Madagascar-Beira Corridor Development and Trade Facilitation Project Phase 2 (PACFC-II) RN9 Mandabe – Dabara
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has issued an Expression of Interest for a Social Safeguards Consultant to support Phase 2 of the Madagascar‑Beira Corridor Development and Trade Facilitation Project (PACFC‑II) on National Road 9 between Mandabe and Dabara. The consultant will oversee the preparation and implementation of the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment, Resettlement Action Plan, and Environmental and Social Management Plan, ensuring compliance with AIIB and national standards. Candidates must hold a master’s‑level degree in law or social sciences and possess at least ten years of experience in donor‑funded social safeguard work, including two AIIB or World Bank RAP assignments. The contract runs until 31 January 2027, with submissions due by 6 April 2026.
Death by Tariffs: Volvo Discontinuing Entry-Level EX30 EV in the US
Volvo announced it will cease U.S. sales of its entry‑level EX30 and EX30 Cross Country after the 2026 model year, citing rising tariffs and weak demand. The compact SUV’s price jumped from an anticipated sub‑$35,000 to over $40,000, contributing to...
Digital Revolution Can Revive Hong Kong Taxi Industry’s Image
Hong Kong will mandate electronic payment options for all taxis starting April 1, ending the long‑standing cash‑only fare settlement. The rule requires at least two e‑payment methods, including a QR‑code option and a card‑based alternative. About 90% of the city’s 46,000...
NVIDIA and Bolt Team up for European Robotaxis
At GTC 2026, NVIDIA and European rideshare firm Bolt announced a partnership to develop robotaxis across Europe. Bolt will leverage NVIDIA’s Cosmos, Omniverse, the Alpamayo autonomous‑vehicle model, and Drive Hyperion platform to turn its fleet data into a scalable learning...
Q&A with Johan Hellman From nShift – How AI Moves From Promise to Practice
nShift introduced the AI‑powered nShift Companion, an assistant embedded in its Checkout product that helps retailers configure delivery options using plain‑language prompts. The tool taps the company’s Model Context Protocol to pull real‑time carrier data, ensuring recommendations are grounded in...
Iran War Shows Urgency of Hong Kong’s Green Shipping Transition
The Iran‑Israel conflict forced a de‑facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz, prompting major carriers like Maersk to reroute via the Cape of Good Hope and driving up global freight rates. The disruption highlighted Asia’s reliance on Hormuz‑transited oil—Japan and...
Port Houston Cargo Volumes up 4% in February
Port Houston reported a 4% rise in February cargo volumes, handling 4.38 million short tons and bringing the year‑to‑date total to 8.93 million short tons, a 5% increase. Container activity was flat in February with 326,799 TEU, leaving YTD container volumes up...
HR Policies and Injury Claims: Protecting Truck Drivers in Texas
Texas sees some of the nation’s highest commercial‑truck traffic, making it a hotspot for fatal crashes. Unique to Texas, about 25% of employers opt out of workers' compensation, allowing injured drivers to pursue direct negligence suits that bypass traditional caps....
Bendy Buses Are Back
Sydney’s articulated "bendy" buses are returning after a safety‑related withdrawal that saw more than 80 vehicles removed in October 2024 due to chassis cracks. With 81 of the 83 repaired buses back on the road, the city expects improved reliability...
War May Bring Lasting Change to the Airline Business
The ongoing Middle East conflict has disrupted the Gulf’s role as a global aviation super‑connector, forcing Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways to curtail services. A recent drone strike at Dubai International Airport compelled Emirates to cancel flights and even reroute...
Dubai Airport Drone Strikes Test Redundancy of a Global Aviation Hub
Dubai International Airport, handling nearly 100 million passengers annually, suffered its fourth drone strike in 16 days on March 16, 2026, when a fuel storage tank was hit, forcing a temporary shutdown. The attack triggered fire, smoke, and an immediate suspension of flights,...
Florida Lawmakers Target ADS-B Use For Landing Fees
Florida lawmakers approved CS/CS/SB 422, prohibiting airports from using ADS‑B surveillance data to calculate landing fees or related charges for Part 91 aircraft weighing 12,499 pounds or less. The bill, cleared by both chambers, heads to Governor Ron DeSantis and would...
Swedish Electric PWC Is Ready to Take You on a Sustainable Aquatic Jet Ride
Swedish startup Roxen Innovations will begin manufacturing its electric personal watercraft in April 2026, launching with a limited run of 200 units and already securing 40 pre‑sales. The Roxen delivers a top speed of 55 km/h (30 knots) powered by a 22 kW...
Trans-Pacific Contract Talks Accelerating After Walmart Signs
Walmart has finalized its 2026‑27 trans‑Pacific shipping contracts with six major carriers, prompting container lines to resume stalled negotiations. The war in the Middle East had paused talks, but carriers now urge importers to lock in space allocations before the...
Sticking With Stick Shift: The Auto Brands Still Making Manual Cars in 2026
In 2026 a surprising number of automakers still offer manual‑shift models, ranging from mainstream names like Subaru and Toyota to luxury marques such as Porsche and BMW. The list includes two Subaru models (BRZ, WRX), Porsche’s 911, Mazda’s MX‑5 Miata...
PHX To Offer Enhanced Passenger Processing
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport announced the rollout of Enhanced Passenger Processing for U.S. citizens arriving on international flights. The system, developed with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, uses photo‑matching technology to accelerate the CBP inspection process. Airport officials highlighted...
Builders Face Uncertainty without New Highway Bill: Association Exec
Industry leaders met with the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee to discuss the looming expiration of the current surface‑transportation authorization on Sept. 30, 2026. The Associated Equipment Distributors (AED) is urging Congress to pass a new five‑year highway bill, targeting roughly $550 billion...
Massachusetts Sets up P3 Panel Ahead of Highway Rest Stop RFP
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey is creating a public‑private partnership (P3) commission to oversee a revived procurement for 18 highway service plazas after last year’s process collapsed amid allegations of favoritism. The commission will consist of four governor‑appointed transportation experts plus...
Evri Embraces Artificial Intelligence with Amazon Web Services to Further Enhance Customer Experience
Evri Group is deploying Veri Snap AI, an Amazon Web Services‑powered generative AI solution, to automatically evaluate the 90 million delivery photos it captures each month. The technology, built on AWS Nova Lite via Bedrock, checks parcel placement and condition, flagging non‑compliant...
Rapid-Charging EV Batteries Are on the Way
Rapid‑charging technology is moving from prototype to commercial deployment, promising to refill electric‑vehicle batteries in minutes rather than hours. Automakers and battery firms are unveiling ultra‑fast chargers that can add 300‑plus miles in under five minutes, leveraging high‑voltage (800V) platforms...
One Airport’s Used Equipment Is Another’s Salvation
Amid a turbulent month for U.S. aviation, two airports turned to used equipment to solve operational challenges. Waukesha County Airport sourced snowplows, blowers and sweepers from Minneapolis‑St. Paul, while Salt Lake City International acquired surplus shuttle buses from Denver International....
What Makes SnowPo So Special
The Northeast Chapter of the American Association of Airport Executives is hosting its 58th International Aviation Snow Symposium in Buffalo, NY, from April 24‑29. The conference blends practical, real‑world sessions with a volunteer‑driven, peer‑led format that emphasizes collaboration between airports,...
The Lessons Travel Buried After Covid Are Resurfacing in the Middle East
The Middle East airspace shutdown last week canceled more than 49,000 of 92,000 scheduled flights, forcing Dubai International to run at a fraction of its usual capacity. Governments scrambled to charter evacuation flights while travelers were stranded across continents. Airline...
The 10 Stranded Boats in Napier and Council’s Pontoon Solution
Napier’s Nelson Quay Wharf has been closed after engineers deemed the Iron Pot area structurally unsafe, leaving ten boats stranded with no direct access. The council has met with owners and proposed installing temporary floating pontoons to create new berths, a...
United Airlines Holdings (UAL) Long-Term Hub Economics Improves Following Washington Dulles International Airport Renovation Plans
United Airlines stands to benefit from a planned multibillion‑dollar renovation at its Washington Dulles hub. The project includes a 435,000‑square‑foot, 14‑gate concourse slated for later 2026, expanding capacity for United, which already handles about 70% of Dulles traffic. While the...
Le Train to Operate High-Speed Services From Paris
Le Train, a French open‑access operator founded in 2020, has secured framework track‑access agreements with SNCF Network to launch high‑speed services from Paris to Rennes and Bordeaux. This marks the first time the newcomer will run trains on the classic LGV...
Ontario Invests C$138MM For Future Northlander Passenger Rail Service
Ontario announced a C$138 million investment to acquire 205 kilometers of rail between North Bay and Washago, securing more than 25 % of the future Northlander passenger corridor. The acquisition, completed in February, aims to prioritize passenger service while channeling freight revenues back to...
Inside Trump’s Economic Strategy, with EXIM Bank’s John Jovanovic
In a March 2026 Atlantic Council podcast, EXIM Bank chairman John Jovanovic outlined how the Trump administration’s economic strategy hinges on resilient, "free, fair, and functioning" supply chains. He highlighted the bank’s role in financing U.S. exporters amid heightened geopolitical...
BlueSword’s AMR Lineup Manages Materials Across Industries and Countries
BlueSword Intelligent Technology has broadened its autonomous mobile robot (AMR) and automated guided vehicle (AGV) portfolio, adding forklift‑type robots, latent mobile robots and a unified control platform. The company leverages digital‑twin simulation to pre‑validate deployments, shortening commissioning and boosting reliability....
From Data to Decisions
RCBC, a leading Philippine bank, has partnered with Huawei, Keyrus and Microgenesis to launch Asia Pacific’s first hybrid‑cloud enterprise data platform for banking. The platform unifies transactional, behavioral and credit data, enabling real‑time fraud detection, predictive risk modeling and AI‑driven...
Seattle Launches 24/7 Bus Service to SeaTac Airport
Sound Transit is launching a 24‑hour night‑bus pilot, Route 570, linking downtown Seattle, Tukwila International Boulevard, and SeaTac Airport Station. The service will run every 30 minutes after trains cease operation on March 28, providing continuous public‑transit access to Seattle‑Tacoma International Airport....
Joby Aviation Demonstrates Electric Air Taxi Flights Over San Francisco Bay
Joby Aviation completed a series of electric air‑taxi demonstration flights over the San Francisco Bay Area, departing from Oakland International Airport and cruising past the Golden Gate Bridge toward the Marin Headlands. The flights showcased the company’s N545JX prototype operating in...
Airports Report Mixed Results for January Count
In January, the four Los Angeles County airports handled over 6.7 million passengers, a modest 0.8 % year‑over‑year increase and the first overall gain since December 2024. Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) posted a 0.8 % rise, while Ontario International saw a stronger 3.7 %...
BANF and Silicon Labs Develop Real-Time Tire Monitoring System for Autonomous and Connected Fleet Vehicles
BANF and Silicon Labs unveiled a real‑time tire‑monitoring system that embeds Silicon Labs’ ultra‑low‑power BG22 Bluetooth LE SoC inside a battery‑free in‑tire sensor. The platform captures acceleration, pressure, temperature and tread‑depth at thousands of samples per second, processing key signals on...
Growth-Targeted London Infrastructure Framework Comprises 51 ‘Priority Projects’
The Mayor of London and London Councils have launched the London Infrastructure Framework, a long‑term plan that identifies 51 priority projects across transport, energy, water, waste and digital connectivity. The framework, technically developed by Mott MacDonald, targets growth‑driven infrastructure such as...
SNCF Denies Further Delay to TGV M Launch Despite Reports of Software Issues
SNCF insists the next‑generation TGV M will launch on 1 July 2026, despite French media reporting persistent software glitches in the train control and management system (TCMS). The reports suggest the issues could push the commercial debut back to mid‑August, but SNCF...
Ford Recalls 604K SUVs for Windshield Wiper Motor Failures
Ford Motor Co. announced a recall of approximately 604,000 2020‑2022 Explorer, Escape, Lincoln Aviator and Corsair SUVs due to a windshield‑wiper motor defect. The defect stems from a misaligned terminal in Valeo‑supplied motors, causing intermittent or total wiper failure. Dealers...
Pakistan Oil Tanker Transits Hormuz
A Pakistan‑flagged Aframax tanker, the Karachi, successfully navigated the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, becoming one of the few vessels to do so since U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran halted traffic. The ship departed Fujairah on Feb. 25, was spotted...
Rising Fuel and Insurance Costs Prompt Oman Air Cargo Surcharge Move
Oman Air Cargo will add a Fuel Surcharge and a War Risk Surcharge to all shipments starting March 18, 2026. The fuel charge will track the US Gulf Coast Jet A1 price per gallon and be reviewed weekly, while the...
Rail and Ocean Carriers Consolidating Shipping Infrastructure: Analyst
Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern are pushing an $85 billion merger that would combine UP’s western rail network with NS’s eastern system, covering 43 states. The Surface Transportation Board rejected their initial filing in January, prompting the carriers to prepare a...
Iran Seeks Return of 3 Tankers Seized by India in Return for Hormuz Safe Passage: Report
India's coastal authorities seized three U.S.-sanctioned oil tankers—Stellar Ruby, Asphalt Star and Al Jafzia—on February 6, alleging illicit trade links to Iran. Tehran has offered to release the vessels in exchange for guaranteed safe passage of Indian‑bound ships through the Strait...
Asia-Europe Air Cargo Space Tightens as Rates, Fuel Surcharges Soar
Air freight between Asia and Europe is tightening as the US‑Iran war curtails Middle‑East corridors, which handle roughly 30% of the trade lane. Simultaneously, jet fuel prices have doubled, prompting carriers to add steep fuel surcharges on top of already...
Millions Shut Out of Travel as Inaccessible Stations Undermine UK Transport, Engineers Warn
The Institution of Mechanical Engineers warns that outdated stations are excluding millions from Britain’s public transport, despite new trains rolling out. Its report highlights that around 40% of railway stations lack tactile paving and many lack step‑free access, lifts, or...
Mayor Unveils £1.5bn ‘People’s Network’ Transport Plan for South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire’s mayor Oliver Coppard announced a £1.5 bn “People’s Network” that will bring trams, buses and bike‑hire under public control. The plan adds 25 new trams, franchises the bus system and aims for 70 % electric buses by 2027, with £630 m...
How P&G’s One Supply Chain Strategy Exemplifies the Perfect Order
Procter & Gamble’s One Supply Chain strategy translates Dr. Edward J. Marien’s Perfect Order framework into a living system that guarantees the right product, quantity, source, destination, condition, time, documentation, and cost. By synchronizing demand forecasting, logistics, supplier collaboration, and...
OS Urges ‘Clear, Forward-Looking Understanding’ of Flood Risk to Roads and Railways Following New Analysis
Ordnance Survey’s new analysis shows climate‑related flooding threatens 12% of England’s roads and 20% of its rail network. The study identifies 587 km of motorways – notably the A38, M45, M32 and A58 – within the highest‑risk flood zones, and flags...
Australia Plans for ‘Dubai-Style’ Air Taxi Service
Australia’s civil aviation regulator, CASA, announced that it is close to launching a Dubai‑style electric vertical take‑off and landing (eVTOL) air‑taxi service. The agency is drafting licensing rules for piloted passenger‑carrying advanced air mobility (AAM) flights and a safety framework...
How Car Safety Evolved From the 1950s to Today
Automotive safety has transformed from the perilous 1950s, when cars featured hard dashboards, no seat belts, and lethal steering columns, to today’s sophisticated protective systems. Ralph Nader’s 1965 book "Unsafe at Any Speed" triggered the 1966 National Traffic and Motor...
London Euston Train Station: Major Rail Hub Will Be Hit by Six Days of Closures in April 2026
London Euston, the capital’s tenth‑busiest station, will shut from April 3 to April 8, 2026, covering the Easter bank holiday. Network Rail is undertaking essential track and signalling upgrades on the West Coast Main Line, part of a £400 million reliability...
Korean Air / Asiana Airlines Merger Inquiry
The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has approved a Slot Release Agreement that lets Virgin Atlantic operate a daily London‑Seoul service, extending the remedy timeline to the summer 2026 season. Earlier, the CMA accepted undertakings in lieu of a...