Arrival at the Airport

Your journey begins as you drive to the airport. Finding a parking spot is often a stressful task, but not anymore. AI-powered smart parking solutions guide you to available spots, track parking durations, and facilitate cashless payments. Sensors and cameras integrated with IoT devices provide real-time updates on parking availability, directing you to the nearest open spot. This not only saves time but also reduces the stress of searching for parking.

Once parked, you hop onto an autonomous shuttle that transports you from the parking area to the terminal. These self-driving vehicles, equipped with advanced sensors and AI algorithms, navigate complex environments, ensuring a safe and efficient ride. For example, New York’s JFK Airport (JFK) has introduced a self-driving shuttle service that transports passengers from Parking Lot 9 to the AirTrain, reducing reliance on traditional shuttle services and minimizing carbon emissions.

Check-in and Baggage Handling

Upon entering the terminal, AI-powered self-service kiosks and facial recognition systems streamline the check-in process by verifying identity quickly and accurately. These technologies enable passengers to print boarding passes and tag luggage without human assistance, reducing wait times and enhancing security. An emerging solution being tested in various countries involves a mobile-enabled system that pre-verifies and matches the passenger’s e-passport photo with a live facial image taken on their device, allowing for seamless and expedited global cross-border passenger processing.

At the baggage drop-off, automated systems take over. You place your luggage on a conveyor belt, where it is tagged and sent to the appropriate destination. AI-enabled systems provide real-time tracking, letting you monitor your luggage throughout your journey. In case of mishandled luggage, automated re-flighting systems identify alternative routes, ensuring your bags reach their destination promptly.

The landscape of baggage handling in airports is undergoing a significant transformation, driven by AI and robotics to enhance efficiency, reliability, and the passenger experience. Some airports are already implementing Smart Baggage Handling Systems using RFID tags and IoT technology to track luggage in real-time, significantly reducing misplaced bags. Robotics also play a crucial role, with systems like Bagload ensuring efficient and accurate placement of bags onto conveyors or into containers. Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) transport luggage seamlessly across various points within the airport, reducing the time and labor involved in manual handling.

Security Screening

Next, you proceed to the security screening, often considered the most stressful part of air travel. However, innovative technologies are transforming this experience. Biometric identification systems, including facial recognition and fingerprint scanning, verify your identity quickly and accurately. This reduces the need for manual checks and speeds up the screening process.

Advanced 3D imaging technology and generative AI algorithms are improving the accuracy and efficiency of the security screening process by providing detailed views of baggage contents, which can be used to identify threats more accurately. Passengers no longer need to remove liquids and electronic devices from their carry-on bags, making the process faster and more convenient.

Pre-booked security timeslots are another innovative approach, allowing passengers to reserve a specific time for their security screening. This system aims to reduce wait times, enhance passenger convenience, and improve overall airport efficiency.

Why not a “self-service” security screening? This innovative solution is currently being tested under the Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate (DHS S&T) “Screening at Speed Program”, which is starting to provide a dramatic reduction in wait times. The solution features a video-monitored, multi-step self-service, self-sufficient and self-resolution passenger security screening process that minimizes secondary and manual screening procedures with TSA agents while improving human decision-making.

Wayfinding and Navigation

With security behind you, it’s time to navigate the terminal. Airports can be confusing, but augmented reality (AR) navigation apps make it easier. These apps overlay digital information onto your smartphone screen, providing real-time directions, flight updates, and other essential information. This reduces the stress of finding your way and helps you move quickly through the terminal

Indoor sensor positioning systems use Bluetooth beacons and Wi-Fi signals to provide precise location data, guiding you to your gate, baggage carousels, and check-in counters. Virtual guides offer pre-trip planning, helping you understand what to expect at each stage of your journey and relieving stress when connecting at large airports.

Airports are also adopting various technologies to ensure all passengers, including those with disabilities, can navigate comfortably, and independently introducing, for example, autonomous power chairs to assist passengers with limited mobility, enhancing accessibility and modernizing the customer experience.

In-Terminal Dwell Time

Continuing with your journey across the terminal, hopefully you have some time to relax before your flight. AI-enabled information kiosks provide real-time, personalized assistance, including flight information, gate changes, wayfinding and security wait times. These kiosks reduce reliance on human staff, allowing personnel to focus on more complex tasks.

To improve navigation and comfort, People Flow Monitoring technologies such as LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) applications in airport terminals have become increasingly important, demonstrating improvements in operational efficiency, passenger experience, and security. With the increase in passenger volumes, advanced systems to manage and optimize the flow of people have become necessary. These systems offer real-time data on passenger density, queue lengths, and wait times. Intelligent video analytics further enhance this data by identifying patterns and predicting congestion points. Dalaman Airport (DLM) in Turkey, with assistance from Ferrovial Innovation and Ferrovial Airports, recently implemented this technology to showcase the potential of these technologies and their impact on the passenger experience.

In South Korea there are already robotic assistants roaming the terminal, helping passengers with tasks like carrying luggage, providing directions, and delivering food and beverages. These robots enhance convenience and reduce wait times at various checkpoints.

AI analyzes passenger data to offer personalized shopping and dining recommendations, sending special offers directly to your device as you move through the airport. For a more immersive experience, some airports offer virtual reality (VR) lounges. These lounges provide VR entertainment, including virtual travel experiences and 3D cinema, making your wait time more enjoyable.

In an effort to stand out from the crowd, some airports are increasingly integrating large-scale multimedia technologies to enhance the passenger experience. Architecturally integrated digital displays create a sense of place and provide a memorable experience. These displays can show everything from flight information or promote products and offers, to engaging content that reflects the local culture and environment.

Transparent displays are another innovative feature, blending seamlessly into the surrounding environment when not in use. Multi-Use Flight Information Displays (MUFIDs) are also becoming more common, providing passengers with real-time updates on flights, gate changes, and other essential information.

To address accessibility needs and improve communication for passengers with disabilities, AI-driven systems deliver real-time boarding announcements and updates to their mobile devices. These systems ensure passengers are well-informed and able to board their flights promptly. Utilizing AI, these technologies generate synthetic speech using digital fragments of actual voices, creating announcements that sound as human as possible.

Exiting the Airport

After a smooth flight, you arrive at your destination. Going through border and passport control can mean long lines, but biometric technology streamlines the entry process, with facial recognition systems automating manual document checks. This reduces the need for physical touchpoints and expedites the entry process.

Looking ahead, innovations such as “biometrics on the go”, “non-stationary biometrics” or “in-motion biometric identification” are set to further revolutionize the travel experience. This concept involves the use of mobile biometric technology that allows travelers to be verified without stopping at a kiosk. Instead, biometric data can be captured as passengers move through the passport control area, providing a seamless and uninterrupted travel experience.

Once at the baggage collection hall, automated systems deliver your luggage directly to designated points, reducing congestion around carousels. Enhanced communication systems provide real-time updates on the status of your luggage, helping you plan your time better and reducing anxiety about lost or delayed bags. Baggage claim robots assist in locating and retrieving your luggage efficiently, making the process more user-friendly.

Finally, you are outside the terminal and decide to take a taxi or ride-hailing car. As you approach the curbside, different curbside management technologies come into play. Traffic cameras and LiDAR systems manage the flow of vehicles, ensuring a smooth pick-up experience. Real-time data analytics help optimize the use of space, preventing bottlenecks and enhancing overall traffic flow.

In this line, a groundbreaking innovation in curbside management is the concept of the passenger-driver “perfect match” and “express match” developed by Uber that some airports are already implementing. This approach involves the dynamic and immediate passenger-rider match and assignment of a curbside pick-up area, significantly increasing efficiency, reducing congestion and providing a safer passenger experience.

A further improvement to this solution would involve using real-time data, advanced algorithms and LiDAR technology to assign specific slots at the Pick-Up and Drop-Off (PUDO) area to both driver and rider based on their arrival time, passenger location, and live curbside or parking slot occupancy. When a passenger books a ride through a mobile app, the system calculates the optimal pick-up time and location, ensuring that the vehicle arrives at the designated slot just as the passenger is ready to be picked up.

The integration of breakthrough technologies in airports is dramatically transforming the aviation landscape, setting new benchmarks for efficiency, security, and passenger satisfaction. From smart parking solutions and autonomous shuttles to biometric identification and AI-enabled information kiosks, these innovations enhance every step of the passenger journey. As these technologies continue to evolve, the future of air travel promises to be even more seamless, efficient, and enjoyable.

Visit the airport technology white paper.

La entrada Innovation and Technology Are Transforming the Passenger Journey at Airports se publicó primero en Ferrovial.

Ferrovial is a leading company in sustainability and has been listed among the most sustainable companies in Europe according to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, of which it has been a part for 23 consecutive years. To achieve this recognition, we stay at the forefront of new technologies and innovations, collaborating with startups in the sustainability ecosystem to improve processes and reduce fuel consumption, thereby decreasing CO2 emissions.

Today, the ability to make decisions based on accurate data is essential, especially when considering the investment needed for equipment and machinery renewal.

Real-time monitoring of fuel consumption

Recently, we launched an initiative, in collaboration with the Ferrovial Construction sustainability team, to test Hiboo technology, a Solar Impulse Certified software that collects data from our heavy machinery and vehicle fleet.

Hiboo allows real-time monitoring of equipment fuel consumption, facilitating decisions on fuel change, machinery renewal, or electrification, thus optimizing the fleet and reducing consumption and CO2 emissions.

Currently, at Ferrovial, we used to measure fuel consumption through invoices from each worksite and workplace, but until now, we did not have any information on the individual consumption of each machine or its proper functioning.

Hiboo’s Equipment Data Platform (EDP) allows us to connect various brands of machinery and control everything in one place without the need for additional hardware.

At Ferrovial, we aim to monitor individualized fuel consumption to improve processes and reduce consumption, advancing our commitment to sustainability and operational efficiency. This allows us to make informed decisions about machine changes, fuel, or work processes based on real data.

Innovation and collaboration for a sustainable future

This collaboration with Hiboo not only allows us to optimize fuel consumption and reduce our carbon footprint but also demonstrates the potential of innovation when combined with the experience and knowledge of a large company like Ferrovial, with the agility and dynamism of a tech startup.

For companies committed to sustainability, innovation is not just a competitive advantage but an imperative necessity to ensure a cleaner and more sustainable future.

La entrada How technology helps construction companies achieve sustainability goals se publicó primero en Ferrovial.

More than 4500 years after it was built, the Great Pyramid of Giza still holds endless surprises. Part of the interior of the largest and oldest pyramid in Egypt remains unknown, and it is estimated that a large number of passages and chambers remain as yet undiscovered.

However, a new imaging technique promises to reveal what’s inside the pyramids’ limestone and granite walls without venturing inside: this is muography, a system that uses subatomic particles from space to show us what’s behind a surface. 

This technique, which made it possible to discover the hidden chamber that served as a tomb to the pharaoh Cheops, promises to revolutionize not only the study of ancient history, but also construction technology. 

Muons from space

Muography and muon tomography are imaging techniques that use muons to analyze what’s inside a structure – for example, the pyramids – much like how X-rays offer images of our bodies. But let’s start at the beginning: what are muons?

Muons are subatomic particles that come from the upper layers of the Earth’s atmosphere. There, they are made by collisions between cosmic rays and the nuclei of atoms. They reach the Earth’s surface in large quantities, almost at the speed of light: it is estimated that about 10,000 fall per second on each square meter. 

The Gulf of Mexico seen from space. NASA (Unsplash)

This implies that, as you are reading these lines, millions of muons are falling around you. You cannot see them, and they exist for just a few microseconds. We can go further still: these muons are also passing through your body right now: the particles have the ability to penetrate surfaces, passing through some as dense as steel or concrete. This is precisely what makes them so valuable for science. 

By using complex systems, physicists can calculate which muons have passed through a certain surface, which makes it possible to form images of the interior of infrastructures or materials. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), there are two types of muon-based imaging techniques: muography and muon tomography. 

Both techniques are based on comparing how muons act when they come into contact with different materials. They easily cross through less dense ones and have more difficulty doing so as the density increases. For example, they penetrate the human body much more easily than cement; they pass through cement, in turn, better than steel. 

Detectors for studying pyramids and volcanoes

Years before it was used to analyze the interior of the Great Pyramid of Giza, muography had already been tested on another: the Bent Pyramid of Dahshur, built thousands of years ago by Pharaoh Sneferu in what is now southern Cairo. On this occasion, the aim was not to find hidden ships but to check the accuracy of the technique.

Bent Pyramid of Dahshur. Dmitri Zhodzishkii (Unsplash)

 Dozens of muon-sensitive plates were placed inside the pyramid to confirm that the resulting images showed the presence of the two burial chambers that were already known. When setting up this type of detector in the right places, it is possible to identify where there are empty areas (which the muons pass through with no problem) and where the densest materials are located (which the muons have more difficulty passing through). 

These techniques offer a non-invasive solution, which makes it possible to obtain information from inside the structures without drilling or digging. Its use can be very interesting to analyze the interior of volcanoes, for example, and improve early warning systems of eruptions.

Naples at the foot of Vesuvius. Francesco Baerhard (Unsplash).  

Its main drawback is the time it takes to form an accurate image with muons. In the case of the test done on the Bent Pyramid of Dahshur, 40 days of exposure were needed before collecting the samples. But this is inevitable: it is a physical limitation, not a technological one.

Muography in construction

Muon-based imaging techniques can also have very useful applications in the world of construction. For example, with regard to maintenance. Currently, different lines of research are studying how to use muons to detect faults in concrete surfaces and infrastructures.

Arch of La Défense in Puteaux, France, a concrete building. Pierre Châtel-Innocenti (Unsplash).

The use of muography and muon tomography would make it possible to detect problems that are not noticeable to the naked eye, such as wear on the material or the presence of cracks and cavities. It would also serve to ensure that the reinforcements made of other materials, such as metal or steel, are in good condition.

This would improve building and infrastructure inspections and could prevent landslides; this would have a highly significant social, economic, and environmental impact in practically all regions of the world. 

Until now, muons have been used to find rooms created thousands of years ago and to rewrite history. Maybe, in a few years, they will also help keep infrastructures that aren’t in the headlines, but are equally important, still standing.

La entrada Muography, the technique that uses particles from space to see inside structures se publicó primero en Ferrovial.

For years, cities including Berlin, New York, Brussels and Barcelona have had libraries of things stocked full of items we only use once in a blue moon. The aim? Promoting reuse and the circular economy. The unintended benefit? The spaces have become centers of social cohesion and city transformation.

Libraries of things host recycling workshops and courses on how to use tools, and have even become venues for neighborhood meetings and ideas labs. Every year in Buffalo (United States) residents borrow rakes, shovels and gloves from the library of things to plant trees and plants, improving the city’s green spaces.

A new generation of libraries

Why can you borrow a book, but not a sewing machine? This simple seed of an idea led to the opening in 2010 of Leila Berlin , considered Europe’s first library of things. It opened its doors on the German capital’s Kastanienallee Street and is still flourishing today, 14 years later.

The initiative follows in the footsteps of professional tool libraries, common in the United States and the United Kingdom (the first one opened in Michigan, United States, in 1943). But this is a philosophy that goes beyond the simple loan of tools. It’s about reducing the pressure of our consumption on the planet.

Man holding a sewing machine in a library of things. Hackney Council (Flickr)

You can find everything in this new generation of libraries; from ice cream makers to paint brushes and rollers, with some skis, drills and suitcases thrown in for good measure. As well as cost and resource savings, the libraries aim to raise the population’s awareness of the need to swap our linear culture of consumption for one based on the circular economy.

“When you borrow something, you can save money and space at home, develop new skills with tools you don’t have the resources to invest in, feel part of a community, and play your part in the circular economy by promoting a culture based on sharing. And because you aren’t buying the kind of items you’d rarely use, you’re also contributing to reducing the extraction of materials and landfill waste”, explains a representative from the Nicosia Library of Things in Cyprus.

Repair Manifesto poster, photo taken during an event. Cristal Palace Library (Flickr).

These initiatives can have a major impact on cities. As the Ellen McArthur Foundation explains, cities account for 75% of natural resource consumption, and also produce 50% of global waste and 60-80% of greenhouse gas emissions.

“Implementing the circular economy in cities can bring tremendous economic, social, and environmental benefits” explains the foundation. It can create “livable cities with improved air quality, reduced pollution, and enhanced social interactions. Resilient cities, reducing reliance on raw materials by keeping products in use and balancing local production with global supply chains.”

The circular economy in figures

In 12 months, between 2022 and 2023, the Library of Things network in the United Kingdom loaned a total of 10,065 objects to 6982 people. Avoiding the production and purchase of new objects saves some 124 metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) from being released into the atmosphere. And encouraging owners not to chuck their items in the trash prevented 64 metric tons of waste from ending up in landfills. According to The Library of Things  calculations, these actions also have an impact on people’s wallets: users saved a total of 326,000 GBP.

They estimate that to date, the network of libraries has rented almost 20,000 objects to around 11,400 people, saving more than 640,000 GBP. Elsewhere, the impact is also cultural: in Tournevie, a library of things in Brussels, they put on workshops training people how to use all types of tools, how to work with materials like wood, or fix electronic devices, for example.

Two people use a sewing machine in a library of things in the United Kingdom. Crystal Palace Library of Things (Flickr)

In the United States, the direct impact libraries of things have on cities can be seen in the figures. A Buffalo initiative supported logistically by the town’s tool library has helped plant more than 1600 trees in various parks and streets since 2014.

 

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Some libraries have also shaped new, fascinating experiments. The Plant Library  by the Serge Hill Project is one such example. This research project was launched in 2021 to investigate the power of gardening in terms of improving people’s health and wellbeing and promoting inclusion in communities. Based in Bedmond (United Kingdom), it welcomes anyone interested in botany and gardening to its orchard site with open arms.

The library of plants takes up a significant proportion of the land, boasting more than 1500 varieties and serving as an interactive catalog that can be visited and studied from all angles. “It’s an exciting ongoing experiment”, say the creators of the living library.

La entrada The libraries of things bringing cities into bloom se publicó primero en Ferrovial.

And today, we are continuing to write our own history. The latest plot twist? Our goal is to find solutions and develop renewable technologies and energies that harness our natural resources more sustainably. Finding ways we can be more energy-efficient is about improving peoples’ quality of life.

Episode 24 of the Sounds Like Infrastructure podcast reveals some of the most fascinating projects Ferrovial is working on, using technological innovation to create a positive impact in Spain and the United States.

Projects for guaranteed electricity

Using the minimum amount possible of energy, at the same time as maintaining a sufficient supply at all times is one of the biggest challenges we face today. In other words, efficiency gains. This is the ethos behind our Ferrovial departments’ energy efficiency efforts. Among other things, they work on rationalizing energy consumption on the electrical grid—something with countless benefit to the communities that use it.

“Some people don’t have the capacity to invest, or don’t want to invest in specific actions. So, we take on the investment, and are paid back through the savings made. Meanwhile, local residents get a home with updated, more efficient facilities that consume solar-generated energy”, explains Pablo Álvarez, Head of Business Development in Energy Efficiency and Innovation at Ferrovial.

Investments and initiatives like these are being implemented in both the public and private sectors. Currently, two of the most prominent projects in the Ferrovial Energy Division in Spain are at the Seville Conference Center and the Torrejón de Ardoz Cultural Centre, where storage batteries have been installed to harness surplus energy generated by solar panels.

This guarantees a green energy supply to residents of the communities close to the Conference Center and Cultural Center. “We’re creating energy resilience. In other words, communities will be less vulnerable to interruptions in the electricity supply because the system offers continuity. Plus, with our smart networks platform, we’re successfully reducing the costs for both the company and customers, optimizing consumption”, explains Andrea González, Head of Energy Efficiency Innovation at Ferrovial.

In this way, we’re moving more towards self-sufficiency and decarbonization, while slashing the potential for power cuts. Over the pond in Texas (United States), the residents are all too aware of how hard it is to be without electricity. In February 2021, Storm Uri left millions of state citizens without electricity.

Right in the middle of winter when temperatures were at their lowest, they were unable to use anything that depended on the electricity network. It’s happened more times than anyone would want.  To avoid repeats of such situations, Ferrovial is working on projects including the construction and operation of the Leon Project; a 257 MWp solar farm that will have the capacity to supply clean energy to more than 36,000 homes.

“Many of the families in the surrounding areas won’t notice, but when they switch something on, the energy won’t come from fossil fuel energy, but rather the nearest renewable energy source, at least during the day”, explains Brian Sarantos, Head of Development for Ferrovial Energy in the United States.

The quest for Smart Cities

Investments in technology benefit us in ways we often don’t even realize. Examples include smart pedestrian crossings, lighting in complex areas or air quality control meters.

Ferrovial openly champions projects like these, especially the ones with a positive social impact. Among others, it’s participating in a European pilot project: Mobilities for EU. “We’re going to carry out innovative projects relating to passenger mobility and goods transport. Our main goal is for Europe to have the first carbon-neutral road transport systems by 2050”, González explains.

To understand the role Ferrovial plays in improving energy use in transport infrastructures, we need to travel back to the United States. This time, we’ll go by plane: one of the company’s most outstanding projects is its participation in the consortium designing, building and operating the New Terminal 1 at New York’s John Kennedy Fitzgerald International (JFK) Airport— one of the largest in the world. The project involves modernizing the energy system with hydrogen generation and solar batteries to guarantee operations continue uninterrupted—even in the event of faults on the electricity grid.

“The new Terminal 1 incorporates an 11-megawatt microgrid, making it the first fully resilient airport transit hub in the New York region, and one that can continue to operate off-grid during a power outage”, explains Schroeder, U.S. Director of Engineering at Ferrovial Energía.

In recent years, Ferrovial has also honed in on projects that aim to improve and promote public lighting systems. In this case, the main objective is for the infrastructure to adapt to residents’ needs, having a positive impact on their lives.

This runs through the Slow Light movement, created to bring back the glorious night sky in cities like Santiago de Compostela. “Now they have LED lighting, some people are suddenly looking up and saying Wow! They can see the stars. They could have been in the city for 30 years without ever seeing stars”, Álvarez explains.

These and a number of other initiatives use technology and innovation to improve energy usage, and they’re also the kind of projects the community really notice in their everyday life. All they need to do is look up at the night sky and marvel.

La entrada History’s enduring challenge: transforming energy to the benefit of all se publicó primero en Ferrovial.

The Early Days of Air Travel

While commercial air travel began to take off in the 20th century, integrating live entertainment into flights was largely unexplored. With airlines focused on safety and efficiency, passengers were mostly left to their own devices for entertainment during flights. However, as air travel became more accessible in the 1960s and 70s, a new era of passenger experience began to unfold.

The Rise of In-Flight Entertainment

In the late 20th century, airlines began introducing in-flight entertainment systems featuring movies and music to enhance the travel experience. As seat-back screens became commonplace, the idea of live performances gained attraction. The first views of this trend can be traced back to special charter flights and private jet experiences, where musicians would perform for an exclusive audience.

The Advent of High-Altitude Concerts

The real turning point came in the early 2000s, with technological advances and passenger expectations. Some innovative airlines and travel companies started organizing special flights featuring live performances. A notable example occurred in 2013 when a group of musicians played a concert inside the cabin of a flying airplane. This was more than just a publicity stunt; it was a carefully orchestrated event that showcased the potential for live entertainment at cruising altitude.

Notable Examples and Collaborations

As the trend gained popularity, several high-profile performances began to emerge. Major artists looking to engage with their fans in unique ways often partnered with airlines for special events. For instance, in 2015, a famous musician hosted a concert on a transatlantic flight, turning what used to be a mundane experience into an intimate show mid-air.

Airlines also began to see the benefits; they could differentiate themselves in a competitive market by offering high-altitude concerts, providing memorable experiences that passengers would enjoy during flights. One example is Southwest Airlines’ signature program, Live at 35, which began in 2011. This initiative offers passengers live performances at an altitude of 35,000 feet. Last October, it celebrated its 100th concert in Miami, featuring GRAMMY Award-winning songwriter Liz Rose.

Collaborations between artists and airlines became more frequent, often tied to album releases or promotional tours. A notable example is the live concert performed by the British band Jamiroquai in 2004, which celebrated the launch of their album “High Times” during a flight from Munich to Athens. This concert, held in 2007, set several Guinness World Records, particularly for the “performance at the highest altitude.” Jamiroquai held this record until 2010, when James Blunt broke it by performing at an altitude of 42,000 feet.

The Experience: What to Expect

Attending a high-altitude concert is very different from your typical concert experience. Passengers often have the chance to enjoy a more intimate performance, with limited seating and an up-close view of their favorite artists. The atmosphere is one of a kind, blending the excitement of travel with the thrill of live music.

Additionally, many flights have incorporated themes into their concerts, allowing passengers to engage in the performance beyond just spectating. Activities like Q&A sessions with the artists or meet-and-greets have become essential elements of these concerts, making for a highly engaging experience.

Not all flight performances are initiated by airlines. During a flight from Brisbane to Sydney, the Lion King musical cast surprised passengers by improvising a performance of the song “Circle of Life,” delighting everyone with this impromptu recital.

The Future of Live Shows in the Skies

As we look ahead, it’s clear that the trend of high-altitude concerts is set for growth. With the emergence of virtual reality and live streaming technologies, there’s potential for even greater interactions between artists and their audiences. This could open doors for concerts at various altitudes, catering to different demographics and preferences.

Furthermore, as airlines continue to innovate in the passenger experience sector, we can expect even more elaborate concerts and collaborations that push the boundaries of what’s possible in the skies.

Conclusion

High-altitude concerts represent a fascinating chapter in the history of live music. They not only redefine the traditional concert experience but also provide airlines with a unique way to enhance passenger satisfaction. As this trend continues to evolve, we may soon witness a world where every flight could potentially include a live show, turning air travel into an even more exciting adventure. Whether you’re a frequent flyer or a music lover, there’s no denying the growing allure of concerts in the clouds.

La entrada The History of Live Shows on Board Flights se publicó primero en Ferrovial.

In Constant’s imagined future all work would be done by machines, leaving citizens with lives devoted to rest, revelry and creativity. In this new urban landscape, architectural elements would be designed to promote an egalitarian, borderless world.

A futuristic utopia

The idea of creating New Babylon arose in 1956 when Constant (an artist always known by his first name rather than his surname) visited a group of nomadic gypsy families that had settled on the outskirts of the Italian city of Alba. For Constant, the trip was an opportunity to design plans for the creation of an encampment. But the concept he returned with would go on to shape his artistic path for the next 20 years.

The families’ nomadic, creative and free lifestyles caused him to reflect on other ways of life, and the potential to create a city in which private property no longer existed. He began his work on New Babylon. Whether you saw it as an urban theory, imaginary society or simply a representation of a utopian lifestyle all depended on the lens through which you looked.

As Constant described it, New Babylon society was a place where technological advances meant citizens would no longer have to deal with mundane tasks like cleaning, cooking or manufacturing objects. These would all be automated. The extra time would leave people to fill their lives with creativity and enjoyment.

Image of an exhibition of Constant’s work at the Museo Nacional de Arte Reina Sofía. Photo by Joaquín Cortes/Román Lores

In this new reality, citizens would be unshackled, no longer tied to a specific place. Private property would be a thing of the past. They would be nomadic, wandering the world in search of forming new bonds. Another key feature of Constant’s new society was the disappearance of social class and all distinction between rich and poor. Travel and enjoyment of spaces would be open equally to all.

New Babylon is considered one of the great utopias of European art. Nowadays, even the straightforward idea that machines would achieve equality feels somewhat unrealistic, but in optimism was in the air back in 1950: after the ravages of two world wars, echoes of the need to conceive a better world were getting louder in political, social and cultural spheres.

And artists—like architects and urban planners—were all doing their bit to bolster this optimism. The aftermath of the Second World War prompted the imagining of a better world, through art and a number of other disciplines.

The architecture of New Babylon

In New Babylon, traditional architecture has disappeared—along with society as we know it. “New Babylon is a gigantic labyrinthine complex raised above the earth on tall pillars. All forms of transport circulate below it. The various tiers of the city can be reached via lifts and stairs and are almost entirely roofed-in and climate-controlled”, wrote Constant.

As Constant’s imagination saw it, the floors of New Babylon would be transparent, and the nomads themselves could spontaneously control and reconfigure elements, changing the look of the environment. The various spaces would have light and sound effects offering a different lived experience at any given time.

‘Mobile Ladder Labyrinth’. Constant’s illustration of New Babylon. Gemeentemusem Den Haag/Museo Nacional de Arte Reina Sofía

His work involved elements normally seen in science fiction stories: platforms suspended over the ruins of previous civilizations, buildings constantly being reconfigured or crafts gliding beneath dwellings, taking people straight to their homes.

Constant’s goal was that this broad network of spaces would spread anarchically until the whole planet was covered, completely free of borders. Every one of Constant’s innumerable works on New Babylon (he created models, drawings, collages, prints, watercolors, conferences presentations… even films) gave shape to unitary and egalitarian urban planning, in which profits and class differences were no more.

His influence on urban planning and architecture

The New Babylon project was first exhibited at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam in 1959. While it received little success, nor the attention given to other urban planning projects, it’s nonetheless believed that his work had a significant influence on architects reflecting on the emotional and social impact of buildings and cities, such as Zaha Hadid and Frank Gehry.

Photo of Constant next to his models. Noord-Hollands Archief, collectie Fotopersbureau De Boer. Wikimedia Commons.

Over time, Constant’s perspective and his city ideal gradually shifted. His work, like his philosophy, was changing. He began to examine concepts of anti-capitalism, the anti-bourgeois struggle, collective creativity, and a theme that has preoccupied generations of artists: the role of art in creating a better world.

La entrada Constant’s New Babylon: a work-free city made an art-world reality se publicó primero en Ferrovial.

In a way, the blood vessels are like tiny highways. And our actual highways shape a similar system; a network of routes transporting everyday goods and connecting towns, cities and people. Crucially, just like inside our bodies, the system needs to function well to survive and thrive.

So, how can we guarantee safe, efficient and sustainable mobility on highways? Episode 23 of the Sounds Like Infrastructure podcast takes us on a trip to the United States, a country that boasts more than 7.5 million kilometers of highways, used by millions of citizens every day. A complex network of infrastructures has been created to get to this astonishing point, and Ferrovial itself has left its mark on the impressive network.

The roads that transformed Texas

We’re heading to the United States, destination Texas. Today, five of the country’s most populous cities stand on this state’s turf, but a little over a century ago the landscape was almost unrecognizable. Small rural communities were connected by dirt tracks—some so narrow that even carts would struggle to get through.

But along came industrialization, and it changed everything. Roads began to spread throughout the land, connecting cities that were growing thanks to their new-found influence. One of the regions that saw the starkest transformation was Texas: specifically, the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. These two cities were completely independent of each other just a century ago, but today, they form one large metroplex. In other words, a sprawling urban system that extends beyond our concept of a city. It’s more like two cities in one.

Fort Worth is one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States in recent years. In just 2023, 20,000 new residents came to the city. But such rapid growth inevitably brings a degree of imbalance. Let’s think about roads for example: more inhabitants mean more traffic, and in the absence of solutions, that means more congestion. Which is where Ferrovial comes into play, in a quest for solutions.

Meet the Express Lanes: tackling congestion in Dallas-Fort Worth

The Ferrovial team came up with a real-time solution that reduces congestion and traffic jams in the Dallas-Fort Worth corridor, despite the rapid increase in traffic: the Express Lanes. Basically, the system added additional lanes alongside a means of calculating how many users it can accommodate based on highway and traffic conditions.

Drawing on incredibly accurate data, the system makes informed decisions every five minutes, establishing a price that can adjust demand according to capacity. This results in a safe and reliable user experience.

“Incorporating toll lanes, or Express Lanes, has contributed to more fluid traffic flows. They have been, and continue to be, a key factor in responding to the region’s transport needs”, explains José Espinosa, CEO of TEXpress Lanes for Cintra, a Ferrovial highway subsidiary.

The TEXpress Lanes (the Texas Express Lanes) include the LBJ Express, North Tarrant Express and the NTE 35W, and they make up a network of highways running through the entire metropolitan area. The network comes with its own challenges in terms of both efficiency and the use of technology.

“For us, every second counts—everything has to be functioning well. We want the user experience to be as fluid, safe, relaxed and reliable as possible”, Espinosa explains. “No matter what happens, our systems need to be ready for it, ensuring we can communicate any alerts to users, whether due to sudden, unforeseen weather conditions approaching, an incident of some sort on the network, or even strange objects obstructing the roads”.

According to Cintra’s TEXpress Lanes CEO, these difficulties are all overcome thanks to the implementation of new technologies alongside the Dallas-Fort Worth concessions team’s professionalism and knowledge.

Sustainability, safety and community links

Working efficiently and sustainably is another major challenge when it comes to managing such an expansive road network. “For us, sustainability rests on striking a balance between three fundamental pillars: protecting the environment, improving the quality of life of communities in our areas of operation, and investing, developing and operating highway projects that promote economic growth in the region”, says María Chávez, Sustainability Manager at Ferrovial.

Ferrovial has set its target for 100% of its portfolio operations to be working with renewable energies by 2025. The company is making major inroads to achieve this in infrastructures like the North Tarrant Express highway in Texas.

“It was the first move we made in this regard. Back in 2019 it implemented the use of 100% renewable energy. And now, in the latest expansion of the highway, solar panels have been installed to support energy needs, reducing our dependence on the electricity network and making operations more resilient”, explains Chávez.

Some improvements blend energy efficiency with safety. A recent example is the installation of extra-tall road lighting using LED bulbs, reducing our environmental impact and in turn enhancing visibility for drivers.

Meanwhile, Ferrovial is forging links with communities through its highways construction and management. “We’re investing in the future of this highway, and that means we’ll be members of this community for the next 50 or 60 years”, adds Chávez.

“That’s why it’s absolutely essential to be good neighbors. This often means opening lines of communication right from the planning stage and throughout operations, and finding useful ways to invest in communities; volunteering or partnerships with schools on STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and math), road safety, food banks, health and wellbeing”, explains Ferrovial’s Sustainability Manager.

In fact, the relationship between Texans and their Express Lanes began before they were even in use. The company wanted the people to baptize these routes, and launched a project to come up with the best name. Ferrovial received more than 5000 proposals, and one stuck: TEXpress, joining the words Texas and Express.

The management of Ferrovial’s Express Lanes in Texas is a true success story, resulting in improvements in traffic management, investment in educational programs and a long list of actions and objectives achieved. In fact, so much so that other cities in the country are now looking at implementing the same systems in order to achieve their own improvements.

La entrada Improving highway mobility: a story told through a trip along the Express Lanes se publicó primero en Ferrovial.

The city was planned and built to shine as the residence of the caliph and as the center of the Umayyad dynasty. And so it was, but only for a short time: a mere seven decades after its inauguration, it stood looted and abandoned.

The remains of the city aroused the curiosity of Cordoba’s neighbors during the following centuries. Archaeological studies which began in 1911 continue today and allow us to better understand what the infrastructures were like in the splendor of Al-Andalus.

The construction of the shining city

Medina Azahara (the name in Spanish of the Arabic name Madīnat al-Zahrā, meaning “the shining city”) was conceived and planned to reflect hierarchy. For this reason, it was located in a tiered and sloping area, which allowed the spaces to be organized in three large parts: the first, and highest, housed the caliph’s residence; the second, the official buildings, such as the viziers’ house, the administrative offices and the gardens; and the third, the spaces dedicated to the people, such as housing and commerce.

Thanks to this organization, the largest and most imposing buildings dominated the valley and could be seen from afar. In addition, the layout of the city at the foot of a mountain and on terraces ensured the supply of water through hydraulic systems and the transport of materials from nearby quarries.

Remains of Medina Azahara today. Jordi Vich Navarro (Unsplash)

The construction of Medina Azahara began in 936 and ended a few years later, with the construction of a great wall that isolated and protected it. It had a rectangular shape with perfect proportions, standing in contrast to the idea of chaotic and labyrinthine streets that we usually have of the Muslim urbanism of that period.

In the year 945, the court of the sultan moved to this city in the mountains, giving rise to the construction of an important road network of which the remains of some roads and bridges have been preserved.

From the Mosque to the Rich Hall

As pointed out by UNESCO, the ruins of Medina Azahara tell us of a city with numerous elements of infrastructure, such as roads, bridges and hydraulic systems. The most important buildings were made of marble and were highly ornamented, with carved decorations and motifs both religious and inspired by the natural world.

Façade of the Yafar’s residence. Wikimedia Commons.

Like other Muslim cities of the time, Medina Azahara had a mosque, public baths, several gardens and buildings for administrative and military activities. Both for its political and artistic value, the central axis of the whole city was the Hall of Abd al-Rahman III, also known as the Rich Hall.

This hall with several naves was the building in which the caliph received those who came to meet him. To get there, they had to cross the entire city, pass through immense gardens full of fountains and – as is narrated in records of that time – wait for long hours in adjacent spaces until the sultan gave them access to the throne room.

Image of the interior of the Rich Hall, whose columns and horseshoe arches are similar to those of the mosque of Córdoba. Wikimedia Commons.

The Rich Hall, one of the best-preserved spaces in the whole city and which is being restored to recover its original appearance, has inspired numerous legends. One of them features a pond of mercury. The story goes that the sultan, after building this majestic hall whose beauty amazed his visitors, wanted to add one more surprising element.

He placed in the center of the room a pool filled with mercury that, as it moved, reflected the light and illuminated the ceilings and walls, creating an impression that the whole room was moving. Legend has it that people who watched this show in the impressive Rich Hall ended up even more convinced of the sultan’s power and status in the land.

The rapid demise of Medina Azahara

The inscriptions preserved in the Rich Hall suggest that it was built in only four years. The entire city was built in barely a decade, which no doubt required great means and quantities of resources. And yet it was all over in just 70 years.

The decline of Medina Azahara began at the end of the 10th century, coinciding with the collapse of the caliphate and years of confrontations, conflicts and political quarrels. The city was destroyed and abandoned, and long centuries of looting began, both by enemies of the Umayyads and by citizens of neighboring towns, who came for valuable objects and materials to build their own constructions.

Image of the first archaeological excavations in Medina Azahara in the early 20th century. Wikimedia Commons.

Today a small part of the total of Medina Azahara has been excavated, and special attention is being paid to the restoration of the Rich Hall, a building that reveals and shows the richness of the construction methods of the Umayyad world.

La entrada Medina Azahara: the city that was born, shone and fell in just 70 years se publicó primero en Ferrovial.

Years later, now in the eleventh century, another Viking unleashed the largest incursion ever recorded in writing on the coastlines of Galicia. He went down in history as Ulf the Galician—at the time, Vikings were nicknamed after the region in which they had organized the biggest plunders.

Why did the Scandinavian navigators come to the Galician coast? For most of them, it was to get hold of provisions to keep them going on their journey towards the Mediterranean. Others were drawn there by the news of the riches being accumulated in Santiago de Compostela. Spurred on by these incursions, coastal communities erected defenses, some of which still stand on numerous points along the coast.

These stories—though with different characters and settings—have been repeated the world over, with the same result: from Colombia to the Mediterranean, via the eastern United States, the coastlines are full of towers, walls and forts that were built to defend the land from these sea-faring threats. Some of the constructions posed quite the engineering challenge.

Catoira: the history of the Torres do Oeste (Towers of the West)

Since 1961, every first Sunday in August the residents of Catoira in Pontevedra take to drakars (traditional Viking vessels) to reenact the incursions of the people of the north at this strategic point of the Arousa estuary. La Romería vikinga (the Viking Pilgrimage) takes place at the mouth of the River Ulla, at the foot of the Torres do Oeste.

These towers were part of Castellum Honesti, a construction built and completed over the course of the Early Middle Ages to stop the Vikings and Saracen pirates from getting upriver to Santiago.  Eventually, the complex consisted of an elliptical walled enclosure, seven towers with room for bedchambers, drawbridges and a hermitage.

Remains of one of the Oeste towers in Catoira. Noel | Feans (Flickr)

Today, just two towers still stand, along with the remains of a third tower and the chapel. The foundations rest on marshy soil, exposed to the rising and falling tide. Remains have been found that demonstrate that this enclave was already a prominent trading post in the Roman era.

Cartagena de Indias: a fort with a castle’s name

Morgan, Drake, Vernon and Leclerq are some of the names etched in the history of Cartagena de Indias (Colombia). Pirates, corsairs and soldiers from enemy camps attacked the city time and time again, it being a strategic point for the Spanish crown in America for centuries.

In the sixteenth century, an order was given for the construction of a huge defensive construction to protect Cartagena de Indias from these constant attacks, which became the most complete set of fortifications in South America. Today, the city’s historic quarter is surrounded by 11 kilometers of large stone walls reaching down to the Caribbean Sea.

Part of the Cartagena de Indias walls facing out to sea. Jaime Bishara (Unsplash)

Over the centuries that saw frequent soldiers and pirate attacks, cannonballs also came to the bay of Cartagena, shot down from San Felipe de Barajas Castle. In spite of its name, this was a fortification, not a castle. Started in the sixteenth century (and completed over the next three centuries), it was erected high on a hill to watch over the land.

San Felipe de Barajas Castle was erected by Spanish military and African slaves, and boasts a vast succession of walls, batteries, garrets, cisterns and tunnels with sufficient space to protect and hide hundreds of people. It was built from huge limestone slabs taken from nearby reefs and quarries, then dragged to the hill by the slaves.

According to history—as yet unconfirmed—blood was mixed with other materials to waterproof the cisterns, taken from (among other things) the oxen that transported heavy goods there. For centuries, San Felipe de Barajas Castle helped to defend Cartagena de Indias from sea attacks, and today it’s one of the Caribbean city’s most iconic buildings.

The city of Cartagena de Indias seen from San Felipe de Barajas Castle. F Delventhal (Flickr)

From the Huerta towers to artificial islands

The list of constructions telling of a past defined by coastline defense is in fact much longer and more varied. In the Mediterranean, highlights include the Huerta towers, a group of fortifications that sought to defend the Alicante coastline from pirate attacks.

Watchmen worked in the towers, their main task being to warn of enemy ships and warn the people. Some 20 still stand today, but there were once more than 30 along the entire Alicante coast.

Fort Sumter is another prominent construction, forming part of a series of fortifications erected on the west coast of the United States during the nineteenth century. But pirates weren’t to blame for these attacks. Rather, it was military ships belonging to the United States and United Kingdom, engaged in conflict.

Canons inside Fort Sumter. Andrew Parlette (Flickr)

Fort Sumter stands on an artificial island in the bay of Charleston in South Carolina. To build the fort, a team led by engineers moved thousands of tons of granite to the bay and designed a system of brick foundations resting several feet underwater. Fort Sumter occupies an important position in the history of the United States: it’s believed to be the setting of the first battle of the American Civil War.

La entrada Walls with watchtowers and cannons: when buildings were designed with sea attacks in mind se publicó primero en Ferrovial.