The Managing Director of LCRIG is describing the special format used for this 2026 Transport Technology Forum “TTF Live!” conference in Hinckley last week as an “overwhelming success”.
Kerry Winstanley, whose Local Council Roads Innovation Group delivers the TTF on behalf of the Department for Transport, says delivering both policy discussions and practical demonstrations “worked really well in demonstrating the here-and-now our local authorities could embrace today to make our roads safer, cleaner and more efficient.”
TTF Live at Hinckley Island in Leicestershire focussed on DfT’s forthcoming Connected Vehicle Services Framework, with its traditional two-day conference also featuring the latest connected vehicle technology showcased both on the hotel’s perimeter road and on the surrounding Leicestershire County road network.
“We took on a challenge of showing our hundreds of local authority and supply chain delegates that connected vehicle solutions aren’t something for the future but here-and-now, and we succeeded,” Kerry Winstanley explained. “We took the concepts from screen to street, showing in-vehicle messaging, emergency messages into the WAZE app, GLOSA (Green Light Optimised Speed Advisory), low bridge and flood warnings and remote monitoring, among others including drones sent to crashed vehicles We also showed how Europe’s C-Roads standards could potentially be brought to the UK. This gave practical examples of the sorts of cost-effective technologies.”
169 local authority staff were present at TTF Live, representing 56 authorities. They were part of more than 300 delegates who not only witnessed the technology on-street but also heard from the DfT’s new Chief Scientific Adviser Professor Patricia Thornley and Deputy Director, Traffic and Technology, Gavin James, and discussed the Connected Vehicle Services framework and updates to the Manual for Smart Streets.
Andy Graham of White Willow Consulting, who together with George Brown of KL Systems masterminded the demo ecosystem added: “It was quite a challenge to move from a closed test track to open roads, with 300 delegates too. But because we have moved from PowerPoints and concepts in our first demos to live services now on real roads, many of the attendees left with a clear picture of how these services work and their importance, not least those whose trains home were delayed by a bridge being bashed….”
TTF Live was sponsored by TPXimpact, with a high-level round table sponsored by AECOM, networking by Yunex Traffic and live demonstrations by WSP. Other exhibitors were: Brightly Software, Clearview Intelligence, elastic, Indra Sistemas, Messagemaker Displays, Mobile VMS, NAL, NIRA Dynamics AB, Openweather, Q-Free, Rennicks, Roadside Technologies, Simplifai Systems, SRL Traffic Systems, Standby Group, SWARCO, TagMaster UK, Teledyne FLIR, TRL, Vaisala, VivaCity and Westcotec.
HAAS Alert, Immense Solutions, INRIX, AECOM and Kapsch, Mobile VMS, Portsmouth City Council and KL Systems, Rennicks, SkyFarer and Coventry City Council, Standby Group, SWARCO and VESOS were involved in the demonstrations.
TPXimpact sponsored the event for the first time. Its Transport Lead, Michael-Jordan Faucher-Folie commented: “We were delighted to be the main sponsor of the Transport Technology Forum. It was especially rewarding to see how our work across government addressing similar challenges in different sectors resonated so well with the audience. The discussions and feedback throughout the event highlighted the growing appetite for collaboration and innovation in shaping the future of transport.”
(Picture courtesy of TTF)
