Research in Europe Steve Phillips Secretary-General

1 “Research in Europe”? We are in Athens, but this is an international conference, so why Europe? Road infrastructure research is changing in Europe and part of this change is reflected internationally.

2 Introduction General information about research in the EU Framework programmes Current research activities including FP 7. Planned future research aspects and opportunities. Relevance of international research co-operation FEHRL and the development of SERRP The future challenges

3 Road research and Europe The European Commission funds research in cycles through its ‘Framework programmes’ FP , €13.2 Billion FP , €15 Billion FP6 – , €17.5 Billion FP7 – , €50 Billion €4.2 Billion in ‘Cooperation’ for Transport The majority of this budget is devoted to collaborative research projects but there are many “programmes”.

4 Road infrastructure research & EC In FP6 ( ), road infrastructure research had €21M of EC funding to over 145 contractors from 23 countries* In FP7, ‘one-third’ of road transport research could be infrastructure related – 10 times the funding of FP6? Plus other opportunities in “Materials” and in the Ideas Programme *EC - Andras Siegler to FEHRL General Assembly 2007

5 Some indications for road research in FP7 Policy change from modal-shift to co-modality Road infrastructure suffered previously from the pro- rail/water bias Priorities of EU New Member States and Candidate Countries plus international cooperation have helped to raise profile But multi-modal projects are still the most attractive Road and rail Possibly road and aviation

6 Some indications for road research in FP7 Focus on technology developments to address EC priorities greener, safer, smarter and competitive Multidisciplinary ‘systems’ approach needed No projects on bitumen properties alone Large-scale (integrated projects) can include ‘traditional’ infrastructure topics within a multi- disciplinary project For example, FP6 SILENCE project on road and rail noise Small, short-term, projects support dissemination and knowledge transfer

7 International cooperation is a major priority Fewer restrictions on ‘third’ countries - non-EU partners Third Countries Associated countries - ‘same status’ as full EU members International Cooperation Partner Countries (ICPC) Mediterranean partner countries, Western Balkans, Eastern European and Central Asian countries ACP, ASIA, Latin America Emerging economies (e.g. China, India, Brazil, Russia, South Africa) –SIMBA project Industrialised countries –USA – link with SHRP2 EU FP7 International cooperation

8 Getting recognition for infrastructure’s needs Structurally - and politically - infrastructure research (and especially implementation) is not the same as ‘industrial’ research in related sectors (e.g automotive research). EC programmes do not reflect this because partners appear to be duplicating work and expertise COST was always more appropriate than Framework projects To be successful, we need to involve a greater number of countries in our research in order to avoid the ‘not invented here’ and the ‘it cannot work here’ syndrome.

9 Reflecting Europe’s road needs FEHRL’s approach is that research on road transport needs to reflect national and regional differences Temperature Geology Rainfall

10 FEHRL’s objectives Through research collaboration, FEHRL’s main objectives are to: Provide scientific input to European and national government policy on highway engineering and road transport matters. Create and maintain an efficient and safe road network in Europe. Increase innovation in European road construction and road-using industries. Improve the energy efficiency of highway engineering and operations. Protect the environment and improve quality of life.

11 FEHRL Background 18 years as the European Centre of Excellence in Road Research Formed as the organisation of European National Road Research Centres Currently consists of 29 institutes – all with a public service orientation – employing over 5,000 staff Facilitates cooperative research projects for European Road Directorates, European Commission and others

12 FEHRL’s future programme The Strategic European Road Research Programme (SERRP IV) considers four themes. –Mobility, Transport & Infrastructure –Energy, Environment & Resources –Safety & Security –Design & Production The programme combines internal projects, collaborative projects with industry, individual national projects and EC projects.

13 FEHRL’s 4 SERRP themes 1.Mobility & Transport Optimising capacity Efficient goods transport Urban mobility 2. Safety & Security Preventative Road Engineering Impact mitigation & post- crash Road Transport system security 3.Energy, Environment & Resources Energy consumption Pollution and Environmental Control Nuisance and societal/cultural impacts Sustainable construction 4.Design & production Implementation of innovation Flexibility of production & maintenance Lifetime resource use

14 Energy consumption & CO 2 Trucks grow from second largest energy consumer in the transport sector in 2000 (EU-30) to the largest in Source: DG TREN

15 Design & production Implementation of innovation Flexible production Lifetime resource use Issues including Standardisation issues Vehicle-Tyre/road interaction studies Simulation tools and models for life-cycle assessment Pilot-scale assessment tools High-speed diagnostic testing

16 Summary Road infrastructure has an important place in European research and FP7 Reduction of energy use Heavy vehicle issues Safety and congestion Competitive products International cooperation is a high priority Now we need to prove that our sector has the innovation and the capacity…..