The 5th iMobility Forum Plenary meeting focused on “Horizon 2020: Policy priorities and EU initiatives supporting intelligent mobility in Europe”. Around 90 ITS stakeholders participated in this high level Meeting that took place in Brussels 28 January 2015. Policy priorities and initiatives discussed include the high level framework necessary to implement a massive roll-out of C-ITS and vehicle automation in Europe, the respective roles of business and policy makers in terms of infrastructure investments, data protection, communication efforts for public acceptance; and who should take the lead in which area. The Meeting also debated the regulatory framework needed for global implementation.
Opening the Plenary Meeting, EU representation Mr. Paul Timmers, DG CONNECT, outlined Research and Innovation (R&I) supporting the Europe 2020. The iMobility Forum R&I Working Group presented its R&I roadmaps for the medium and long term, and formulated recommendations for the 2016-2017 research needs for smart, clean and efficient mobility. Future policy recommendations emphasise the need for business models, put the road user at the centre of the process and support the concept of mobility as a service.
The Plenary meeting presented four keynote sessions, each session introduced by one of the iMobility Forum Steering group chairs (ERTICO – ITS Europe, European Commission, ACEA, and ASECAP). The four sessions dealt with four different policy areas and were followed by a panel debate and a lively Q&A session with the audience.
The session on C-ITS focused on the milestones to achieve successful deployment of C-ITS. The debate highlighted the need for a high level commitment of both industry and EU, national and regional policy makers to exploit the momentum and to make C-ITS happen now. Businesses should lead the process tapping into existing creativity. Issues such as access to in-vehicle and other data, and attitudes in sharing and usage of data, were identified as the main barrier to further deployment of C-ITS. Industry and policy makers need to cooperate on data issues with policy makers setting the framework for privacy and liability.
The presentations and debate on automation concentrated on the regulatory intervention needed to accelerate deployment, the technology focus – safety or environmental benefits or a combination of both -, and the need to engage the customer in order to enable early acceptance of this new technology. To ensure roll-out, automation will need to evolve from technical feasibility to commercial viability taking the questions of accessibility and affordability to the consumers into the equation. Deployment of full automation urgently requires harmonisation of the legal framework.
Both sessions also highlighted that full automation will only succeed if it integrates C-ITS systems including vehicle to vehicle, vehicle to infrastructure and vehicle to other road users communication.
An EU digital single market will need to support the successful deployment of C-ITS and automation. Colette Maloney of EC DG CONNECT explained how data originating from different parts and different sectors can spur innovation and new business models. Europe needs an industrial data policy that deals with issues of ownership and collection of data, access to data, and also ensures the necessary transparency in the process.
In order to ensure a global deployment of C-ITS and automation, there is an urgent need to assess, develop and harmonise legal frameworks at national, international and global levels. A good example in this context are the efforts on global harmonisation and standardisation of C-ITS made by the tri-lateral working group EU-US-Japan.
To download the agenda and presentations, please click [http://www.imobilitysupport.eu/library/imobility-forum/plenary-meetings/2015-1/5th-plenary-meeting-28-jan-2015-1/presentations].
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