The 30th ITS World Congress provided an exciting platform for showcasing cutting-edge innovations addressing key challenges in Urban Mobility, Innovation in Mobility & Logistics, Clean Mobility, and Automated Mobility. ERTICO and its Partners contributed significantly to the programme, presenting a number of EU-funded projects and ERTICO initiatives during Special Interest Sessions (SISs) and at the ERTICO booth.
Urban Mobility: Transforming City Transportation Systems
MetaCCAZE and SUM, which are projects under the CIVITAS Initiative, organised an insightful presentation about new and integrated mobility services. These projects are also supported by European initiatives such as NetZeroCities, promoting multimodal transport and infrastructure improvements aligned with sustainable urban mobility objectives. MetaCCAZE coordinator, Dr Tamara Djukic, had the opportunity to present key highlights of the project to His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer (Commissioner General for Infrastructure, Urban Planning and Well Being Pillar, Director General, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) – Dubai), when he visited the ERTICO EU Pavilion.
Our City Moonshot initiative amplified the voices of cities worldwide on critical topics like sustainability and e-mobility. Lidia Buenavida Peña presented the key challenges and objectives of the interviewed cities, focussing on preliminary findings from the Phase II report. Notably, she offered valuable perspectives on the cutting-edge topic of Urban Air Mobility. One of the highlights for the ERTICO Partnership programme at the ITS World Congress in Dubai was the launch for ERTICO’s new platform, IDI. Designed to streamline collaboration, IDI will help drive the implementation of ITS-based aerial services.
The MaaS/MoD Global Forum highlighted the importance of trust and communication in building sustainable mobility systems. Leaders from around the world discussed the challenges and opportunities of creating seamless, user-centric mobility solutions. Key themes included data sharing, standards development, and the need for integrated, community-driven approaches. The Mobility4Users community was presented as a platform for collaboration and knowledge sharing among stakeholders.
Clean Mobility: Driving the Transition to Sustainable Transport
In support of urban innovations, our projects on electrification of mobility emphasised their crucial role in decarbonising the transport sector. The EBRT2030 project demonstrated how electric Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems can drive sustainability, reduce emissions, and offer cost-effective urban transport solutions in SIS 11 “Achieving zero emission mobility: Focusing on e-buses of the future”.
Emin Aliyev, ZEV-UP Project Coordinator and Project Manager at ERTICO, presented the ZEV-UP project at the ERTICO stand, introducing the three electric vehicle (EV) variants developed by the project and their innovations to achieve clean and efficient transportation.
The eCharge4Drivers project highlighted its solutions and services to make EV charging easier and more attractive. Michele Roccotelli presented a paper titled “Enhancing EV user experience in eCharge4Drivers project: the case of the metropolitan city of Bari” on the enhanced route planner and booking service tested at its demonstration site in Bari. The project was also presented at the ERTICO stand and was further showcased in two Special Interest Sessions: SIS 53, focusing on the project’s user-centric solutions and the seamless integration of charging services, and SIS 94, on the initial results from the project’s interviews in various European cities on local EV regulations and their influence on the deployment of EV infrastructure.
ERTICO Innovation and Deployment Senior Manager Jean-Charles Pandazis emphasized the importance of extending electrification to freight and urban deliveries during his presentation at the ERTICO booth. The NextETRUCK project is dedicated to decarbonizing this sector by introducing a new generation of zero-emission, electric medium-sized trucks. Field trials for these vehicles are set to commence in early 2025.
All these projects are part of the 2Zero Partnership, an EU-funded collaboration focused on transforming European road transport by achieving zero tailpipe emissions. Andrew Winder introduced the LeMesurier project, which seeks to evaluate the effectiveness of these efforts and measure their real impact on the journey toward decarbonisation. The project will also offer recommendations and methodologies for ongoing assessment and analysis.
The transition to low-carbon and sustainable urban mobility promoted by the recently concluded SOLUTIONSplus project was also showcased at the ERTICO stand, as John Paddington, Head PMO at ERTICO, highlighted certain outcomes and achievements in the project’s Living Labs around the world.
Innovation in Mobility and Logistics: Shaping the Future of Transport Efficiency
The JULIA project also illustrated how satellite technologies such as EGNSS and Copernicus can enhance public transport infrastructure, integrating data and digital transformation to support greener, more connected cities during SIS 26 “Data space challenges: data sharing for efficient worldwide information exchange”.
The TM 2.0 Innovation Platform presented its Position Paper on the AI Act to the ITS community during SIS 43 and a presentation at the ERTICO stand, discussing the use of AI in traffic management, as well as the potential risks and positive uses associated with it, underlining the need for quality data and the potential of AI.
Automated Mobility: Leading the Way in Autonomous Transportation
The SINFONICA project presented two papers. The first one, “GUEST Methodology & the SINFONICA project: A Comprehensive Methodology to Effectively Deploying Socio-centric Social Innovation” by Francesca Merlo, introduces a new methodology for deploying social innovation, while the second one, “CCAM Taxonomy: capturing gaps and barriers towards stakeholders’ needs and requirements”, presented by Ioannis Karaseitanidis, explores the project’s CCAM taxonomy to capture stakeholders’ needs, which will form the basis for the SINFONICA Knowledge Explorer Tool. The project was also highlighted in a presentation at the ERTICO stand, where Andrew Winder, ERTICO Senior Manager, gave insights into the results and feedback from the project’s engagement activities on users’ perception of CCAM.
Sessions also emphasised the importance of international collaboration in Automated Mobility. A panel led by Stéphane Dreher, coordinator of the FAME project, highlighted the necessity of global knowledge-sharing in CCAM, drawing experts from Europe, Canada, and Japan to discuss strategies for improving local initiatives in smart infrastructure deployment and regulatory governance.
Similarly, partners from the SUNRISE project presented a research paper RP 3 “Non-technical aspects of automated mobility” in a session on Monday, September 16th. A presentation introducing the project’s CCAM Safety Assurance Framework and its dedicated Expert Platform also took place in the EU Pavilion.
Moreover, Jean-Charles Pandazis presented the ADAS Horizon concept under the ADASIS project, showcasing advancements in driver-assistance systems that could shape future mobility solutions.
CulturalRoad was also presented at the ERTICO stand. Milica Zizic, ERTICO Support Manager, gave an overview of the project’s objectives and methodology, stressing the importance of incorporating cultural and geographical diversity into CCAM deployment for more equitable mobility.
The PoDIUM project presented its platform architecture during SIS 59, highlighting its communication layer and the multi-connectivity approach of the project to accelerate the implementation of CCAM technology.
The IN2CCAM project participated in the event to introduce its mission to enhance societal impact through improved safety, reduced road accidents, lower emissions, and increased inclusivity in transport access. By advancing physical, digital, and operational infrastructure, IN2CCAM is testing vehicle performance in real-life scenarios and utilizing AI, digital twins and V2X communication to optimize traffic management for better mobility of people and goods. The project was presented at the ERTICO Stand and was part of the discussion on “Opportunities and methodologies for integrating CCAM in traffic management” (SIS 91).
Automation was highlighted as a key solution for parking, with several EAVP platform members showcasing the societal benefits of implementing Automated Valet Parking at SIS 89. This technology aims to enhance safety, comfort, and security for users. The congress provided an ideal platform to present EAVP’s roadmap toward achieving AVP Level 2 and its AI-based mobility system, which will deliver advantages for various stakeholders, including city authorities, parking operators, and service providers.
Data for Road Safety (DFRS) Technical Group Chair Mohanad Ismail discussed the challenges of data sharing and standardization for safety data services, presenting DFRS as a collaborative platform uniting public and private entities to share safety data with end users. DFRS thrives on partnerships with organizations like ADASIS, SENSORIS, NAPCORE, TISA, and DATEX II.
TN-ITS delved into the importance of trust in mobility data and its role in shaping intelligent transportation systems. Key discussions at Special Interest Sessions 66, 80 and 88 focused on ensuring authoritative data exchange, maintaining data integrity, and developing standards like DATEX II for trusted data sharing. Mr. Kleine presented the Flanders pilot, showcasing TN-ITS’s efforts in providing timely updates on road signs and enhancing data chain integrity.
The ITS World Congress showcased a wide array of innovative projects across Urban Mobility, Innovation in Mobility & Logistics, Clean Mobility, and Automated Mobility. By leveraging international collaboration, advanced technologies, and sustainable practices, these projects are setting the stage for a more connected, efficient, and environmentally friendly future in transportation.
