At the 15th ITS Asia Pacific Forum and Exhibition 2017, which opened earlier this week in Hong Kong, ITS Australia confirmed that it intends to bid for the 17th ITS Asia Pacific Forum and Exhibition in 2020, which it wants to host in Brisbane.
The ITS Asia Pacific and Exhibition Forum is held annually, with the exception being every third year, when the region hosts the ITS World Congress. The 16th ITS Asia Pacific Forum and Exhibition in 2018 will be held in Fukuoka, Japan, and the following year, the 26th ITS World Congress will be hosted by Singapore.
ITS Australia says its submission team has been assembled, and is committed to working with members and colleagues on the ITS Asia Pacific Board to submit a bid for Brisbane that will meet the objectives of the entire region. ITS Australia intends to host the Forum at the award-winning Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre (BCEC).
ITS Australia’s president, Brian Negus (below), said, “We have the vision, resources and capability, in addition to support from Australian industry and government, to host significant international events, such as the ITS Asia Pacific Forum. We already host Asia Pacific’s premier annual road tolling event with the National electronic Tolling Committee (NeTC) Forum, and have hosted two successful ITS World Congresses, the most recent being the 23rd ITS World Congress 2016 in Melbourne.
“We were delighted with the outcomes of the last year’s World Congress, and left no stone unturned to ensure a positive delegate experience, enjoyed by 11,500 attendees from more than 70 countries. We will apply the same principles to our proposal to host the 2020 ITS Asia Pacific Forum and Exhibition. We nominate Brisbane as the bid city as it has the desired infrastructure and amenities, and is an excellent example of a city embracing intelligent transport systems to ensure people and freight move safely, efficiently and sustainably.”
The Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) supports the ITS Australia proposal. TMR director general Neil Scales said, “Queensland is an enthusiastic supporter of ITS, with considerable local talent and a great track record of partnering and working together to deliver world class ITS that makes the state a better place to live. We have a vast and varied state, where ITS offers many opportunities to bring our communities closer together, however, this also requires some creative thinking to overcome the challenges of deployment.”
