1st European Conference on ITS – EASYWAY

14-16 October 2008 (Giardini Naxos – Taormina, ITALY)

Hellenic Ministry for the Environment, Physical Planning & Public Works Welcome

"In the year 2007, in the framework of the EC Call for proposal under the draft multi-annual work programme for grants in the field of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) for the period 2007-2013 (Commission Decision C(2007)2158) – (2007/C 115/10) - Field 3 (Project in the filed of Intelligent Transport Systems for road traffic), a programme for the development of ITS services across all Europe started, taking the legacy of the MIP 1 phase (2001-2006) and bringing it to a higher level of integration. This programme is EasyWay. Its main objectives are to enhance safety across the TERN, to lower the environmental impact of pollution and to develop infrastructural co-modal shifting. EasyWay integrates the road operators and the users necessities in order to deploy the EC’s ITS Action Plan.

One of the new and most important elements of EasyWay is the involvement of a part of Europe which had not been present in the MIP 1 phase. This is the newborn EasyWay/ITHACA Euro-Region, composed of Greece, Cyprus, Romania, Bulgaria and Southern Italy. EasyWay/ITHACA was established through a first fruitful cooperation between Greece and Italy, and then with the active interest and involvement of the other Member States, some of which just recently entered in the EU. The activity within EasyWay/ITHACA is mainly focussed on co-modal aspects of ITS and on reducing the gap on the level of services with respect to other Member States.

For these reasons, Greece is particularly proud to have contributed to the organisation of the first EasyWay Conference. This will be an occasion to share best practices and to indicate common solutions to common problems. Member States with more experience have the opportunity to share their background and the new Member States will have the chance to expose their point of view and to learn from trials already experimented elsewhere. The Conference will be a cross-fertilizing platform.

It is therefore my greatest pleasure to invite you all to Taormina, in the heart of the Mediterranean, where once my ancestors had settled to bring art, culture and politics; these were then shared among all the people and it was the beginning of a new historical phase. My highest hope is that the participants to the Conference could arrive to Sicily with the same frame of mind, so that the 1^st EasyWay Conference could become itself a landmark and the starting point for a wider and more coordinated cooperation across all Europe."

Mr. Georgios Souflias

Minister of the Environment,

Physical Planning & Public Works

Italian Ministry for the Infrastructures and Transports Welcome

"I am pleased that Italy and the city of Taormina are hosting the 1st European Conference on implementation of Intelligent Transport Systems and Services (ITS). The Ministry of Infrastructures and Transports hopes that the conference could be a key event for the highest institutional representatives and the Stakeholders of the road sector coming from all Europe, to have an outlook of the state of the art transport technology. This will allow Member States and key operators involved in the TERN to focus on the new European Policies and need of European harmonisation through common solutions to common problems.

I believe that building intelligence into our TERN infrastructures through the use of Intelligent Systems for traffic management, which soon will be integrated with services provided by GALILEO, will guarantee a growing diffusion of precise information to drivers. Innovation will allow immediate data exchange between infrastructures and vehicles, which today already occurs in the electronic toll mechanism. Furthermore, I am confident that these new technologies can contribute concretely in rationalising road transport, thus solving the problems we face nowadays in terms of congestion, at the same time enhancing safety and reducing the environmental impact, determined by the constantly increasing volumes of European traffic.

Italy collaborates with the European Commission and other Member States for the definition of an ITS Action Plan for the deployment of Intelligent Transport Systems for road transport. This ITS Action Plan will enable us to work closely with the Member States, with all road operators and other Stakeholders involved in the process of improving the traffic flows. Considering the joint presence of Member States, together with the operators of the trans-European Network, EasyWay will be an important instrument for the implementation on-field of common European policies.

We expect that future Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) will apply emerging information and communication technologies to transport. ITS will have the potential to contribute to a safe, efficient and seamless transport of goods and people on the European road network and its interfaces with the other transport modes, thus facilitating a sustainable mobility.

In this viewpoint I consider the outcomes of the Taormina Conference an important contribution to the European debate on road safety. We must work with a cooperation spirit for deploying ITS in a harmonised and coherent way along the roads of Europe.

This first European Conference is definitely a step in this direction and I address a warm welcome to all the participants."

Altero Matteoli

Italian Minister for the

Infrastructures and Transports

Ministry of Communications and Works of Cyprus

Cyprus is proud to be among the EU Member States participating in the EasyWay/ITHACA programme, which aims at improving and upgrading the level of service offered by the Trans-European Road Network (TERN).

Being a country that solely depends on the road network for the inland transportation of persons and goods, the consequences of congestion, road accidents and increasing fuel prices, not undermining the impact to the environment, are important issues for all stakeholders, the managing authorities, the industry and the road users. Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) offer a realistic solution to moderate these problems and provide a sustainable alternative to building new roads, by providing the information required by road users and other stakeholders to make intelligent decisions on how to use the road network. Realising these benefits, Cyprus has already began the process of implementing a nationwide ITS, but appreciates that much can be learned from the experience of other Member States, that have already installed such systems.

The European Commission has actively encouraged the cooperation of the Member States in establishing common standards and guidelines for the planning, harmonisation, implementation and interoperability of these systems. The EasyWay programme through its activities, is a significant step towards establishing the EU wide application of road ITS.

During this conference, representatives from the public and private sector and experts from academia and industry will share their experiences, problems and solutions, new methodologies and innovative applications. Through these contributions, I anticipate that new forms of collaboration among participants will be initiated leading to the promotion of technology and knowledge transfer.

I welcome all participants, hoping that this first EasyWay conference in Taormina, will be both interesting and productive and that a series of regular events on EU wide cooperation in the field of ITS will follow.

Nicos Nicolaides

Minister of Communications and Works

Republic of Cyprus