Q-Free shortlisted for prestigious innovation awards in active travel and road safety categories

It’s hard to believe that two weeks have passed since our UK team was at the inaugural CiTTi Awards to celebrate and reward work in the UK or by UK-based organizations that “assist in the sustainable movement of people and goods through urban environments.”

The awards ceremony, which took place on 22 November, recognized innovative, novel, and original solutions in the fields of active travel, congestion reduction, air quality improvement, EV infrastructure and charging, last-mile delivery, mobility, transport planning, fleet management, and road user charging. For our part, Q-Free’s bicycle and pedestrian monitoring project in Glasgow was shortlisted in both the Active Travel and Road Safety categories.

Some 70 entries from 37 organizations were received, with the shortlisted entries whittled down to 52 entries from 32 organizations across a dozen categories. Q-Free’s HITRAC® CMU was one of only 10 projects to be shortlisted in multiple categories.

“We were delighted to be shortlisted,” said Q-Free UK General Manager Mark Millman. “While we did not end up with the gold, we are proud to have been recognized among so many other projects that positively impact our community.”

Pedal of Honor: about the project

Using sustainable power, Q-Free established an highly accurate cycle monitoring solution with an integrated warning sign to protect cyclists at an accident hotspot in the Scottish capital and provides invaluable usage data along a main commuter corridor.

During the rollout of the cycle scheme across Glasgow City, one location became apparent as a cyclist and vehicle conflict point. The Berkeley Street junction as it meets Claremont Street had been subject to a range of unsuccessful preventative measures aimed at alerting drivers to the presence of cyclists traveling both with and against the flow of traffic.

Working in partnership with Solagen, a UK supplier of safety warning signs, Q-Free integrated the HI-TRAC® CMU with a solar-powered flashing sign on one of the main commuter corridors. Once a cyclist is detected, the sign flashes a warning to oncoming motorists until the cyclist is safely through the junction.

Q-Free’s Project Manager, Colin Reekie, worked closely with Glasgow City Council toward a united goal of improved road safety and accessibility. In the early weeks of the project incidences of vehicle/cycle conflict had reduced from 17% to 8% and the number of vehicles failing to yield to oncoming cyclists had reduced from 35% to 22%.

“This was a collaborative project that involved many partners,” said Reekie. “Together, we identified and diagnosed high-conflict areas, designed solutions, monitored installation, and analyzed the project’s success post implementation.”

According to Q-Free UK Sales Manager Thomas Greene, with the Glasgow City Council project everybody wins. “By creating a safer environment for cyclists and road users, cycling is now a more desirable method of transport due to the cycle priority at junctions resulting in a quicker as well as safer mode of transport,” said Greene. “Plus, cycling reduces vehicles on the road creating better air quality for the city – helping to achieve Glasgow’s Active Travel Strategy 2022-2031 goals of reducing cars on the roadways and, subsequently, carbon emissions.”

Visit the CiTTi website to read more about the awards ceremony and winners from last week’s gala.