DUBAI // Fancy being able to find out about bumper to bumper traffic before you’re forced to join it?
It’s no fancy, says Bill Ford, chairman of the US car maker Ford Motor Company.
Mr Ford, in Dubai yesterday for a Hollywood-inspired launch of the new Mustang at the Burj Khalifa, says technology will allow drivers to send each other signals warning of traffic jams.
He said gridlocks in major cities would only worsen and a “leap in thinking” was needed to develop technology that eased congestion.
“For most of my adult life I worried about, ‘how am I gonna sell more cars and trucks’?” Mr Ford said, amid celebrations for Mustang’s 50th birthday.
“But today I worry about, ‘What if all we do is sell more cars and trucks?’”
He said that in the future, cars would be able to spot potholes and alert authorities, check a driver’s vital signs, and measure and filter allergens in the air. But the industry needed to rethink its approach.
“We can’t just keep making and selling automobiles the way we always have,” Mr Ford said.
Governments will eventually have a role to play in these developments but “it’s early days yet”.
Universities are still the main centres of research for devices that allow vehicles to communicate with each other.
Meanwhile, Mr Ford said he did not think the current low oil prices would dissuade people from buying fuel-efficient vehicles. “Fuel is a cost and any time we can save our customers money, I think that’s a good thing,” he said.
“I believe our point of view of greater fuel economy coupled with better performance is absolutely the right way to go.” Ford recently established a business unit in Dubai to serve the Middle East and Africa. The great-grandson of company founder, Henry Ford, said the Michigan car maker would continue to promote green technology.
Mr Ford pledged to launch 25 vehicles in the region by 2016, including the all-new Mustang, which will hit the roads next year. Industry sales in Middle East and Africa are expected to grow 40 per cent to 5.5 million vehicles by 2020.
newsdesk@thenational.ae
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
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Business Insights
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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
MATCH INFO
Liverpool 3
Sadio Man 28'
Andrew Robertson 34'
Diogo Jota 88'
Arsenal 1
Lacazette 25'
Man of the match
Sadio Mane (Liverpool)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
Five ways to get fit like Craig David (we tried for seven but ran out of time)
Start the week as you mean to go on. So get your training on strong on a Monday.
Train hard, but don’t take it all so seriously that it gets to the point where you’re not having fun and enjoying your friends and your family and going out for nice meals and doing that stuff.
Think about what you’re training or eating a certain way for — don’t, for example, get a six-pack to impress somebody else or lose weight to conform to society’s norms. It’s all nonsense.
Get your priorities right.
And last but not least, you should always, always chill on Sundays.
The specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm
Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh130,000
On sale: now
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
'Nightmare Alley'
Director:Guillermo del Toro
Stars:Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara
Rating: 3/5
Company%20profile
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Qosty Byogaani
Starring: Hani Razmzi, Maya Nasir and Hassan Hosny
Four stars
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