Lajkovac expressway is very important for the entire Kolubara District as it connects the city of Valjevo with the Miloš Veliki highway, or the Belgrade - South Adriatic highway. 

The expressway shortens the journey to Belgrade and is a cross-connection in the road network of the Republic of Serbia.  It connects parts of the Republika Srpska and Bosnia and Herzegovina with the E-763 highway and further via Corridor 10, with Bulgaria and Greece.