Why is it that some countries have significantly higher risks to road users than others? In developing nations road safety plans can be at early stages of implementation and enforcement may be patchy. In addition, drivers and other road users may be poorly trained, road conditions can be bad and vehicle numbers may vastly exceed network capacity. But in developed countries, the risks of drivers being involved in road crashes can vary widely, even in neighbouring nations. In general, annual road fatality rat
The Toyota Prius has a reputation as a car favoured by tree-hugging Hollywood stars, but a former colleague of the World Highways editor has proven that despite its reputation for economy, the Toyota Prius can serve as a racetrack tool. The driver has con rmed that his vehicle was o cially the ninth fastest of its type around the famous Nordschleife (Nürburgring) race track in Germany, beating 27 other similar models at the time of its run. The unmodi ed Prius T4 managed to complete the 20.8km section of t
An automobile manufacturer in Iran intends to develop a car designed specially for female customers. The car will be equipped with an automatic transmission, electronic parking aids, a navigation system and a jack to allow drivers to change a wheel. While these features are common on the international market, they are regarded as being insufficiently masculine in male-dominated Iran. Other features of the car will include an alarm system to warn of flat tyres, an audiovisual system for child passengers and
Qualcomm has announced the first wireless electric vehicle charging (WEVC) trial for London in collaboration with the UK Government, as well as the Mayor of London's office and Transport for London (TfL). The pre-commercial trial is expected to start in early 2012 and will involve as many as 50 electric vehicles (EVs) using Qualcomm wireless inductive power transfer technology that enables high-efficiency power transfer across a large air gap. The driver simply parks the vehicle in the usual way and the sys
