We’re excited to introduce our keynote speakers and their presentations for TRANSPORT Smart Class, North of England 2025, which takes place at Liverpool Town Hall, on Thursday 3rd July:
“Implementing a Strategic Transport Plan: Operationalising TfN’s Evidence and Data to Support Local Partners to Achieve our Shared Transport Priorities” – Transport for the North’s Strategic Transport Plan was adopted in May 2024, setting out the regions shared pan-regional transport ambitions and policy priorities. Once published, TfN’s attention turned to how best to rapidly implement the STP.
In this keynote presentation, Peter Cole, Head of Policy, Strategy and Research at TfN, briefly revisits the evidence and data that underpins TfN’s STP and then focusses on some of the activities that TfN is undertaking to operationalise that evidence so that it can be used to help local partners take the practical steps toward achieving the shared ambitions and objectives set out in the STP.
“Creating an Integrated and Inclusive Transport Network for The Liverpool City Region” – Simon Finnie was appointed as Head of Network Performance for Liverpool City Region Combined Authority in February 2025 and has responsibility for the ongoing management of all bus and rail services across the Liverpool City Region. He manages the Merseyrail Electrics Concession and ensures bus and rail services are accessible, high quality, reliable and punctual.
Central to this, as Simon will elaborate upon in his keynote, is the delivery of Mayor Steve Rotheram’s plans for a fully integrated, London-style public transport network that’s faster, cheaper, cleaner and better connected:
“As we move at pace with taking back control of our bus network through the franchising process, the Liverpool City Region is uniquely placed, through its devolved management and control of the Merseyrail concession, to create a truly integrated network that drives growth and opportunity for all and ensure that the Liverpool City Region is the best place to grow up, grow a family, grow a business and where no-one is left behind.”
“Decarbonising Liverpool Roads with Live Labs” – Live Labs 2 is a three-year, £30 million, UK-wide programme funded by the Department for Transport that will run until March 2026, with a five-year subsequent, extended monitoring and evaluation period. Seven projects, grouped by four interconnected themes, are being led by local authorities working alongside commercial and academic partners. Following the success of the ADEPT SMART Places Live Labs programme (Live Labs 1) and its focus on innovation across local roads, Live Labs 2 concentrates on how to decarbonise local highways infrastructure and assets.
To date, decarbonisation of transport in the UK has focused mostly on electric vehicles, active travel and changing public behaviour rather than the planning and design of transport infrastructure or local roads assets. However, the UK’s local roads infrastructure and maintenance make a significant and ongoing contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, climate change impacts and future resilience.
Liverpool City Council’s project is targeting the challenge of decarbonising highways delivery and the road asset in complex city contexts, to demonstrate that this benefits the local economy and people. The project will realise an ‘Ecosystem of Things’, a scalable and transferrable systems mapping and optioneering approach at city-level to introduce innovations offering the greatest impacts within individual schemes. Within a Corridor and Place-based theme, it aims to reduce the environmental impact of Liverpool’s roads and help the city achieve its net-zero goal by 2030.
In this keynote presentation, Andrew Mollon, Director of Sustainable Transport, Highways and Parking at Liverpool City Council, will tell us more about how the Live Labs research has helped by looking at other innovative ways to combat greenhouse emissions, climate change impacts and future resilience on Liverpool’s highways.
“Place, Regeneration and Mass Transit: How Trams can Transform West Yorkshire” – Katherine Bavage is the Policy Manager for the West Yorkshire Combined Authority’s Mass Transit Programme. She is leading delivery of the region’s first Rail and Mass Transit Growth Prospectus, linked to developing scheme specific land use policy in the form of a Mass Transit Spatial Development Framework.
Trams in West Yorkshire represent one of the region’s largest opportunities for growth and regeneration in decades.
In this keynote address, Katherine will explore how the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) plans to strategically integrate placemaking, housing, and regeneration into the case for a regional mass transit system – leveraging recent changes to the Green Book and appraisal processes to unlock long-term economic and social value for West Yorkshire.
Last year’s edition in Manchester featured keynotes from TfN’s Katie Day (above), TfGM’s Dr Richard Nickson (below), and Cheshire West and Chester Council ‘s Rose McArthur (2nd photo from bottom)
TRANSPORT Smart Class, North of England 2025 will give you a fresh take on deploying the latest digital technology-enabled solutions, data-driven strategies, policies, programmes and best practices to tackle transport and mobility challenges faced by city-regions of the Northern Powerhouse, and beyond, and deliver a transport system that will allow passengers and citizens across the North to travel efficiently, safely and with minimal impact on the environment.
In addition to our inspirational keynotes, the event will also feature:
- Insightful rapid fire innovator presentations from technology experts and thought leaders, including Siemens Mobility’s Mario Gessner and Padam Mobility’s James West (“Unified Journeys: The Integrated National Transport Strategy’s Moment for Regional MaaS”); Project Centre’s Chris Harrison (“Smarter Streets, Better Journeys: Delivering Healthy, Bus-Friendly Corridors through Data and Digital Innovation”); and Sustrans’ Jonah Morris, Alix Gunn and Carol Latham (“School Neighbourhoods – Delivering Behaviour Change Aimed at School-Age Children Alongside Urban Design at a Local Community Level”). Check out the event website for our innovator presentation previews!
- Q&As after each keynote and innovator presentation.
- Deeper-dive roundtable consultations with speakers and specialists to help hone delegates’ smart strategies and address some of their specific transport and mobility challenges.
- Further networking opportunities with peers and pioneers over breakfast, drinks and cooked lunch, and all at no charge!
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.
The number of seats at a Smart Class is capped and only a few spaces remain available at TRANSPORT Smart Class, North of England 2025.
If you meet the qualification criteria described, REGISTER HERE to claim your free delegate place and join us for what promises to be an insightful half day (8.30am-2.30pm) of collaboration and knowledge exchange!
If you’re already committed on July 3rd, you’re welcome to extend this opportunity to an appropriate colleague, team member or counterpart.
Innovators! Like to secure an innovation sponsorship slot?
A limited number of solution vendors can participate at a Smart Class in an “Innovation Sponsor” capacity, and this option is also available to innovative consultancies!
We’ve room to accommodate one last innovation sponsor at TRANSPORT Smart Class, North of England 2025 (Liverpool, July 3rd) and similar opportunities are available for our other 2H 2025 events, including: TRANSPORT Smart Class, Scotland 2025 (Edinburgh, September 11th); TRANSPORT Smart Class, London & South East England 2025 (London, October 9th); PUBLIC REALM & URBAN SPACES Smart Class 2025 (London, December 4th); and WASTE MANAGEMENT Smart Class 2025 (London, December 11th).
Check out our Event Sponsorship page for full details on “Smart Class Innovation Sponsorship Packages” or contact us if you’d like to discuss further with a member of our team.
Peruse our Testimonials page, the Smart Class event pages on our website and “Retrospective Round-ups” published on the Smart Classes Knowledge Base for feedback from previous delegates, sponsors and supporters! Browse individual Smart Classes from our Events Schedule & Archive.
Feature Image Source: chrisvic on Pixabay
