What an exciting year 2018 has proved to be! Being involved in the successful collaboration between our organisation and Partners and ensuring that together we drive forward innovative mobility solutions is a real honour for all of us here at ERTICO. Only consistent dedication and hard work can produce the kind of results that we have managed to achieve throughout this year.
For example, months of meetings and thematic workshops with Partners have resulted in a comprehensive Vision 2030 roadmap that encapsulates our common view of a future that offers smarter, safer and cleaner transport. 2019 will see us developing Vision Papers in key areas of smarter mobility so ERTICO and our Partners can intently focus on implementing the changes that in the long term we really want to see.
In 2018, ERTICO’s focus was on our four work areas: Connected and Automated Driving, Clean Mobility, Urban Mobility and Transport & Logistics.
In Connected and Automated Driving, ERTICO is paving the way for the convergence of C-ITS, cellular connectivity and the evolution of road infrastructure that will support connected and automated driving. CONCORDA (CONnected CORridor for Driving Automation), coordinated by ERTICO, will contribute to the development of “hybrid communication” through the use of 3GPP cellular communication technology and/or short-range communication technology. In 2018, the European Union listed CONCORDA among a group of EU-funded projects with notable international activities in C-ITS services.
Currently, interoperability and standardisation are major topics jumpstarting the C-ITS market. Initiated by the C-Mobile project and managed by ERTICO, the Interoperability Consultation Workgroup brings together many C-ITS oriented projects and platforms, including the MaaS Alliance, to discuss interoperability at a service level and identify common data and API needs.
2018 also saw the successful conclusion of the inLane project, which developed high precision lane recognition ability for ADAS systems. inLane was concluded in June 2018 with a final event and demonstration held at the headquarters in Barcelona of RACC, an ERTICO Partner.
The H2020 project ENSEMBLE began in June under the coordination of another ERTICO Partner, TNO. This project enables inter-brand, ad hoc and cross-border platooning of trucks, generating the necessary technical inputs for setting a European standard. Via its collaboration with ETPC, Ensemble lays the foundation for the right policies in Europe, enabling full deployment of platooning in identified business-relevant sweet spots.
In the context of connectivity, the InterCor project successfully delivered common upgraded specifications for security and hybrid communications validated in two TESTFEST events, which gathered international teams from Member States and industry. Common specifications for C-ITS services have been produced and will be validated in a final TESTFEST in March 2019.
Targeting large-scale deployment of C-ITS services in complex urban areas, C-MobILE aims to define harmonised C-ITS services and , business models for end-user acceptability and a C-ITS architecture in liaison with the EU C-Roads Platform and the U.S. Department of Transport, which supports Wi-Fi and cellular communication (and their hybrid combination).
In Clean Mobility, ERTICO is developing solutions and standards to render mobility greener and more sustainable whilst addressing the transport goals of public authorities and infrastructure operators. Last November, eMI3, ERTICO’s electric mobility interoperability platform, updated its first standard that included smart charging use cases.
The NeMo project, coordinated by ERTICO Partner ICCS, created the first version of its Hyper-Network for electro-mobility. This is a decentralised marketplace for IT actors in the sector, allowing the development of interoperable B2B and B2C applications.
SENSORIS finalised first specifications enabling the upload of geo-referenced vehicle sensor data to vehicle cloud and service clouds. Specifications will be released in July 2019.
Urban Mobility is about ERTICO engaging its partnership sectors to bring about smart mobility solutions to citizens in their daily lives. In September, ERTICO launched its MaaS Vision for 2030. The role of the ERTICO Partnership in the MaaS ecosystem is based on its unique strengths: robust knowledge, presence of the whole value chain, public-private-partnership and a strong international network. In July 2018, the MaaS Alliance, managed by ERTICO, was recognised as the best organisation in the field of MaaS.
The SPICE project coordinated by City of Copenhagen, an ERTICO Partner, was completed in August 2018. The project supported public authorities in the procurement of innovation, with a focus on sustainable urban mobility solutions. SPICE delivered practical tools for procurers to improve their knowledge on legal and policy issues, joint procurement and technical questions.
In the Transport and Logistics sector, ERTICO is working to overcome fragmentation by developing a solution for connecting logistics systems for the immediate exchange of information. The AEOLIX project, coordinated by ERTICO, is building a cloud-based, multi-enterprise “many-to-many” network platform, which will connect an unlimited number of supply chain partners and provide a real time overview of the entire supply chain.
In the framework of Ports of The Future, ERTICO is working on the COREALIS project, led by ICCS. New technological solutions will be developed and tested in five European ports. Enabling components such as 5G, IoT, AI, and Automation will be implemented to optimise port operations and hinterland connectivity.
Throughout 2018, the ERTICO team has organised numerous events, including the high-profile 25th ITS World Congress in Copenhagen in September, which registered a record number of visitors. This event culminated in a High Level Round Table, with 32 countries, 34 cities, over 20 heads of ministries and 11 associations in attendance. The key focus was how innovative transport technologies can improve the quality of life in cities through a reduction in noise, pollution, congestion and the number of annual road fatalities.
In 2018, ERTICO also organised a series of “Focus On” workshops for its Partners, aiming to exchange ideas and discuss the development of mobility and various viewpoints on topical ITS issues. These included successful workshops on Multimodality, Blockchain, IoT and eCall.
ERTICO’s annual 2-day Think Tank took place in Brussels in June, attracting more than 120 participants who attended 4 interactive sessions focusing on Multimodality and Access to Data.
2018 was also a year in which ERTICO enhanced links with China. A first trip to Shanghai in April attracted several ERTICO Partners. With ITS China, ERTICO co-organised the first EU-China Summit at the ITS World Congress in Copenhagen, culminating in the official launch of the China-Europe ITS Joint Innovation Centre. ERTICO Partners also took part in the 5th International Research and Practice Conference in Kazan, Tatarstan.
ERTICO is seeing its Partnership being strengthened this year by joining forces with seven new Partners: Bridgestone Europe, Politecnico di Bari, Technical University of Denmark, Tatarstan Road Safety Company, Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, Pluservice and SWECO. We welcome our new Partners and we are excited about their future contribution to the Partnership.
In 2019, ERTICO will continue to prioritise projects, events and activities that enrich our Partners’ and the ITS community’s development, knowledge, provide networking opportunities and keep you in touch with the very latest developments in mobility. I am honoured that our Partners and the smart mobility community continues to offer their support and believe in us. Our wonderful team at ERTICO will continue to ensure that this support is utilised to its best advantage. Let’s together continue to make mobility safer, smarter and cleaner in 2019!
Thanks for your support in 2018 and we look forward to another great year in 2019. On behalf of everyone at ERTICO, we would like to extend to your family and friends, our very best wishes for the festive season.
