European award in the URBAN C-ITS CONTEST organised by C-ROADS

Project „Intelligent transportation system Hradec Králové“, in whose C-ITS part our company played a major role, was awarded in “Urban C-ITS Contest”, organized by the C-ROADS platform. The city of Hradec Králové received the price for highest number of use-cases. The price was given to a city council member and a former mayor of the city Mr. Alexandr Hrabalek. We were also present at the award ceremony, which was held on 20th October 2023 in Porto, Portugal. The city of Hradec Králové therefore joined the cities such as Paris, Hamburg or Helmond, which have been very active in the C-ITS field for a long time. A day before the award ceremony a conference Urban forum was held, at which we presented a talk about priority of emergency vehicles.

We were involved in the ITS HK project as contractors to a Czech company Cross, which led the entire project. The project itself was very complex and consisted mainly of replacing old traffic control technology (e.g. 40 traffic light controllers were replaced) and installing modern detectors and completely new traffic control system. We believe that one of the reasons for the award is that the C-ITS system (Cooperative Intelligent Traffic Systems) is closely integrated into the overall system. This has also enabled the deployment of a large number of use-cases, as most scenarios are triggered automatically without user intervention.

Compared to other of the award-winning cities, Hradec Kralove is unique in that the award-winning project was not backed by a series of pilot or research programs and projects, but was implemented directly with the aim of improving traffic in the city. We can say that in 2020, when the project started, there was not a single C-ITS unit in Hradec Kralove; in 2023, it already has one of the largest coverages in Europe. The city is thus an excellent example of how to incorporate C-ITS technology into standard projects for benefit of the citizens of the city. You can read more about the project here.

We would like to thank the City of Hradec Kralove for their excellent cooperation in solving the project and also the organizers of the competition for the award. We are very glad and also proud that our long-term effort for a meaningful use of C-ITS technology was awarded at an international level.