ITS (UK)’s membership group dedicated to using technological solutions to improve air quality related to transport is beginning its work on a white paper for this year’s United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP26.
The Smart Environment Forum document Transport Technology and Climate Change will receive contributions from a range of members with differing areas of expertise around emissions monitoring, transport modelling, traffic management and user behaviour.
“COP26 presents a great opportunity for us to raise awareness of what ITS can contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation,” says ITS (UK) chair Ryan Hood. “The industry has risen to the challenge of Covid-19 providing mobility data and supporting rapid adaptation of our road space. However, the issues around climate and zero carbon are even more vital and difficult to deal with, and technology and data will be key to solving them. ITS (UK) will have a major role to play, and this is top of my agenda as chair of the society.”
The white paper publication will be managed by ITS (UK) secretary general Jennie Martin, who is calling on members to contribute. “I need members to get in touch and let me know which topics they would like to work on,” she explains. “With a big collaborative effort, we should be able to avoid anybody needing to spend days and days on this, but still get everybody’s knowledge represented. Contributions from women and younger people are explicitly invited as they are underrepresented in many transport activities. I’m confident we’ll have a real range of knowledge and experience to make ours a very important document.”
The Smart Environment Forum is chaired by one of the world’s leading experts in transport and the environment, Professor Margaret Bell of Newcastle University. Vice chairs are Keith McCabe of Simplifai Systems and Arup’s Tim Gammons. They will be hosting a panel discussion for members on 27 April.
The ITS (UK) Transport Technology and Climate Change White Paper will be published at the beginning of November as the industry’s way of marking COP26.
