The struggles of the European economy is doing little to deter public investment in intelligent transport systems (ITS), which will steady growth over the next five years as a result.
Research firm Berg Insight predicts the ITS sector in Europe is ripe for growth, after the region’s fluctuating economy failed to stop investment in new public transport systems. The firm tips the value of the market to grow at a CAGR of 9% from €0.9 billion in 2012 to €1.44 billion in 2017.
Growth will be fuelled by developments on “national and EU level”, says Rickard Andersson, senior analyst, Berg Insight, pointing to international schemes including the EBSF EU project. “The global trend of smart city initiatives is furthermore a major driver as intelligent transport systems in general and public transport ITS in particular are key elements to enable sustainable smart mobility.”
Berg defines ITS as the use of ICT in transport infrastructure to improve scheduling, vehicle operation, back office systems, and passenger information. It also counts systems that enable contactless NFC payments, and on-board infotainment systems giving details of local points of interest in its definition.
The firm estimates some 60 billion annual journeys on European public transport generates between €150 billion and €200 billion for the EU’s economy – equivalent to between 1% and 1.5% of GDP.