A Cambridge-based tech firm is pioneering apps to let you park more easily, tell local councils when to grit or even light up particular roads (from The Guardian 3rd April 2016 – full article link below).
Driving in Moscow can be a hair-raising experience. The city suffers some of the worst congestion in the world and parking spaces are often impossible to find. But now, with the help of technology developed by a British company, drivers in the Russian capital can get ahead in the race to find a space.
Along with St Petersburg and Minsk, the, Moscow is the location for a pilot project using technology from Telensa, a company based outside Cambridge, that can tell drivers exactly when and where a parking spot is vacant, saving numerous trips around the block.
The technology behind the project is simple, says Tim Jackson, co-founder of the company. “It is a magnetic sensor which goes in the road. When the car parks over the top of it, it detects the car is there.” There is a website that pinpoints the available spaces for drivers and electronic road signs also point them in the right direction.
Telensa works in the development of “smart cities”, where technology is used to improve the running of an urban area. This includes everything from identifying which roads to grit when it snows, to turning on lights when police are pursuing a suspect.
Central to this has been the company’s development of smart streetlights. These can be controlled and monitored remotely…. click here to read the full article in The Guardian