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34 Closing Session and Final Remarks Kevin Womack, U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C., USA Alessandro Damiani, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, European Commission, Brussels, Belgium Gregory Winfree, U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C., USA Neil Pedersen, Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C., USA Closing Comments from the u.s. DePartment of transPortation Kevin Womack Kevin Womack thanked the symposium participants, noting that it was a very invigorating 2 days. He recog- nized the hard work of the symposium planning com- mittee and all the participants and complimented the discussion group moderators and recorders for facilitat- ing and documenting the productive discussions in the breakout groups. He indicated that the research topics generated in the breakout groups covered many impor- tant topics for helping advance road transport automa- tion in the United States and the European Union and affirmed that those research topics would be beneficial for the U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT). Womack suggested that more hard work was ahead to translate the research topics into tangible EU-U.S. col- laborative projects and challenged the participants to continue to explore transatlantic collaboration oppor- tunities. He pledged his commitment to working with U.S. DOT and European Commission partners to iden- tify transatlantic collaborative projects and studies. He challenged other participants to also follow up within the different stakeholders represented at the symposium. Womack encouraged participants to seek opportunities to collaborate on research, field operation tests (FOTs), pilots, technology development, and policy studies. He further challenged participants to build on the relation- ships established at the symposium and to continue shar- ing information and experiences on a regular basis. He stressed that the symposium helped plant the seed for further collaboration and encouraged participants to take advantage of these opportunities. Closing Comments from the euroPean Commission Alessandro Damiani Alessandro Damiani stated that the symposium had been very productive and had exceeded expectations. Numer- ous benefits were realized from the presentations and the breakout group discussions, he said. Answers were pro- vided to many of the questions posed in the background papers, and some new questions were raised. He sug- gested that the questions raised enriched the discussion and that defining the right questions was key to identify- ing appropriate solutions. Damiani indicated that the symposium was successful in enhancing a common understanding of the problems and possible solutions associated with road transport automation. He noted the success in identifying potential research topics, including those appropriate for transat- lantic collaboration and cooperation. Damiani reported that work is under way to define the priorities for the European Commission Transport Research and Innova- tion Program for 2016â2017. Approximately 50 main priorities would be finalized over the next few weeks. He suggested that the research topics identified in the breakout groups would be of benefit in developing the work program, including projects for transatlantic col-
35C L O S I N G S E S S I O N A N D F I N A L R E M A R K S laboration. He noted that during the symposium, discus- sions had occurred with U.S. DOT representatives about approaches for collaborative and coordinated research. Damiani commented that the discussions at the symposium were very broad and very rich, with topics ranging from technology to human factors to legal and regulatory issues. The discussions identifying the inter- connection between these topics were also very benefi- cial. He highlighted a few topics for consideration for future EU-U.S. collaboration: ⢠Conducting future FOTs, test beds, large-scale demonstrations, and predeployment projects. Damiani agreed with the previous comments by Maxime Flament that reviewing recent studies and reports to determine the best way to organize a mutually beneficial exchange of information and data would be a logical next step. ⢠Developing a common methodology to enable an easier exchange of information on future FOTs, pilot tests, and demonstrations. ⢠Developing standards and certifications. Damiani indicated that it would be important to have similar stan- dards and certifications in Europe and the United States to reduce costs to producers and consumers. In concluding, Damiani noted that the symposium was very enlightening, useful, and productive. He indi- cated that there is interest in continuing the partnership and the symposia for another 4 years. Damiani thanked the U.S. DOT and Transportation Research Board (TRB) representatives, the planning committee, the authors of the white paper, and the breakout group moderators and recorders. He also thanked the participants for investing their time and sharing their expertise and ideas to make the symposium an extraordinary and fruitful experience. Closing Comments from the u.s. DePartment of transPortation Gregory Winfree Gregory Winfree, Assistant Secretary for Research and Innovation, U.S. DOT, thanked Peter Sweatman and the planning committee for organizing the excellent sym- posium. He also recognized the assistance from TRB and European Commission staff and noted the benefits to the U.S. DOT from the ongoing partnership. Win- free acknowledged the authors of the white papers and thanked the participants for their active involvement in the symposium and for sharing their ideas on future research topics. Winfree reviewed the topics of previous symposia, which included urban freight and implementing surface transportation research. He observed that in addition to providing opportunities to exchange information, the symposia have provided opportunities to build trans- atlantic relationships and partnerships. He commented that these relationships allowed for the frank and open discussions of key issues at this symposium and the con- sideration of automation and future game-changing tech- nologies. Winfree noted that both President Obama and U.S. DOT Secretary Anthony Foxx were very interested in future technology developments to enhance transport operations and safety. In closing, Winfree challenged the research community to move forward from the symposium and communicate with stakeholders, policy makers, and other groups. He suggested that reaching out to diverse groups to explain the benefits of road transport automationâespecially to address any misperceptions of future advancements in technologiesâwas important. He also suggested that the future changes in this arena would be similar to the leap from the horse and buggy to the automobile. Closing Comments from the transPortation researCh boarD Neil Pedersen Neil Pedersen added his thanks and congratulations to Peter Sweatman and the symposium planning commit- tee, the authors of the white papers, and the breakout group facilitators and recorders, and to the participants for their active engagement. He stated that the use case scenarios were an excellent approach for providing a realistic focus to the discussions. Pedersen repeated his comments from the opening session that this symposium focused on where hype meets reality and where vision and dreams meet practicality and implementation. He suggested that the use case scenarios set up the discussion with a practical and grounded focus. Pedersen recognized the TRB staff who assisted with planning and conducting the symposium. He acknowl- edged Mark Norman, who is leading TRBâs new strategic focus on research and outreach on automated vehicles and connected vehicles (AV-CV). Pedersen noted that the information presented at the symposium and the breakout group discussions provided numerous ideas and issues that TRB can pursue. He also recognized the tremendous amount of work Monica Starnes put into ensuring the success of the symposium and the support of Richard Cunard, Michael Miller, and Mai Le. Peder- sen also acknowledged the great work of Barbara Siegel, the graphic artist who recorded the highlights from the different sessions, noting her ability to capture key con- cepts and discussion points. Pedersen recognized the participation of four TRB Executive Committee members in the symposium: Donald
36 T O W A R D S R O A D T R A N S P O R T A U T O M A T I O N tary projects was one approach being discussed. He sug- gested that the numerous projects and activities under way demand attention from an evaluation standpoint and, further, that common evaluation methodologies, common performance metrics, and common approaches to examining issues were needed for twin research proj- ects. He said that identifying this evaluation method- ology would be beneficial. Pedersen noted that jointly funded research projects are very difficult because of differences in policies and procedures in the European Union and the United States. Thus, twin projects and parallel efforts appear to be the best approach. Pedersen stated that finding ways to come together and share experiences and lessons learned is impor- tant and that more than just reading reports is needed. Dialog, such as that which took place at this sympo- sium, is necessary. Pedersen noted that there is both a strong private-sector role and a strong public-sector role in advancing AV-CV research and deployment and indicated that it is important to recognize and respect the private-sector role. He further elaborated that the public sector should help the private sector flourish, advance, and use the power of the marketplace. At the same time, AV-CV is a sociotechnical issue that requires the public sector to recognize its own roles and respon- sibilities and to define research needed to support these responsibilities. In closing, Pedersen thanked all the participants again for their active engagement throughout the symposium. He stressed TRBâs ongoing commitment to supporting the EU-U.S. partnership and advancing research on road transport automation. Osterberg of Schneider National, Inc.; Kirk Steudle of the Michigan Department of Transportation; Abbas Mohad- des of Iteris;1 and Gregory Winfree of the U.S. Department of Transportation. Pedersen noted that they would be helping to shape TRBâs role in this strategic issue and that their participation provided an excellent link with develop- ing TRBâs research agenda. Pedersen noted that the symposium provided an excel- lent opportunity to learn from experts in the arena of automated road transport. He suggested that just keep- ing up with the rapid technology developments was a challenge and that the research programs at most public agencies might not be agile enough to respond quickly to these changing needs. Collectively consider- ing approaches to provide more flexibility and quicker responses to key research needs would be beneficial, he suggested. Pedersen said that it would be a shame if a way was not found to bring this group together again as the topic evolves. As one follow-up activity, Pedersen committed to provide time at the 2016 TRB annual meeting for this group to meet. He noted that possible items of discussion might include activities undertaken since this meeting, the status of research projects and demonstrations, and changes occurring in the marketplace. Pedersen further suggested that the sponsors and partners have a respon- sibility to ensure continuing learning, communication, cooperation, and collaboration. He noted that TRB is also continuing to define the ever-evolving research agenda. Pedersen indicated that it is important to identify a method to ensure that joint EU-U.S. activities are adding value and noted that implementing twin or complemen- 1 Abbas Mohaddes is now chief executive officer of the Mohaddes Group.
