On 15 March, MEPs Adina-Ioana Vălean (EPP, RO) and Henna Virkkunen (EPP, FI) hosted a Forum for Mobility and Society lunch debate on “ITS, Connected Mobility, and the Data Economy”. The event addressed vehicle data, which will be at the heart of new mobility models and Intelligent Transport System (ITS) deployment. The event gathered 120 stakeholders from the automotive, mobile, and IT industries as well as consumer representatives and regulators, including representatives from the European Institutions. Participants debated the type of platforms that will be deployed for access to in-vehicle information and in-vehicle service provision.

MEP Adina-Ioana Vălean said: “The transport sector has yet to fully embrace the digital age. It is our responsibility as decision-makers to design an appropriate framework that allows the market to offer innovative services.”

The event was divided in two high-level panels.

In the first panel, with representatives from the European Commission, BMW, the FIA and Orange, discussed the question of data ownership, as there is no dedicated legislative framework for the data generated by vehicles. Although there were different views on data ownership, the panel agreed that protecting user data is critical. Securing user consent was also a point raised by a number of speakers.

The second panel, with representatives from the Bavarian State, Google, Xerox and Ertico, focused on the new possibilities that mobility data brings and on the expectations of users. It was stated that 50% of users expect, in the future, to have one single app for all of their transport needs in the city.

MEP Henna Virkkunen closed the event, stating that she hoped that similar constructive dialogues with stakeholders on this topic would continue.

The event was kindly organised with the assistance of and held at the Representation of the Free State of Bavaria to the EU.

See the full event agenda

Notes for editors:

The Forum for Mobility and Society (FMS) brings together the transport and mobility community to debate, draw long-term perspectives and develop visions for tomorrow’s mobility. The FMS gathers Europe’s key institutional actors including Members of the European Parliament, representatives from the European Commission, industry experts and society at large. It does not seek to give a definitive outlook on a particular topic, but examines current debates on mobility issues from a variety of perspectives so that new solutions may be found. The FMS regularly organises conferences, panel discussions, workshops, networking events and visits for its members and wider stakeholder community. The wide range of events aims to foster lively discussions on complex matters. 

Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) are advanced applications which aim to provide innovative services relating to different modes of transport and traffic management and enable various users to be better informed and make safer, more coordinated, and ‘smarter’ use of transport networks.