Transport Talks

Today’s podcast comes at an interesting time, with COP26 having taken place last week and one of the major outcomes being the shift to electrification and with it being Road Safety Week and the theme this year is road safety heroes, CIHT thought it would be best to explore micromobility and how with TIER, a micro mobility company, how they are paving the way for Road Safety for E-Scooter. Shalini...

Glasgow will soon be host to the Conference of Parties – COP – 26 that starts in 10 days time as the world seeks to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system". In the run up to this, just this week the government published their Net Zero Strategy, ‘Build Back Greener’. From a transport perspe...

There are a lot of things challenging the construction sector – supply chain issue, cost increases, covid, skills shortages…to name a few…But there is also a need for the construction sector to challenge itself. To create a more diverse and inclusive environment, to become more digitally enable, to reduce costs, be more efficient, and so on. Could the solutions to the latter help solve the former?...

Air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year. World Health Organisation data shows that 9 out of 10 people breathe air that exceeds WHO guideline limits. And UK air pollution is 'linked to 40,000 early deaths a year' The podcast is in support of the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies. This episode explores the links between air pollution and transport. Feat...

In this episode you will hear a recording from a CIHT webinar that was held back in January. This features an interview with Professor Nick Tyler from UCL. So – why share this now – well the topic felt right to share Given there was research published this week – commissioned by England’s Economic Heartland – that said the legacy of COVID-19 could transform capacity on the roads in its region, rem...

In 2019, the Secretary of State for Transport asked the department of transport to carry out an evidence stock-take to gather the facts on the safety of smart motorways and make recommendations. So, the question is are smart motorways safe. This podcast features an interview with Kate Carpenter, Fellow of CIHT and an expert in road safety and then later plays clips from the Transport Select Commit...

As the UN Decade of Action – started in 2010 has concluded – where are we heading next for efforts to reduce those being killed or fatally injured on road networks across the world? Road safety is an urgent health and development matter. The number of deaths on the world’s roads remains unacceptably high, with an estimated 1.35 million people killed each year. In addition, as many as 50 million pe...

ESG stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance and is shaping industry and investment. This is having an impact on the construction and infrastructure sector and the impacts of this are wide ranging. This podcast features an interview with Mark Coates, Strategic Industry Engagements Director in the UK for Bentley Systems.

This podcast episode explores the impacts of covid on the construction and transportation industry. Is the industry reinventing itself now from the covid pandemic? What is the role of digital communications in construction? Featuring an interview with Marek Suchocki from Autodesk. Buildings are made of concrete and steel, both of which produce a lot of emissions when they’re being made. In fact, t...

Professor Carlos Moreno, is the architect of the idea of the 15 minute city – this was picked up last year by the World Economic Forum and as part of a global TED talk conference. The idea of being able to get all our urban necessities within a 15 minute walk has clearly gained traction across the world. This podcast explores how the idea is being implemented, focusing on the Corona pistes for cyc...

Despite the recent Government announcement to phase out sales of new petrol and diesel vehicles by 2030, the UK is currently not on track to switch all new vehicles to fully battery-electric by 2030. Beyond 2030, significant questions remain that need to be addressed – such as the increased demand for electricity and where this will come from, sourcing and supply of rare earth materials for batter...

This podcast is looking at the future of our global carbon budget, the impact of the autonomous car on future mobility and other things including the world’s first race of autonomous cars. This is the first of a two part podcast by CIHT, the second will focus on impact of electrification on future mobility. Featuring an interview with Professor Sergio Matteo Savaresi. He is the Full Professor in A...

Bridge collapses and Grand Challenges. What are the lessons from the Genoa Bridge collapse? In this episode there is an interview with Richard Fish, a chartered bridge engineer with extensive experience in the industry. In the year of a pandemic, understanding risk has become part of our public discourse. Today we try and answer the question: what risk do bridges in the UK face and what are the gr...

This year the BBC wrote a piece on the rest and be thankful with a headline that included the phrase: an infamous road through a mountain in torment. That description of torment was from 1913. Indicating, that the challenges of the location, perhaps the most challenging site that Transport Scotland manages, have been long running. The A83 runs for almost 100 miles from Loch Lomond to Campbletown a...

Policy impacts from new research exploring the issue of light pollution and how reducing it can help to address major societal challenges are discussed in this latest episode of the CIHT Podcast, featuring Dr Christopher Kyba of the German Research Centre for Geosciences. In conversation Dr Kyba explains the research which involved measuring from satellites the contribution of street lighting to n...

It is difficult to avoid the pandemic at the moment, it affects all our lives in some way. Today’s podcast will look at what lessons we might learn for how we plan the future of our homes and neighbourhoods as a result of it. The podcast features an interview with Matthew Carmona Professor of Planning and Urban Design at The Bartlett School of Planning at UCL and Chair of the Place Alliance. Lockd...

In January 2019, ADEPT - the Association of Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning & Transport - which represents place directors from county, unitary and metropolitan local authorities, secured £22.9m funding from the Department of Transport for the SMART place Live Labs programme. Eight Live Labs projects led by local authorities with university and private sector partners are piloting inno...

After 24 years, the UK Government has announced the end of the rail franchising system. The move is expected to significantly shake things up within the industry. This episode involves an interview with Sim Harris, Managing Editor at Railnews who brings his insights into the rail industry. The interview explores the legacy of franchising, what will replace it, and what have been the impacts of Cov...

As part of a focus by CIHT on the future of transport, this episode explores how micromobility could change the way we move in the future. As this is high on the government agenda, with trials of e-scooters currently underway in the UK, this podcast features an interview with Philip Ellis, CEO of Beryl. Beryl is the UK's largest bike share provider outside of London. Beryl has recently been announ...

Welcome to the second part of this podcast series looking at cities. This one is called the century of cities, but might have better been called the century of sustainable cities, or even the century of 15 minute cities as it continues a conversation that I had with Professor Carlos Moreno from the Sorbonne in Paris where he is scientific director of entrepreneurship and innovation. Professor More...

Welcome to the 15-minute city. This is whereby all the daily urban necessities are within a 15-minute reach on foot or by bike. Work, home, shops, entertainment, education and healthcare. Some urbanists are pushing for proximity over mobility and this has gained traction during the global pandemic, so is this the potential solution to how cities should operate now and in the future? Where: think g...

Whilst we are in the midst of a global pandemic, today we explore measures for how – potentially – me might help address another one. Inactivity has been described as a pandemic due to the health impacts of people not being active – and therefore needs to be addressed. Rachel Aldred, Professor of Transport at the University of Westminster and Director of the Active Travel Academy helps to unpick h...

This podcast explores the work of a start-up predictive AI company that improves the way vehicles and systems interact with people in any environment. Humanising Autonomy’s horizontal solution fuses behavioural psychology, statistical AI and novel deep learning algorithms to create synergy between people and machines. This podcast explores issues such as standards, data, disabilities and looks at...

This podcast explores the Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation (CIHT) review of the local highway network (LHN) in England. This review was undertaken in a similar time frame to the July 2019 report of the UK Parliament Transport Select Committee (TSC) into the subject. The report acknowledges that the LHN is receiving insufficient funding. This review has been underpinned by engagem...

The UK passed a net zero emissions law - this target requires the UK to bring all greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. How will the highways and transport sector deliver on this target? How will industry support the sector in doing this? Justin Ward from CIHT speaks with Maggie Hall, Sustainability Advisor for Ringway as well as the wider Eurovia businesses in the UK about this. Ringway d...