[en] The European Electronic Toll Service (EETS) was created in 2004 with the aim of ensuring interoperability among the existing electronic toll collection (ETC) systems in Europe. However, the lack of cooperation between groups of stakeholders has not made possible to achieve this goal ten years later. The purpose of this research is to determine the better way to achieve interoperability among the different ETC systems in Europe. Our study develops a review of the six main ETC systems available worldwide: Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR), Dedicated Short-Range Communications (DSRC), Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Satellite systems (GNSS), Tachograph, and Mobile communications tolling systems. The research also provides some insight on different emerging technologies. By focusing on different operational and strategic aspects offered by each technology, we identify their main strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats and makes different recommendations to improve the current framework. The research concludes that given the diversity of advantages and inconveniences offered by each system, the selection of a certain ETC technology should also take into account its potential to overcome the weaknesses in the current ETC framework. In this line, different policy recommendations are proposed to improve the present ETC strategy at the EU. (Author)

[en] Each part of the carriage for fuel element transport containers has two supporting blocks opposite each other in the longitudinal direction. These are freely adjustable in the longitudinal direction. Both parts of the carriage are coupled together by a bar running between them. (orig./HP)

[en] Different types of track infrastructure can be found along railway lines. Separation zones between these different types of structures are the source of a lot of problems. Transition zones on a railway line represent a gradual solution for the problems between conventional railway structure and singular structures located at different points along the line. The different nature, positioning and geometry used with the materials generate changes in the stiffness on both sides of these singular zones leading to an increase in wear and a loss of geometry, with the associated maintenance costs. This article describes the use of mathematical modelling to represent the behaviour of these zones as a function of train running direction and track supports. Available research into transition zones has not studied these separation points where high increases in load are generated for very short periods of time. Finite elements are used to model two types of track (conventional ballasted track and slab track), using a vehicle to dynamically simulate the behaviour in these zones as a function of train running direction and the position of track supports. The magnitudes analysed were the vertical stresses and the vertical displacements under the sleepers and the supports in both types of structure. The results show increased stresses at the separation zone between both structures which varied in magnitude and position depending most of track supports’ location than the train running direction. (Author)

[en] The aim of the paper is to present a numerical model for a ballasted railway track that includes the dynamic effect of a moving train load and predicts the values of the vertical stiffness of the infrastructure. This model is therefore deemed to be a tool for the evaluation of the state of the track during service situations as well as a predictive model of the behaviour of the system. Consequently, it will be very useful when sizing the cross section of a new railway line is required.The main modelling tool is the finite element method. In regard to this, the application of damping elements to avoid the elastic wave reflection on the boundaries of the numerical domain will be studied. The proposed dynamic analysis consider the change in time of the value of the train load, but not the change in position along the tracks.In the end, a set of suggestions for the numerical model with moving loads will be summarize aiming for the mitigation of the unusual behaviour of the contact surface between the ballast and the sleepers. (Author)

[en] Base transport accident frequency data and sources of these data are presented. Both generic information and rates specific to particular routes or packages are included. Strong packages, such as those containing significant quantities of radioactive materials, will survive most of the accidents represented by these base frequencies without a containment breach. The association of severity probability distributions with a base frequency, and package and contents response, leading to the quantification of release frequency and magnitude, are often more important in risk assessment than the base frequency itself. This paper therefore also includes brief comments on techniques adopted to utilize the base frequencies. This paper reports an accident frequency data survey undertaken at the end of 1986. It has not been updated to take account of work published between January 1987 and the Report publication date. (author)

[en] Communication and data transfer to mobile equipment are in a very active developing face. These technologies might be useful in the work on enhancing the safety of dangerous goods transports. The risk at a certain place, when passed by a transport of dangerous goods, is not the same at every moment. Taking this into account when selecting roads for dangerous goods vehicles so that, for every vehicle, the road most suited at the time in question is selected, should give better results than todays practise. The principles of dynamic routeing of dangerous goods are discussed and the needed and available technologies for implementing dynamic routeing are outlined, as are some other aspects of the implementation. (au)

[en] Pedestrian distribution forecasting on the road network is developed to support the evacuation decision-making. The numbers of evacuees distributed on each road link are stochastic, uncertain and multi-dependent. Therefore, a Gaussian Bayesian networks (GBN) based forecasting model is presented, considering the pedestrian flow characteristics, optimization of evacuation route and evacuation decision-making. In the forecasting model, the route choice probabilities obtained by minimizing evacuation time are applied to correct the regression coefficients of GBN. Finally, an example is provided to illustrate the usefulness of this model. Research shows that this model not only reflects the complexity and dynamics of evacuation process but also performs an accurate forecasting on the time development of the pedestrian distributed in the evacuation space.

[en] Over the last years rubber from scrap tyres has been reused in different civil works such as road embankments and railway platforms due to its resilient properties, low degradation and vibration attenuation. Unfortunately, this issue is still scarce. For instance, in Spain about 175.000 tonnes of scrap tyres were collected in 2014, of which only 0.6% were reused in civil works. Aiming to contribute to the reutilisation of large quantities of this waste material, this paper focuses on the analysis of unbound mixtures of granular materials with different percentages of rubber particles to be used as subballast layers. Mixtures are tested under cyclic triaxial tests so as to obtain their resilient modulus and evaluate their permanent deformations. It is found that as the rubber content increases, the resilient modulus decreases and the permanent deformation increases. Taking into account the usual loads transmitted to the subballast layer, the optimum rubber content that does not compromise the behaviour of the mixture is set in a range between 2.5% and 5% in terms of weight. (Author)

[en] Travel time is probably the most important indicator of the level of service of a highway, and it is also the most appreciated information for its users. Administrations and private companies make increasing efforts to improve its real time estimation. The appearance of new technologies makes the precise measurement of travel times easier than never before. However, direct measurements of travel time are, by nature, outdated in real time, and lack of the desired forecasting capabilities. This paper introduces a new methodology to improve the real time estimation of travel times by using the equipment usually present in most highways, i.e., loop detectors, in combination with Automatic Vehicle Identification or Tracking Technologies. One of the most important features of the method is the usage of cumulative counts at detectors as an input, avoiding the drawbacks of common spot-speed methodologies. Cumulative count curves have great potential for freeway travel time information systems, as they provide spatial measurements and thus allow the calculation of instantaneous travel times. In addition, they exhibit predictive capabilities. Nevertheless, they have not been used extensively mainly because of the error introduced by the accumulation of the detector drift. The proposed methodology solves this problem by correcting the deviations using direct travel time measurements. The method results highly beneficial for its accuracy as well as for its low implementation cost. (Author)

[en] The development of transportation has been a significant factor in the development of civilisation as a whole. Our technical ability to move people and goods now seems virtually limitless when one considers for example the achievements of the various space programmes. Yet our current achievements rely heavily on high standards of safety and reliability from equipment and the human component of transportation systems. Recent failures have highlighted our dependence on equipment and human reliability. This book represents the proceedings of the 1989 Safety and Reliability Society symposium held at Bath on 11-12 October 1989. The structure of the book follows the structure of the symposium itself and the papers selected represent current thinking the the wide field of transportation, and the areas of rail (6 papers, three on railway signalling), air including space (two papers), road (one paper), road and rail (two papers) and sea (three papers) are covered. There are four papers concerned with general transport issues. Three papers concerned with the transport of radioactive materials are indexed separately. (author)