The Chair of the UK National Advisory Board working on the 2027 Intelligent Transport Systems World Congress at Birmingham’s NEC says he’s confident that the event will be “every bit as special as we dreamed of.”
Paul Campion, the CEO of TRL, was speaking two years ahead of the opening of the event, which will run from 25-29 October 2027. “When we started planning for ITS World Congress to come to Birmingham it was nearly four years away,” he explained. “We recruited people from across the UK and the wider global ITS community to generate ideas on how we would make this a stand-out showcase for Birmingham, the West Midlands, the UK and our industry and then there was a relaxed confidence that we had the time and the resources to excel. Suddenly there are only two years to go, and the confidence has grown but the mood is changing as the excitement grows and the detail of what we will show and who we will bring together comes into focus.”
Chris Lane of Transport for West Midlands, who is overseeing the region’s preparations for the event, points at what has already been achieved. “We have been working hard over the past two years to confirm all our locations, so all the halls and social venues have been booked, and thousands of hotel rooms reserved for visitors,” he said. “We have delivered what I think is a first-class range of opportunities for organisations of all sizes to get involved and our discussions with ITS professionals from across the globe suggest to me there is a real enthusiasm among people to join us at the NEC in two years’ time.”
The CEO of organiser ERTICO – ITS Europe, Joost Vantomme, praised the collaborative attitude. “All of us at ERTICO really enjoy working with the TfWM-led team,” he said. “The enthusiasm, can-do attitude and collaborative approach is making our job of delivering a first-class Congress a real joy. We all know that ITS helps deliver safer, greener and more efficient transport networks and we are confident that participants in 2027 will find ways of, for example, doing more for less if they are public sector, and, for the in the supply chain, meeting the right people to help sell more of their great ideas.”
The UK National Advisory Group is being supported by two teams of specialists who are focussed on delivering the technical know-how to the event, and to ensuring a great visitor experience.
Chair of the Technical Working Group Andy Graham of White Willow Consulting has been working on what visitors will see when they get to the event, from established, installed solutions making a difference to our transport networks now to the newest, cutting edge ideas, alongside the experts making them happen. “I have a high tech whiteboard that tells me how many days are left until we open, and seeing it drop down reminds me of the great technical team we have in place already with some “wow” generating ideas but that there are still many people yet to engage in the ecosystem we will showcase to the world in 730 days,” he said. “The buzz already developing is great and come 2027 I think we will have something very special for our visitors.”
The team planning the event is also working hard to ensure visitors enjoy the venue and the region, with a team concentrating on the overall congress experience. Committee Chair Louise Penistone from Vercity has been looking at everything from signage to availability of coffee. “For many of us, 2027 will be a never to be experienced again opportunity to celebrate, promote, reflect on our careers across ITS, with our colleagues, our partners and our clients,” she said. “For me personally, the privilege to be Chair of the Congress Experience Committee , working with my fellow Chairs and group members is an honour, when we open the doors in October 2027 , I will be proud to stand amongst ITS giants, and this will be a personal achievement and a professional badge I will wear with honour and gratitude.”
A brochure outlining the commercial opportunities has been produced, while the Programme Committee is working on the outline for the hundreds of technical and special interest sessions, before opening up applications from potential speakers.
“We will use every day of the two years remaining but we are confident and looking forward to the event being every bit as special as we dreamed all those months ago,” concluded Paul Campion. “I hope to see you there!”
(Picture – TfWM/ERTICO)
