Details
TRANSPORT Smart Classes show key buyer side stakeholders how they can deploy the latest digital technology-enabled solutions, data-driven strategies, policies and best practices to tackle their transport sector challenges (e.g. around congestion, traffic flows, air pollution and emissions, noise, first and last mile mobility, customer experience, cost effectiveness, connecting transport networks, managing and maintaining assets & infrastructure) and deliver a transport system that will allow passengers and citizens to travel efficiently, safely and with minimal impact on the environment.
Qualifying delegates include commissioning, procurement, trialling, partnering and policy leads, senior influencers, strategic decision makers, programme managers and planners from local authorities (e.g. city, borough, metropolitan, district and county councils); public transport operators; regional transport partnerships, sub-regional transport bodies, combined authorities, integrated transport authorities and passenger transport executives; highways authorities and road operators; government and supporting national transport agencies; non-governmental organisations; fleet operators, parking operators, prime contractors etc.
Core themes range from on-demand transport and MaaS applications, EVs and e-mobility, micro mobility, predictive traffic management, journey time monitoring, smart parking and enforcing CAZs and LEZs, to active travel and behavioural change, analysing people movements, new ways of visualising data, connected and autonomous vehicles, intelligent street lighting, real-time transport modelling, smart ticketing and fare collection, and ITS in a Covid and post-Covid world.
On Thursday 5th December we will be casting a spotlight over Wales and the West Country, hosting our speakers discussions on how the latest digital innovations can help overcome the transport and mobility challenges faced by burgeoning city-regions including South East Wales and the Cardiff Capital Region, Swansea Bay, North East Wales and Deeside, Bristol and Bath, Cheltenham, Exeter, Gloucester, Plymouth and Torbay, Bournemouth/Poole, Salisbury, Swindon, and beyond. Delegates will hear from industry movers, shapers and disruptors during initial rapid-fire thought leadership presentations, before moving on to in-depth consultations with experts and peers during the roundtable discussions. In addition, this Smart Class will feature multiple keynote presentations from ITAs, PTEs, major transport operators, agencies, local/combined authorities, academia or NGOs, giving real world insight into programmes, collaborative initiatives, digital journeys and adoptions of emerging, transformative technologies.
TRANSPORT Smart Class, Wales & West of England 2024 takes place at the historic Cardiff Masonic Hall in Cardiff City Centre and follows on from widely acclaimed Wales 2022 (voco St David’s, Cardiff Bay), South West England 2022 (M Shed, Bristol), Wales 2020 (Park Inn by Radisson Cardiff), South West England 2019 (Radisson Blu, Bristol) and South West England & Wales 2018 (Radisson Blu, Bristol) editions. This half day in-person event is free to attend for bona fide delegates satisfying our registration criteria.
Previous Transport Smart Classes have attracted senior delegates from:
Previous Transport Smart Class presentations have addressed:
Testimonials and feedback:
Transport & Energy Manager – Office of the CCR City Deal, Cardiff Capital Region
“Oliver Coltman brilliantly presented the ambitions of the Future Transport Zone (FTZ) for the West of England”
Digital Project Manager and Transport Data Hub Lead, West of England Combined Authority (WECA)
“An interesting and informative morning at Smart Classes Cardiff event at the St David’s Hotel, sharing best practice and exciting innovation. A big thank you to Smart Classes for giving Clare the opportunity to share the work we are doing at the Cardiff Capital Region and our sustainable transport and mobility ambitions”
Transport Planner, Cardiff Capital Region
“Thank you, I found it all really valuable”
Partnerships and Public Affairs Manager – West of England, Sustrans
“The presentations were all relevant to CCRCD future proposals and the roundtables were all very useful”
Project Development Officer, Cardiff Capital Region City Deal
“Excellent event and organisation. Good to get an update on current projects”
Team Manager Regeneration Opportunities, Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council/Chair of ATCM Wales
“Presentations were informative and the programme was targeted at the right level”
Senior Physical Regeneration Officer, Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council
“Thank you for the opportunity, it was great to meet so many people that could usefully help with delivering our plans. Great format!”
Operational Manager – Transport and Network Management, Cardiff Council
“Excellent event, well run and highly relevant”
Enterprise Architect, Super Connected Cardiff Project Team, Cardiff Council
“A great event!”
Smart City Strategy lead, Cardiff Council
“Thank you for putting the Smart Class together. I am going to put my team in touch with some of the innovator speakers as I can see some potential there. Hopefully see you at future editions!”
Network Operations Manager, Dorset Council
“Great day today attending the TRANSPORT Smart Class Wales conference. Great content, really informative keynote speakers. All of this was only enhanced by the beautiful backdrop overlooking Cardiff Bay”
Traffic & Road Safety Engineer, Gloucestershire County Council & Area Manager, Waterman Aspen
“Good event. All of the expert presentations and roundtables had their own merits”
Business Manager, Passenger Transport & Transport Strategy, Monmouthshire County Council & Newport City Council
“The roundtable discussions were engaging and there were excellent opportunities to network”
Road Safety and Business Performance Manager, Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council
“The content was helpful and relevant”
Travel Officer, Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council
“Thursday was a really good event and we all appreciated the chance to attend”
Senior Transport Policy Officer – Highways Development Management, North Somerset Council
“Very interesting, thanks for a great day! Sustainable transport options, connectivity, highway maintenance and safety of particular interest”
Transport Policy Officer, North Somerset Council
“All of the roundtables were relevant and interesting, including how we move forwards to improve opportunities, uptake and behaviour change”
Transport Policy Officer, North Somerset Council
“Very interesting, engaging and overall useful event today, thanks once again”
Senior Transport Policy Officer, Development & Environment, North Somerset Council
“Thanks for a great morning, very informative”
Transport Policy Officer, North Somerset Council
“Outstanding! Great speakers and presentations from the businesses and I look forward to applying the concepts from the ideas shared at the event in my future endeavours as well as sharing with Portsmouth CC”
ITS Planner, Portsmouth City Council
“Thank you. I enjoyed TRANSPORT Smart Class, Wales 2022 and found it very interesting. I would definitely be interested in attending again”
Area Traffic Engineer, Powys County Council
“Very useful and informative. Thank you”
Principal Transport Planning Officer, South Gloucestershire Council
“Really interesting presentations and also very much enjoyed the tour of the control centre. Certainly interested in future Smart Classes”
Principal Telematics Engineer, Swansea Council
“Very useful workshop”
Transport and Development Manager, Wiltshire Council
“Informative and relevant for local authorities and related consultants”
Parking Manager, Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council
“Excellent organisation, event experience, facilities and venue”
Rethinking Transport Programme Manager, Surrey County Council
“A thoroughly worthwhile morning”
Policy Manager, Department for Transport
“It was a great morning, very interesting”
Traveline Cymru
“This was my second smart class – again, very well organised with great content”
Acting Head of Insight, Transport Focus
“It was a pleasure to speak, the other presentations were really informative, so I learned a lot. The attendees were really engaged and there were some great discussions in the roundtables”
Insights lead, Transport Focus
“Thankyou for the invite and well done, a really useful session”
Regional Director, Transportation/SW England & Wales Teams Lead, AECOM
“It was a good session. Thanks for your hard work in coordinating. Hope to see you again soon”
Associate Director, AECOM
“Delighted to be at the West of England Smart Class and enjoyed the experience. It felt comfortable and collaborative, and all of the roundtables got useful debate going. Keep up the good work!”
Market Director – Transport Infrastructure, Amey Consulting
“Really enjoyable, informative event and would be interested in attending future editions. Thank you!”
Senior Transport Planner, Arcadis
“A very good event, thanks for inviting me”
Senior Transport Planner, Arup
“An excellent event, well organised and a great cross section of presenters”
Senior Associate Director, Jacobs
“Really enjoyed the event in Bristol, was great to meet people in person again. My first in-person event since pandemic!”
Principal Transport Planner, Mott MacDonald
“Another informative and educational experience. All of the presentations were helpful and all good roundtable discussions. Found systems and services that could benefit all our business groups”
Principal Transport Planner, Norman Rourke Pryme
“Good format – glad I attended!”
Director – Transport Planning, Norman Rourke Pryme
Informative Transport Smart Class in Bristol today…all of the presentations were valuable!”
Principal Transport Planner, Norman Rourke Pryme
“I found the Smart Class extremely helpful and definitely broadened my knowledge of the exciting developments taking place in the transport sector”
Associate Transport Planner, Paul Basham Associates
“Fantastic and insightful as always. Thank you to Smart Classes and the team for such a great day”
Managing Director, Smart Transport Hub
“Excellent opportunity to meet peers interested and experienced in similar subject areas. Good format with roundtables”
Director Transport Planning, SYSTRA
“This was my first Smart Class and I really enjoyed. It was very insightful into the tech that is advancing transport”
Transport Planner, Vectos
“Thank you. The presentations were really interesting and insightful. I’ll look forward to another event in Wales”
Traffic Management Engineer, Waterman Aspen
“We thoroughly enjoyed the event and learnt a lot. There were very interesting and engaging folk who had something useful to contribute. Thanks again”
Intelligent Mobility Expert & Director, Waysphere/Transport Lead, ODI Birmingham
“Really wonderful to do this in person, great knowledge sharing and networking”
Associate Director, WSP
“Thank you for a really informative and enjoyable session! Sustainable travel and zero carbon communities (cycling, low traffic neighbourhoods etc) especially close to my heart”
Doctoral Researcher in Future Sustainable Mobility and Associate Research Director, University of Bath and City Global Futures
“I have attended TRANSPORT Smart Class Wales 2022 organised by Smart Classes. I really thank you for this kind invitation and well organised workshop on innovation and the latest technologies in Intelligent Transportation Systems. It was a great opportunity to collaborate. We thank all speakers for their presentations and experience sharing. I look forward to attending future classes”
Associate Professor, Intelligent Transportation Systems, Cardiff University
“It was a great event and glad to see some familiar and new faces in the room”
Business Development Lead – Transport Innovation, Connected Places Catapult
“The keynote presentations were interesting in gaining knowledge of the current situation in Wales”
Regional Manager, Energy Saving Trust
“Great event, loved presenting to such an engaging audience”
Commercial Director, Vortex IoT, part of Marston Holdings (Innovation Sponsor)
“Great event, thank you for hosting. We made some great connections and look forward to the next one!”
CEO & Founder, Conigital Group (Innovation Sponsor)
“A pleasure to participate and share some knowledge among the participants on e-mobility and net zero strategies for local authorities and business in Wales”
Director/Head of Sales & E-Mobility UK, Enel X Way (Innovation Sponsor)
“It was a pleasure – thanks for having us!”
Sales & Business Development Manager – E-Bus, Enel X UK (Innovation Sponsor)
“Thanks very much, a very well organised event”
Project Manager South West & Wales, Living Streets (Innovation Sponsor)
“It was a pleasure to take part”
Director of Programmes, BetterPoints (Innovation Sponsor)
“Great job hosting the smart class yesterday, it was very insightful and I really enjoyed the other speakers there”
Community Manager, Faxi (Innovation Sponsor)
“Great event!”
Managing Director, Imperial (Innovation Sponsor)
“TSC Wales 2020 was a good opportunity for us to present to industry movers, shapers and disruptors. Interesting discussions around how the latest digital technology enabled solutions can tackle challenges within the transport sector”
Managing Director, Vortex IoT (Innovation Sponsor)
“Great to speak at the Transport Smart Class today in Bristol on how we use data science and continual analysis to test and expand our DRT services. What made the presentation more special was the fact that Bristol is a very important city in the story of Padam Mobility. It was the location for our first SaaS operation, ‘Slide Bristol’, the first DDRT operation in the UK which proved a great testing ground for our platform”
UK Business Development Lead, Padam Mobility (Innovation Sponsor)
“Thank you for another impeccably run event with topics so hot the fire alarm went off!”
General Manager, Siemens IMS (UK) at Siemens Mobility (Innovation Sponsor)
“Great event, thoroughly engaged audience, looking forward to the next one in Cardiff”
Commercial Director, Vortex IoT, part of Marston Holdings (Innovation Sponsor)
“Great event and superb networking opportunity”
Strategy and Business Development, Transformation and Bid Management, Imperial Civil Enforcement Solutions (Innovation Sponsor)
“It was a pleasure to take part”
Director of Programmes, BetterPoints (Innovation Sponsor)
“Great job hosting the smart class yesterday, it was very insightful and I really enjoyed the other speakers there”
Community Manager, Faxi (Innovation Sponsor)
“Great morning, thoroughly enjoyed the debate on how existing technologies are supporting the challenge of delivering clean air zones. Thanks for a good session”
Strategy and Business Development, Transformation & Bid Management, Imperial (Innovation Sponsor)
“Thanks very much, a very well organised event”
Project Manager, South West & Wales, Living Streets (Innovation Sponsor)
“It was a pleasure to speak at the Transport Smart Class in Bristol today about the importance of passenger data in MaaS”/”We look forward to being involved again in the future”
Founder & CEO/Head of Marketing, UrbanThings (Innovation Sponsor)
Speakers
“Enabling Sustainable, Integrated Travel in Wales” – Natalie Rees, Head of Sustainable Development and Climate Change at Transport for Wales, will explain in this keynote presentation how Transport for Wales is aiming to enable sustainable integrated travel which not only benefits society but also improves prosperity, the environment and contributes to improving culture in line with the Wellbeing of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015.
Natalie will utilise her experience of working at Transport for Wales over the past 5 years to highlight the many benefits already seen, including the electrification of the core valleys lines and increasing services across Wales, but also the many community projects and opportunities that have run alongside the infrastructure works.
“Putting People First” – In this keynote, Pete Dyson, author of Transport For Humans, will explain how we can re-think and re-balance our approach to transport experience, design and policy. Too often, people have been treated like cargo, yet contemporary insights from social and behavioural sciences show we are often guided by more human hopes and fears. The previous Secretary of State for Transport, Louise Haigh MP (succeeded on November 29th by Heidi Alexander MP), outlined a commitment to put people first, so how might this be achieved? How do people want and need to travel? Where can change be influenced? Which investments are most valuable?
Pete leverages his experience as Principal Behavioural Scientist at the Department for Transport, as researcher at University of Bath and on-the-ground experience as Bicycle Mayor of Bath to explain how a human-friendly and sustainable future for transport can put people first.
This talk illustrates the problems and solutions with examples from UK local transport planning. It makes recommendations about shifting mindsets, organisational change, reforming policy design, commissioning research to understand how people want and need to travel, co-creation and public engagement.
“No-one Left Behind: The Future of Welsh Transport Belongs to All of Us” –
“At the Community Transport Association, we believe that everyone, in every community, should be able to access transport that meets their needs. Welsh Government – recognising that the current transport network leaves much to be desired – have set out their own ambitious vision which puts the passenger first, offering seamless end-to-end journeys which put people before profit, and are beginning to transform the policy and legislative framework to make this a reality.
We know that affordable, inclusive, sustainable and supportive transport changes the way people are able to live, tackles issues of isolation and loneliness, enables greater community engagement, contributes to tackling the climate emergency, and supports people to access work, education and health care. Amnesty International recently described transport as a ‘gateway right’ – a lynchpin that supports people to live in health and wellbeing. Welsh Community Transport operators are already delivering upwards of 750,000 journeys every year, providing that essential connection for people who are not able to access mainstream transport services. And while traditional bus services continue to see declining passenger numbers, CTA’s members are delivering more services than ever before – despite limited and stagnating funding – as demand skyrockets”.
Implementation of Llwybr Newydd, Welsh Government’s Transport Strategy which sets ‘A New Path’ for transport development in Wales, creates a once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver a network that values and serves every community. Gemma Lelliott, Director for Wales at the CTA, will reflect in this presentation on research completed with Welsh Community Transport providers in 2023 & 2024, and explore how the community-led approach to transport could help the Welsh Government in delivering their vision, building on the successful foundation created over decades by this vibrant network of local charities and social enterprises.
“Putting Communities and People at the Heart of Transport Decision-Making” – Charles Musselwhite is Professor and Head of Psychology at Aberystwyth University, Co-Director of the University’s Research Centre for Transport and Mobility (CeTraM), and incoming Chair for the UK wide Universities’ Transport Study Group from June 2025.
In this keynote, Charles will discuss the Transport and Health Integrated Research Network (THINK), for which he is Principal Investigator. This Welsh Government funded project brought people together from different disciplines all working to solve transport issues and problems:
“Through a series of community based projects and knowledge-exchange events from Wales, the UK and across the globe, it revealed a need for more space for different sectors to work together. It taught us that we need to focus in on the concept that transport is fundamentally about people and the need to involve communities more in understanding and planning their own transport decisions. This reveals tensions but also potential solutions around transport equity and health inequalities, about urban/rural differences, and most crucially a need to bring together sustainability and public health agendas”.
“Safer, Greener, Smarter: Revolutionising UK Roads with Sustainable Traffic Solutions” – The transport network is vital for economic and social development, but how we use it has evolved significantly bringing constant new challenges such as new mobility types, road safety concerns, technological advancements, asset resilience, and rising customer expectations.
Ralph Bates (Head of Business Development in England and Wales) and Peter Cattell (Head of Technical Sales) will explain in this presentation how, by leveraging cutting-edge technology, Clearview Intelligence is transforming UK roads with innovative traffic data and safety solutions designed to save lives, reduce costs, and protect the environment—setting a new standard for safer, greener, and smarter transportation across the UK.
“Bringing Positive Travel Changes for Pupils and Families Across Wales with WOW – The Year Round Walk to School Challenge” – Kelly Theis is the Project Manager for South West England and Wales at Living Streets, the innovative UK charity for everyday walking. In this presentation she will demonstrate how digital technology is helping to deliver one of the biggest behaviour change programmes in Wales.
Working with local authority and transport partners, WOW – with the award-winning interactive Travel Tracker – is making a positive impact with thousands of families the length and breadth of the country to help achieve modal shift from cars to active journeys to schools.
“From Compliance to Clean Air: The Power of AI in Traffic Monitoring, Enforcement, and Environment” – Discover how cutting-edge AI, advanced edge processing, and hyperlocal air pollution monitoring are transforming urban traffic management and environmental health!
Behzad Heravi is co-founder of Vortex IoT and Chief Technology Officer of Smart Cities at Videalert and Vortex, both part of Marston Holdings. Introducing a proprietary ANPR system, the RDS-Mk8 edge processing unit with AI capabilities, and integrated solutions for moving traffic enforcement and pollution monitoring, Behzad’s presentation will demonstrate how anonymised traffic analysis and real-time environmental data provide actionable insights to optimise policy decisions, improve public confidence, and drive sustainable urban transformation. Perfect for local authorities and stakeholders aiming to create smarter, cleaner cities.
Agenda
- 8:30 am - 9:00 am Registration, Networking and Continental Breakfast
- 9:00 am - 9:30 am Introduction and Opening Keynote
- 9:30 am - 11:10 am Expert Innovator Presentations (followed by coffee break)
- 11:10 am - 11:50 am Keynote Speakers 2 & 3
- 11:50 am - 1:10 pm Roundtable Discussions and Consultations
- 1:10 pm - 1:30 pm Keynote Speaker 4
- 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm Close and Lunch Networking
