Verona is ready to become a smart city and is working on many projects “We know that citizens require more information and we are experimenting private-public partnership” – Corsi explains. From the National Plan on ITS and from Europe in general “we expect a greater attention to proceedings standardization”.

Mr. Corsi, Verona in recent years has brought forward a number of technological choices in the mobility field: the smooth flow of traffic to LTZ with RFID to city logistics and infomobility services, just to name a few initiatives. Can these be considered as the first steps toward a real organization of mobility as smart city?
We are interested in anything that can help us bring Verona to a smart condition, since a long time ago we committed for bringing forward a number of policies designed to improve mobility and certainly the highly innovative and more sophisticated technologies used can help us to achieve this ambitious goal. The first objective we have set since 2004 has been to mitigate the pressure of the vehicle in the city center through the installation of electronic access control system but even then by applying a policy of sharing choices and involvement of the population; actually in 2006 we signed a protocol with the categories represented within the Council for Disability of the Verona Municipality to facilitate the movement of people with disabilities within the LTZ and light panels were installed to facilitate the understanding of access. Moreover, the city is characterized as smart especially in relation to its ability to involve its inhabitants to participate in a conscious way, and to use ta the best communications channels for relationships. The Citylogistic project and infomobility you mentioned can be attributed to this character: to organize and optimize the movement of goods and giving as much information as possible to those who move, perhaps contributing to the energy savings achieved by the optimization of routes.

What are the projects you are working on?
We are at the moment involved in the implementation of the Rfid system for the monitoring of commercial vehicles within LTZ, in addition to the actual limited access through electronic gates, we want to add another tool for controlling also the exit from LTZ. Cross-checking between entries and exits should help us to moderate the massive presence of commercial vehicles by encouraging their rotation. In addition, we are expanding the Citypass network dedicated to the sector of special passes for people with disabilities, now compliant with the European model.

Verona is a city of tourism and fairs. What technologies in your opinion could help the mobility of tourists, visitors as well as citizens?
The Rfid technology we are implementing will be useful for buses LTZ within the town: both citizens and tourist will be able to receive an electronic ticket that equipped with a Rfid tag can be read at city access points automatically. Moreover, we are strengthening the wi fi net through the city foer which people do not need any registration: a free navigation session can be opened by an Sms by mobile phone in most part of the cities. Finally, the re-styiling of the portal veronamobile.it will help us to keep people informed both on mobility and city events.

Do you know what kind of demand of ITS (Intelligent Transport Systems) citizens require? What is the approach to new technologies?
In general, what we noticed is that the demand for access to information increases continuously. In particular, people ask for more information for mobility: the ability to plan a trip by consulting the websites is linked to large displacements, while for daily trips, typical of commuters and students (nearly 400,000 daily in Verona ), is required information as much as possible in real time. Everyone, in his car or in the bus, want to access information from smartphone, to know which bus to take or what passes for first rather than avoiding a way because of traffic jam or because an accident has just happened.

When it comes to innovation and mobility, we often have to stop in front of an obvious obstacle: the lack of available funds. What do you think about transferring to private sector some competences in the management of technology with respect to mobility?
In general, the financial support of privates is crucial, but it certainly is necessary to distinguish the respective roles and functions. The chronic lack of funds is creating a dangerous lack of investment and not to invest means to step back. With the Veneto Region we are trying to carry out a common strategy for infomobility, because of the lack of public funds, we are considering the idea of identifying within the free market a person to be entrusted with the implementation of the regional portal: the dealer would dump the costs by redistributing on the market the regional traffic information. It is a difficult way, all to experience.

A few months ago TTS Italia launched the idea of working table with local administrations and ITS companies to develop partnerships aimed at new projects. Verona would participate?
I think Verona is ready to participate in the experimentation of new projects and solutions technologically advanced. We are already engaged in an important project on collaborative systems in collaboration with one of our major suppliers (Swarco-Mizar) and a major automobile manufacturer. We also participate in a European consortium of public and private entities that has just won a European funding for the testing and implementation of advanced systems in the field of road safety.

Finally, in terms of transport-related technologies, Italy is facing a major challenge in Europe in the presentation of the National Plan of ITS. In your opinion, what should definitely include this document?
Greater attention to the standardization of procedures. It may seem trivial, particularly in the European Union, but it is not. Verona is a city very well developed and the crossroads of 2-axis north-south and east-west strategic for transport on road and rail. When in 2005 we started to discuss the replacement of the fleet of commercial vehicles, there was placed a question that was tied to the expected mark: Why we did not thought of a solution, for example, shared with Padua, who started in those years with a similar solution, and other towns of the Po Valley? There was a favorable response to the proposal, but we were asked to standardize the various authorizations and procedures. Even today there is no a valid standard between the territories. In Europe, each state adopts different technologies to monitor and manage the commercial traffic. Just think of the different titles and badges that a commercial vehicle shall display first through Italy, then Austria and finally Germany. So a push for standardization in this sense could help the monitoring of trade by the various authorities, helping to improve circulation.

Who is Enrico Corsi.Born in Verona in 1962, he studied by industrial expert, but in the last 15 years he has dedicated himself to politics. Councillor for mobility, infrastructure, traffic, trade and tourism, confirmed last spring for a second term by the mayor of Verona, Mr. Flavio Tosi, Enrico Corsi has been elected in 1997 as Lega Nord representative with the role of president of the 8° district. This role has been covered until 2007. From 2004 to 2007 he has been province councillor and then he started to operate in the Municipality.

TTS in action

TTS Italia welcomes 6 new members
The Board of Directors of TTS Italia at its meeting on 19 September 2012 approved the accession of six new Members for 2012:
- Consortium Triveneto (www.constriv.it) which is characterized by the study, the research and design of products based on wireless technology and contactless and mobile payment systems in the fields of road tolls and parking, access to restricted traffic zones and electronic ticketing systems;
- Etrucknet (www.etrucknet.com), start-up that is in the field of ITS for transport with a focus on support to SMEs, to environmental protection and energy saving, to the implementation of interoperable ITS solutions;
- IVU Traffic Technologies (www.ivu.it), a company focused on the development of integrated computer systems for public transport companies and the logistics industry, from planning and time management for shifts, from ticketing monitoring of fleets, offering advanced systems for passenger information;
- Rome Servizi per la Mobilità (www.agenziamobilita.roma.it), a company with the aim of integrating the functions of planning, design and control of public and private mobility with those of information to serve the citizens of Rome;
- Teleparking (www.teleparking.it), dedicated to the study and implementation of mobility projects, focusing on solutions that meet both the need for cost containment and sustainable development - Tom Tom (www.tomtom.com), a company specialized in products and digital maps for navigation and support services to guide motorists, including portable navigation devices, navigation integrated systems, solutions for fleet management , maps and real-time services.
Source: TTS Italia

At TTS Italia the Seminar “Opportunities and challenges of ITS for insurance for private transport"
It was held on September 18, in Rome, at the headquarters of TTS Italia, open to its members, the Seminar: "Opportunities and challenges of ITS for insurance for private transport". Objective of the meeting was to discuss and explore the needs, problems and opportunities of ITS for insurance in light of recent regulatory changes, involving both companies offering such services, both ISVAP(indipendent Italian Authority for insurances clients protection). In particular, the following Italian players held a presentation: Magneti Marelli, Octo Telematics, SDG Nexus, Viasat. ISVAP has instead focused on the national framework of reference.

TTS Italia at the Chinese ITS annual Conference
From 26 to 28 September, TTS Italia, represented by its Secretary General Olga Landolfi, took part in the Chinese ITS annual Conference, organized in Beijing by ITS China. TTS Italia illustrated the Italian challenges for smart mobility and cities as well as national and European projects in which the Association is involved at the moment.

TTS Italia at the Telemobility Forum
TTS Italia, represented by its President Rossella Panero, took part at the new edition of Telemobility Forum on 27 and 28 September in Turin. Organized by ClickUtility and Innovability with the endorsement of TTS Italia (the Italian ITS Association) the partnership of the Turin Chamber of Commerce and the scientific support of  Torino Wireless, the event discussed current and future development in smart infrastructures, GPS, Galileo, GIS, telematics and navigation services during the two-day event featuring informational conferences, networking programs and highly specialized seminars. TTS Italia President was the Chairman of the round table “Towards the ITS National Plan: proposals from national associations for logistics and mobility”. At the event also took part several TTS Italia members: ACI, Axis Communications, 5t, CRF, Esri Italia, ISMB, Magneti Marelli, Ministero delle Infrastrutture e dei Trasporti, Pluservice, Politecnico di Torino, Selex Elsag.

Second edition of the New World Conference: “The New World II – The General States of ITS for mobility management in Italy: the demand and supply meet” – 3, 4 December 2012 - Bologna
TTS Italia in collaboration with Club Italia is organizing the Second Edition of the Conference "The New World - The general states of ITS for mobility management in Italy: The demand and supply meet," to be held on 3 and 4 December 2012 at the Hotel Savoia Regency in Bologna. The conference will provide an opportunity to present and discuss the contents of the draft of the ITS National Plan, made from the table of Italian associations interested in ITS sector and coordinated by TTS Italia. Also for this year, the conference will be organized in an exhibition part and a congressional one to give the widest possible space to all fields of application of ITS systems for the management of urban and extraurban mobility and logistics, security, electronic payment systems, and technologies applied to local public transport. In particular the conference will be structured in 10 sessions with a Round table for each of the two days to discuss issues related to the ITS sector with Local Authorities and Institutions. Moreover, in the same venue, it will be held on December 5 the Workshop organized by TTS Italia in collaboration with the IRF-International Road Federation, member of the European ITS Advisory Group. The meeting aims to present the results of ITS Policy Committee, of which TTS Italia is part. TTS Italia at the 19th ITS World Congress TTS Italia, Italian ITS Association, will be attending the 19th ITS World Congress in Vienna from 22 to 26 October 2012. TTS Italia will be present at the booth number E60 with the following members: 5t, Autostrade Tech, Famas System, Istituto Superiore Mario Boella, Magneti Marelli, Pluservice, Sistema, Swarco Mizar, Telespazio. In accordance with the Congress motto “Smarter on the way”, TTS Italia members will be presenting their last innovative ITS solutions and products for transport and road safety. At TTS Italia stand will also be present Fondazione Formit with I-Tour project in which TTS Italia is participating as stakeholder and final user, and Piemonte Agency for Investments, Export and Tourism which will be involving several Italian companies from the Piemonte Region area. On 24 October, from 16 pm, TTS Italia invites you all to the Association Networking Break at our stand! TTS Italia welcomes you all at stand E60!

News of the month

ARTEMIS continues to be known and to share their own potential in the freight logistics
It was held on 14 September, in Venice, the Workshop "ARTEMIS: The smart platform for intermodal logistics" organized by Nethun within the ARTEMIS project which has made use of the collaboration of Thetis, TTS Italia ordinary member, in particular the choice of speakers and organization the program of the day. The project is an acronym for "Advanced Evaluator and Rational Transport Multimodal Information System ARTEMIS.. This is a project originated within the funding program of the European Union "Marco Polo", and his objective is to organize an intelligent platform. The "Smart Platform" presented during the day, is the true essence of the project allows all those who need to move goods to consult the network the most efficient solution, both single and multi-modal, and in terms of cost, time and saving of CO2 emissions, to make the shipment. At the same time it is a portal, where logistics operators may propose to market their services. Due to these characteristics, the platform ARTEMIS is also a real tool for decision support at European level: the database contains the operational profile of more than 300 ports, seaports and river ports allowing operators to identify routes, methods and timing for a dedicated logistics effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability of the above.
Source: Thetis

Final Conference of the PASHMINA project
It will be held on 16 October, in Brussels, the final conference of the European project PASHMINA, of which ISIS, TTS Italia ordinary member, is one of the partner. For the past three years, the PASHMINA project consortium has developed and experimented with a new generation of tools to better assess the interaction between the economy and the environment, the paradigm shifts in the energy-transport-environment nexus and land use and territorial functions, and the shifts beyond GDP measurement and the economic growth paradigm. The results obtained, the policy recommendations formulated and the questions that emerged will be presented during this one day conference, The conference will be held at Rue Archimède 73 (close to Rond Point Schuman) in Brussels, on location of the European Commission. For more information about the conference, please contact Sophie Sow: ssow@isis-it.com or visit the project website, click here.
Source: ISIS

In Rome traffic information with Tom Tom
Tom Tom, TTS Italia ordinary member, has announced a partnership with Italian traffic management and systems integrators, Duel, in order to provide location and traffic information in the Lazio region of Italy, which includes the Rome metropolitan district. Tom Tom will deliver a combination of maps, and both historical and real-time traffic information to support traffic forecasting for the area. It is hoped that drivers will benefit from a more comprehensive and accurate view of what is going to happen on the road networks, enabling them to choose the best possible route to their destination and avoid the city’s notorious traffic congestion. The company will provide its HD Flow system, which delivers speed information for all roads, so that traffic flow on the entire road network can be visualized and evaluated to assess true travel times for the region. When the real-time information is combined with historical traffic data, Tom Tom is able to both pinpoint congestion and help identify alternative, faster routes. The traffic forecast data will be available for drivers via both an internet site and a cell phone application managed by the ACI (Automobile Club d’Italia), TTS Italia founding member, within the Luce Verde Regione Lazio service.
Source: Traffic Technology Today

ITS-EduNet organize five short courses on ITS
ITS-EduNet, the international Network International Network aiming to improve training and education in ITS at an European level, of which Politecnico of Turin, TTS Italia ordinary member is part, offers five short courses on ITS before the start of the ITS World Congress 2012 in Vienna. The courses will be held at the University of Applied Sciences Technikum Wien on 20 and 21 October 2012 and will be focused on: Inter-Urban Traffic Management; Urban Traffic Management; From Data to Information; Measuring the Benefits of ITS; Cooperative Systems. This last course is organized by Prof. Bruno Dalla Chiara from the Politecnico of Turin.
For registration, please contact:
Dr. Ing. Friedrich Maier, ITS-EduNet, General Manager
office@its-edunet.org
For further information, click here
Source: Politecnico of Turin

Maior wins tender infomobility system in Tuscany
Maior, TTS Italia ordinary member, has won the tender issued by the Tuscany Region for the development and maintenance of the Infomobility system in support of regional Observatory for mobility and transport. The value of the tender is 1 230 000,00 Euro.
Source: TTS Italia

Project Automation wins two tenders for air quality monitoring and dangerous goods transport
Project Automation, TTS Italia ordinary member, has recently acquired the creation of the network of air quality monitoring as part of the Integrated Environmental Centre of Parma. The monitoring network will consist of a mobile device and three fixed stations, and will include the integration and updating of the existing station located in Colorno. In addition, Project Automation has won two contracts for the monitoring systems of road transport of dangerous goods. The first contract covers the monitoring of the transit of dangerous goods and special transports on a significant part of the network of the Brennero motorway. The second contract involves the construction of an integrated system for logistics management for the Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia. The gates of monitoring will be placed at the points of major interest of the regional logistics network (border crossings, ports) and there are significant business integration and interoperability with other systems, existing or under construction.
Source: Project Automation

SCUTUM Project on national and international press
At the end of the European Project SCUTUM (SeCUring the EU GNSS adopTion in the dangeroUs Material transport), coordinated by Telespazio, TTS Italia ordinary member, two articles have been published on specialized reviews LeStrade and Thinking Highways.
For the article on LeStrade (in Italian), click here
For the article on Thinking Highways, click here
Source: Telespazio

Thetis in China for the Viajeo project
On September 7in Beijing and on September 10 in Shanghai, there were two workshops aimed at disseminating the results of the European project Viajeo. Representing Thetis, TTS Italia ordinary member and partner of the project, for both days, was Paolo Squillante with a speech entitled "Bus management and real-time passenger information", with the support of Stefano Zennaro for demonstration of the system. Coordinated by ERTICO, the project is co-funded by the Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development of the European Commission and with the support of the Italian Ministry of 'Environment and Protection of Land and Sea. Viajeo’s purpose is to create, demonstrate and validate an "open platform" able to give support to planning and daily operations of the companies urban transport and to provide a wide range of multimodal mobile information services to those who need to move in urban environments. The project is part of the applications of ITS technologies for the development of efficient transport systems, safety and sustainability, and as part of the new European directive on intelligent transport systems on the establishment of the regulatory framework for the development, coordination and the use of intelligent technologies in road transport.For further information on Viajeo, http://viajeo.eu/en/welcome.htm
Source: Thetis

Thetis organizes the Workshop “Masterplanning in siti contaminati costieri” - 19 Settembre 2012 - Ferrara
Within the 6th Exhibition on remediation of contaminated sites and the redevelopment of the area, Thetis, TTS Italia ordinary member, held on September 19 in Ferrara, the Workshop "Masterplanning in contaminated coastal sites." The contamination of large areas of land and numerous steals valuable resources for the socio-economic development and is a significant risk factor for the environment and human well-being. This is particularly significant for coastal areas with several large industrial sites where particularly sensitive are the related environmental problems. Erosion and flooding, risk factors typical of coastal areas, can further affect the mode of spread of contaminants. The workshop "Masterplanning in contaminated coastal" has shown significant experiences of Thetis in some of the most important Italian coastal contaminated sites.
Source: Thetis

TTS Italia members on ITS International
Autostrade Tech, 5t, Famas System, Istituto Superiore Mario Boella, Magneti Marelli, Pluservice e Sistema, Swarco Mizar and Telespazio, together with Fondazione Formit/I-Tour project, will be at TTS Italia stand E60 during the 19° ITS World Congress which will be held ffrom 22 to 26 October 2012 in Vienna.
Have a look at the preview of ITS Internatonal, the official review of the Congress:http://viajeo.eu/en/welcome.htm (TTS Italia members at page 8 and 10).
Source: TTS Italia

Project of the month

TTS Italia involved in the project COMPASS for Co2 emissions reduction

TTS Italia is one of the partner of the COMPASS project as responsible for dissemination activities and business models development.

Project Overview
The research to be undertaken in the COMPASS project will recommend solutions that will allow improvements to the planning and operation of the passenger transport network to enhance co-modality in transport thus contributing to the reduction of carbon emissions.
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Save the date

40th European Transport Conference
8-10 October 2012, Glasgow, Scotland
For further information, click here
For paper submission, click here

2nd World ITS Summit 2012
10-11 October 2012, Shanghai, China
For further information, click here

Transport Systems Telematics Conference
10-13 October 2012, Katowice, Poland
For further information, click here

Final Conference of PASHMINA project
16 October 2012, Brussels, Belgium
For further information, click here

XVI Congreso Argentino de Vialidad y Tránsito
22-26 October 2012, Argentina
For further information, click here

19th World Congress Vienna
22-26 October 2012, Vienna, Austria
For further information, click here

Second Road Safety Conference
23-24 October 2012, Boksburg, South Africa
For further information, click here

The Transportation Weight Loss Diet Program Conference
24-25 October 2012, Boston, Usa
For further information, click here

ITS relevant tenders in Italy

I-Erice: Videosurveillance system
I-Monteparano: Videosurveillance system
I-Torino: transport ticketing

" TTS Italia informa che il trattamento dei dati avviene nel rispetto della legge 196/2003, testo unico sulla privacy."