ITS

In Europe, ITS and its related technologies have been widely accepted by both the public and private sectors as the way forward to achieving the goal of sustainable mobility - while at the same time improving quality of life. This public-private partnership is the key to successful ITS implementation.

Applied effectively, Intelligent Transport Systems and Services (ITS) can save lives, time, and money as well as reduce threats to the environment and create new business opportunities. Great strides in ITS technology have already been made to:

• improve the safety of roads 
• decrease journey times 
• encourage multimodal transport 
• alleviate the impact of transport on the environment

ITS encompasses the technologies connecting the vehicle, the driver and the infrastructure. In Europe today, the focus on the vehicle covers active support systems such as vision enhancement, lane-keeping assistance, collision warning and alertness monitors will have an impact on driver error and fatigue. In addition, systems such as coordinated traffic control, ramp metering, variable message signs, and traffic and incident detection systems are being implemented by infrastructure operators to monitor road conditions and provide for smooth and safe journeys.
 
The positive impact of ITS technology on travel efficiency can also bring corresponding benefits for the Earth’s environment. Navigation systems and traffic information services, for instance, inform users of traffic jams and the best route to take while parking information sends drivers directly to an available space. All these systems encourage multimodal transport use and reduce the time spent on the road, thereby reducing traffic congestion and pollution. In addition, mobile ITS services can bring users unprecedented freedom, offering a host of services such as mobile booking and payment now commonly referred to as e-ticketing.

Major Initiatives
A number of initiatives are already underway, such as the Intelligent Car Initiative to promote new technologies in vehicles through coordination of stakeholder actions (the eSafety Forum), research in Intelligent Vehicle Systems and user awareness. The Galileo Supervisory Authority is being set up; the Galileo satellite system will be operational from 2010 and provide navigation signals to be combined with ground- or space-based communication. The development of a European open architecture will ensure interoperability and the flexible development of future applications for all transport modes.