First ever integrated display of smart cars on intelligent roads at Cooperative Mobility Showcase
One step closer to safer driving, less congestion and environmentally friendly mobility
Amsterdam, 15 April 2010 -
The Cooperative Mobility Showcase, the world’s first integrated event on innovative vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure technologies, was a resounding success. The Showcase provided a unique meeting place aimed specifically at multi-stakeholder cooperation for sustainable cooperative mobility, highlighting the results of over four years of collaboration between industry, government bodies, operators, research institutes, universities and users. The delegates gathered for the event at Amsterdam RAI agreed to work together to bring cooperative mobility applications into cars and on the roads in order to realise safer driving, less congestion and more environmentally acceptable mobility. The Cooperative Mobility Showcase was held at Amsterdam RAI from 23 to 26 March 2010. The showcase took place within the framework of Intertraffic Amsterdam 2010, the world's leading exhibition for infrastructure, traffic management, safety and parking.
The Cooperative Mobility Showcase featured the final results of the three major European research projects COOPERS, CVIS and SAFESPOT, co- financed by the European Union's 6th Framework Programme for Research. It was the first time that the potential of cooperative mobility was shown to the world at such a large scale, with over 30 integrated applications and solutions on display. About 1,000 people were able to experience first hand ‘driving of the future’ in the cars and minivans of the Cooperative Mobility Demonstrations, travelling on public roads around Amsterdam and at the safety demonstration area at Schiphol airport. Over 510 participants involved in cooperative mobility participated in the conference. And the i&CDrive exhibition, together with Intertraffic Amsterdam 2010, was visited 24,985 times.
“This first edition of the Cooperative Mobility Showcase has proven to exceed our expectations,” says Erik Dijkshoorn of Amsterdam RAI (co-organiser of the event). “The interest from industry experts as well as from the media and general public has been very inspiring. We are happy that we were able to establish this platform for the industry, together with the government bodies, private companies, research institutes and universities that we were fortunate enough to work with. We will certainly continue this cooperation in the future.”
A launch-pad for future deployment
CVIS Coordinator Paul Kompfner from ERTICO – ITS Europe, co-organiser of the event, was delighted with the turnout and positive feedback, “For the first time Showcase visitors from over 35 countries around the world could enjoy a direct experience of the very wide range of new cooperative features and services that will be available soon in new cars and commercial vehicles. And the first ever conference on the theme of cooperative mobility sparked a lively dialogue amongst elected officials, road operators, automotive industry, telecom operators, service providers and users. I’m really encouraged to see how the Showcase was a catalyst for these stakeholders to start working together to bring these technologies and services onto the market.”
Future activities of the European Commission
For the further promotion of cooperative mobility, the European Commission currently calls for proposals for field operational tests (FOTs) of cooperative systems. Successful proposals will lead to the large-scale testing of car-to-car and car-to-infrastructure communication technologies in everyday traffic. These tests will go far beyond the demonstrations held in Amsterdam last week.
Subject to the adoption of the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) Work Programme 2011/2012, the Commission plans for 2011 to call for research proposals focusing on cooperative services and applications for energy efficiency, eco-friendly driving and traffic management. The delivery by the European Standards Organisations of the standards for cooperative mobility, mandated by the Commission in October 2009, is expected by the end of 2013.
The Netherlands as test bed for cooperative mobility
The Dutch Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management is very pleased with the attention generated for cooperative mobility by the event. “As co-organiser, we intended to enable a wide audience of traffic technology experts to learn about the possibilities of cooperative mobility, which is why we choose to co-locate the Cooperative Mobility Showcase with Intertraffic Amsterdam”, according to Siebe Riedstra, Secretary General at the Ministry. “Being the transport hub of Europe, the Netherlands is a particularly well-suited area to test innovations,” he continues. “ The road density and heavy traffic on such a small surface causes major challenges regarding safety, the environment and traffic flow. With this Showcase, we have been able to prove our expertise in the field of cooperative mobility to all parties involved. Internationally, we have shown what the Netherlands is capable of and we’re happy to see that the event has become an important platform for the industry.”
Inspired to continue
Dutch research institute TNO was one of the parties heavily involved in the Cooperative Mobility Showcase and in putting together the Demonstration tours. Frans op de Beek, senior consultant Intelligent Transport Systems at TNO: “As innovation hub of the Netherlands, we were keen to show the impact innovation can have. New contacts were made, new ideas were formed and even new initiatives were agreed,” he says. “Together, we now need to make sure that the innovation projects continue. This was not a one-time only collaboration. On the contrary, it has accelerated the innovation process and will only result in more cooperation to bring the innovations shown in the Demonstration tours into actual practice.” He finishes with saying: “It has been truly inspiring to see what cooperation of industry, research organisations and public authorities can achieve. Over time the Showcase has grown into a platform for the entire industry, creating a path forward visible to all of us. We will for sure continue!”
Note for the editor (not for publication):
For more information, visuals and photography please contact Marieke Leenhouts of the Communications & PR Department of Amsterdam RAI, T +31 (0)20 549 12 12, E m.leenhouts@rai.nl.
Members of the press will have free access to the conference and demonstration tours. For accreditation and to reserve a demonstration tour, please contact Marieke Leenhouts as mentioned above.