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38  Autumn 2016 European Energy Innovation

    COMMUNICATION

Intelligent Transport Systems
– a Tool or a Toy?

Message from the organisers

THE EUROPEAN COOPERATION IN SCIENCE AND                            UNIVERSITY OF ŽILINA
TECHNOLOGY (COST)                                                  The University of Žilina has a long tradition in transport and
Over the past 30 years, the European Cooperation in Science        information and communication technologies research – two
and Technology (COST) has been helping researchers                 main technological pillars of Intelligent Transport Systems.
coordinate national initiatives leading up to today’s Intelligent
Transport Systems (ITS) concept. COST networks – also known        In 2014, the University was awarded an ERA Chair grant for
as Actions – have been proposing solutions for transport           ITS, meant to unlock the university’s research potential and
issues affecting European citizens’ lives, especially in urban     strengthen Žilina region’s position in the field, while boosting
areas: air quality, congestion, safety, accessibility, equity,     ITS solutions Europe-wide.
inter-modality and journey time.
                                                                   We are very proud that the event is held under the auspices
For instance, transport operators and experts are now able         of the Slovak Presidency of the Council of the European
to analyse harmonised EU data thanks to the COST Action            Union. This transdisciplinary conference – organised
“SHANTI” methodology, meant to measure urban mobility.             alongside the European Cooperation in Science in
Travellers are also receiving more reliable information and        Technology (COST) and ERTICO – is the perfect opportunity
experiencing safer journeys thanks to the work of TU1004           to set up a unique platform for leading European research
and TU1305, the latter using big data to improve transit           institutions, companies, and government agencies to
predictive models. Similarly, app users may soon take              exchange ideas. This will help build stronger connections
advantage of European tracking and tracing technology,             between European researchers and all other stakeholders.
as Action SaPPART is advancing work on a standard use of
Global Navigation Satellite Systems for personal mobility          We are confident that the debate will identify all the
applications (EGNOS and Galileo).                                  necessary tools to improve decision makers’ understanding
                                                                   of ITS uses, in order to meet transport policy goals at all
Understanding, analysing and developing ITS is a complex           levels.
matter, requiring a wide range of expertise. We noticed that
COST Actions in ITS tend to grow more interdisciplinary,           Dr Karl Ernst Ambrosch
as they engage experts from different backgrounds: urban           ERA Chair holder
planners, architects, transportation engineers, sociologists       University of Žilina l
and economists. This way, COST networks sum up the
interdisciplinary nature of ITS.

By co-organising the conference, COST and the invited
Actions aim to share their experience and expertise with
the wider ITS community, and certainly stimulate future
collaborations.

Dr Mickael Pero
Science Officer
COST Association
www.cost.eu/events/itstooltoy

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