2024 NRMA Future of Transport Challenge – Winners
Stage 3 Winners
Students from Year 6 from Bishop Tyrrell Anglican College won the Stage 3 NRMA Future of Transport Challenge with their project “Absorbothane”. This team put in extensive research for an energy absorbing material which is lightweight and fitted to the front of all vehicles to reduce crash damage to cars and therefore greatly reducing repair costs and time spent without a car.
Stage 3 winners from Bishop Tyrrell Anglican College
Congratulations to the other Stage 3 finalists for their brilliant presentations:
One School Global – Albury Campus with their project “Safe Car VR”, a VR simulator for Learner Drivers and Provisional drivers to give them additional hours of experience safely without being on the road. Thus keeping roads safer for all drivers.
Wahroonga Prep School with their project “AeroDrop”, utilizing drone technology to deliver much needed supplies to remote and rural areas, faster and more reliable than bringing supplies by road.
Stage 4 Winners
Students from Year 8 at North Sydney Boys High School were awarded the win for Stage 4 with their project “Motion AI”. Motion AI is a suite of supports that, when combined, allow traffic to flow with greater efficiency. It includes an AI supported device for self driving. This device has cloud connection to the traffic lights which has AI supported software to change lights to times to promote greater traffic flow. This is also linked to emergency vehicles so that under sirens they will have the right of way in all intersections.
Stage 4 winners from North Sydney Boys High School
A big congratulations to the other Stage 4 finalists:
Parramatta High School with their project “Nex Drive”. Nex Drive offers a package of safety support for vehicles including a breathalyzer, AI navigation and AI eye tracking. This ensures that only sober people are able to drive the vehicle which alone could reduce alcohol related crashes by 40%.
William Carey Christian School with their project “Road Repel”. Road Repel is a device installed by the side of the road that flashes and emits a high pitched should when detecting movement of animals near the side of the road. The animal will then scamper away from the road which will reduce crashes involving animals and will make roads safer for the driver and help protect our wildlife.
Stage 5 Winners
Taking home the Stage 5 winners prize were the students from Year 9 from St Mary Star of the Sea College with a clever product called Vale Carrion. Vale Carrion is an additive for thermoplastic paint that is used for road line marking. The additive is a repellent to all animals, keeping them away from roads. This results in a reduction of road kill – also reducing crashes on our roads as well as reducing harm to wildlife.
Stage 5 winners from St Mary Star of the Sea College
Well done and congratulations to the other Stage 5 finalists:
Cheltenham Girls’ High School with their project EcoVoyager. EcoVoyager addresses energy waste and air pollution on our public trains. Solar technology, streamlined trains and wind turbines to harness the wind flow over trains and turn it into renewable energy, trains will be greener and cleaner to run.
Newcastle Grammar School with their project XLR8. This project utilizes AI technology in vehicles for L and P platers to give real time feedback to the learner to support skill acquisition. With a lock down feature on phones it also reduces distractions.
Finalist teams pitched their innovative solutions to real-world transport problems to a panel of industry experts at the live finals event in 2024. The judges were: Victoria Doidge – NRMA Chief Membership Officer, Professor Scott Sleap – the STEM Enrichment Coordinator for the NSW Department of Education and Ben Newsome - Fizzics Education Founder and CEO.
In 2024 we held a face to face finals event at Sydney Olympic Park - you can watch the finals event here:
2023 NRMA Future of Transport Challenge – Winners
Stage 3 Winners
Students from Year 5 at Aurora College, won the Stage 3 NRMA Future of Transport Challenge with their project “EN.E.V”. They won with their very strong business case solution to energy shortages. EV’s will be leased at a discounted rate to those with solar panels on their homes. In exchange for the discounted leasing of the electric vehicle, the company will access the stored power in the batteries to be exported to the grid when demand is high.
Stage 3 winners from Aurora College
Congratulations to the finalists for fantastic projects:
St Joachims Catholic Primary School with their project “SecureDriveSafe”, a car is equipped with strong magnets that repel the other vehicle, hence reducing the number of crashes on our roads.
Cambewarra Public School with their project “DermCar”, a car that both regenerates itself and creates power all with only its skin. Based on photosynthetic cells, the car will draw power from the sun to run and will rebuild itself when damaged.
Stage 4 Winners
Students from Year 8 at Mount St Joseph College, won the Stage 4 NRMA Future of Transport Challenge with their project “EyeAlert”. They have developed a device that is fitted in the front windscreen of the car that will help to reduce road crashes by limiting distractions through monitoring eye movements. If the driver's eyes drift away from the road, a buzzing noise will alert the driver.
Stage 4 winners from Mount St Joseph College
All finalists are to be congratulated on their polished final projects:
Davidson High School with their project “B.T.T.M.T.S.”. B.T.T.M.T.S stand for Bus-Train-Tram-Modular-Transport-Systems and it is a track system that allows all forms of public transport to utilise the track systems of other transport types. B.T.T.M.T.S is built around rapid adaptive transport (RAT). A system consists of modules, a nose section, flexible connector sections, and an end cap and when upgraded with the new tracking system, will be able to run on all current tram, train and bus routes with a single vehicle.
Parramatta High School with their project “Sydney SkyFlow”. Cars will be put into pods and lifted onto a raised platform above the congested roads and utilise a series of glass tunnels that will have people at their destinations in far less time. Crashes will be reduced to zero with the tunnel and pod system being controlled by advanced AI.
Stage 5 Winners
Students from Year 10 at Waverley College and Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Kensington, won the Stage 5 NRMA Future of Transport Challenge with their project “SWIFTFOLD”. They have developed folding seats on public transport to make greater use of the space inside to accommodate more people. This is teamed with an app that allows people to book seating so they can travel with the confidence of knowing they have a seat.
Stage 5 winners from Waverley College and Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Kensington
Congratulations to the remaining stage 5 finalists who presented well on the day:
Cheltenham Girls High School with their project “Go for the Garden”. This project encourages people back onto busses with high tech self cleaning and an environmentally friendly garden on the bus roof.
Willoughby Girls High School with their project “WhipGuard”. A highly engineered car seat that will minimise the effects of whiplash and reduce huge insurance costs from injury.
All nine finalist teams pitched their innovative solutions to real-world transport problems to a panel of industry experts at the 3 final events for 2023. The judges were NRMA Roadside General Manager – Simon Denic, Fizzics Education Founder and CEO – Ben Newsome, and NSW Department of Education, TAS Curriculum Support Advisor 7–12 – Peter Davis.
In 2023 we held a face to face finals event at Sydney Olympic Park - you can watch the finals event here: