£2 million fund launched to allow councils to capitalise on emerging technologies

carsA £2 million fund to allow councils to capitalise on emerging technologies and deliver better journeys for motorists has been launched and Iknaia is well placed to help deliver solutions!

Local authorities have been invited by the Department for Transport to apply for a share of the money to develop projects to greatly enhance journeys.

Proposals include using technology that will allow vehicles communicate with each other and roadside sensors to provide the drivers with real-time traffic information.

Councils will also look at how warnings about changing weather and traffic conditions can be sent directly to vehicles, so drivers can plan ahead – helping deliver quicker, more efficient and safer journeys.

Councils across England will have until the end of September to apply for the funding.

Roads Minister Andrew Jones said:

I want to deliver better, more enjoyable journeys and this £2 million fund will help councils invest in new technology to enhance the experience of driving.

Britain has a proud history of innovation and I am delighted that councils will be able to use this money to develop systems to make journeys easier and safer.

Bids are expected to range between £30,000 and £300,000 and councils are expected to provide at least 5% of their project’s cost.

They have until 5pm on Friday 30 September 2016 to submit their bids and successful councils will be revealed in November. Schemes would be expected to complete by March 2018.

To find out how to apply for grant funding.

To find out how Iknaia can support you in your bid contact us on 0203 751 2980

Airscan – Improving Road Traffic Congestion

Traffic CongestionTraffic Congestion to most people means, a motionless slow moving line of vehicles leading to driver frustration and in some cases road rage.

Congestion has many negative social, environmental and economic impacts and its one of the many challenges facing Traffic Engineers. Understanding the future demand for road travel and congestion is therefore a key requirement in being able to tackle it.

Airscan by Iknaia, is a new unique sensor monitoring solution that enables Traffic Engineers to analyse traffic queues and congestion in an efficient way and present live journey times to drivers.

Airscan monitors the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi ids in anonymous vehicles and provides real-time information about changes in traffic flows.  With Airscan installed Traffic Engineers can quickly analyse the data and identify congested areas. This will help make judgements to divert traffic to other routes and plan future roads infrastructure.

Airscan data can be presented to signs and phones to keep drivers fully informed of the impact of any incidents or diversion routes.

Julia McNally, Founder of Iknaia says “The Airscan system is able to identify, in real time, incidents that impact on journey time reliability, and what’s more it is portable and easy to install. Using the online self-service dashboard you can control all your units in one place and view real-time reporting. Data can also be exported and fully integrated into existing monitoring applications.”

Data collected by each Airscan unit is pushed to the cloud using 3G/4G connectivity and presented in real-time to an online dashboard optimised for PC, tablets and all mobile devices.  Activity reports can be viewed, and push notifications can be set up to alert key management personnel and ensure they are made aware of incidents as they occur.

Airscan is compatible with multiple third party products including variable message signs and it is also fully integrated into the Iknaia Intelligent Tracking solution to enable location monitoring of the workforce and assets.

For more information www.iknaia.co.uk/airscan