Collaboration and forward-thinking discussions of ECTRI Thematic Groups, Task Force and ETRR journal

On November 16, took place in Brussels, the ECTRI Thematic groups annual meetings, ECTRI Task Force on EU Policy meeting and ETRR Editorial and Advisory Board meetings.

Organising those meetings in conjunction with the ECTRI 20th anniversary celebration was a perfect opportunity to foster collaborative activities within the ECTRI Community.  

The ECTRI Thematic Groups (TG) on Mobility, Freight and Logistics, Economics and Policy, Safety, and Traffic Management and Modelling met in person for the first time after a 3-years period of online meetings. It was the occasion to get to know new colleagues and welcome the TG leaderships teams nominated in 2023. The respective Board coaches had the chance to join the meetings and present the updates on the ECTRI activities. The meeting agenda was build around the three major TG objectives: the groups reviewed their research priority areas and looked at the involvement in current Horizon Europe projects and opportunities in the upcoming calls. Finally, they strengthened networking and scientific exchanges and offered possibility to groups fellows to present and discuss some of their research work and results.                      

The European Transport Research Review (ETRR) Journal Editorial Board and Advisory Board also met for the last meeting of prof. Karst Geurs, as Editor-in-Chief of the journal. They have reviewed the status and developments of the Journal, plan future actions, including the nomination of next Editor-in-Chief and new associate editors in 2024. 

Lastly, the ECTRI Task Force on EU Policy, gathered to discuss the current and emerging EU policy topics and how to addressed them within the ECTRI Strategy.

We would like to thank our members DLR and UNI EIFFEL and our partner KOWI for kindly sharing their meeting premises in Brussels for hosting some of those meetings.

We extend our appreciation to all the experts that contributed to the meetings, bringing a dynamic convergence of expertise, collaboration, and forward-thinking discussions. A special mention to the TG leadership teams, the Board coaches and the ETRR EiC, Editorial Assistant and ETRR AB chair.