Introduction

For those involved in transport planning, research and practice 2011 will prove to be a challenge to their skills. Transport plays a key role in regeneration and there will be particular pressure to produce innovative and cost-effective solutions to congestion, safety and travel behavior change at a time of major budget constraint. ETC 2011 will focus on the needs of local government officers and politicians and attempt to give practical answers based on experience throughout Europe.

The demands on Europe’s transport systems continue to both increase and change as a result of a number of factors - such change demands innovative, robust and affordable responses. As transport practitioners and researchers throughout Europe respond to the challenges of economic decline and growth, social change, demographics and the need to become less unsustainable, the European Transport Conference is the forum for the presentation of and discussion on robust and affordable responses.

The Conference is unique in Europe, attracting around 500 transport practitioners and researchers to a meeting place, where they can find in-depth presentations on policy issues, best practice and research findings across a broad spectrum of transport modes. The European Transport Conference, now in its 39th year, will benefit again from the financial and technical support of Transport Scotland as the conference returns to Glasgow.

The Association for European Transport

The Association for European Transport has been responsible for the organisation of the Conference, which has been held annually since 1973, This is part of the Association’s aim to promote and maintain a pan-European understanding of transport issues along with its members who form a network of transport professionals across Europe.

Transferring Knowledge between Research and Practice

The range of topics and the multi-seminar approach makes ETC unique among transport conferences held in Europe. The Conference programme covers supra-national issues, national and local policy, and the implementation of projects at a local level. Issues of key importance are picked out each year for special examination and will be introduced in daily plenary sessions.