On February 25th we travelled to Birmingham to host TRANSPORT Smart Class, Midlands 2026 at The Old Library at Zellig, located in the heart of Digbeth. This Smart Class provided 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 burgeoning city-regions of the West and East Midlands, and beyond, and deliver a transport system that will allow passengers and citizens to travel efficiently, safely and with minimal impact on the environment.
Our film maker captured the keynotes and innovator presentations for additional stakeholders to enjoy post-event!
If you satisfy our regular delegate qualification criteria but were unable to join us on the day, just complete the short application form below and we’ll grant you free access to the presentation video recordings and slides.
Our inspirational keynote speakers included: Mike Bull, Strategy & Programme Director at Midlands Connect; Nicola Small, CVLR Programme Director at Coventry City Council and Regional VLR Programme Director at Transport for West Midlands; and TfWM’s Executive Director, Sandeep Shingadia, alongside Director of Integrated Transport Services, Pete Bond.
The Smart Class also featured insightful innovator thought leadership presentations, delivered by: Steve Evans (Director) from Inter Modal Flow; Walk Wheel Cycle Trust’s Lorenzo Ciancarini (Senior Engineer); and on behalf of Nodum Industries, Ben MacDonald (Founder and Managing Director).
The innovation experts subsequently hosted confidential, deeper dive, roundtable sessions with all delegates in attendance.
The live (in-person only) event also included thought provoking Q&As and further networking opportunities over breakfast, drinks and a cooked lunch.
Noteworthy contributions to all these discussions were made by influencers and decision makers from the likes of: Arcadis, Arriva UK Bus, Arup, Birmingham City Council, Coventry City Council, Department for Transport (DfT), East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA), FTR (Fares, Ticketing and Retail) Programme/Great British Railways Transition Team (GRBTT), Haskoning/Integrated Transport Planning (ITP), Inter Modal Flow, Leicestershire County Council, Living Streets, Midlands Connect, National Express West Midlands, National Highways, Nodum, Nottingham City Council, Serenova Projects, Stantec, The Go-Ahead Group, Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), UK Tram, Walk Wheel Cycle Trust (formerly Sustrans), West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), and more!
Presentations included:
“Next Steps for Devolution and Growth in the Midlands: Challenges and Opportunities for Integrated Transport and Infrastructure” – Devolution brings major opportunities for the Midlands by giving local leaders greater control over transport, infrastructure, and economic growth. But turning these new powers into real, on‑the‑ground delivery remains challenging.
While major programmes such as Midlands Rail Hub, HS2 to the West Midlands, and multi‑year Transport for City Regions funding continue to advance, longstanding issues persist — including ageing infrastructure, the cancellation of schemes like Midlands Main Line Electrification, and uneven investment across the region. The WMCA–EMCCA compact is a positive step toward coordinated growth, yet varied devolution timelines and ongoing local government reorganisation create uncertainty.
In this opening keynote presentation, Mike Bull, Strategy & Programme Director at Midlands Connect, set out some of the key challenges and how strengthened collaboration, shared capability, and integrated planning will be essential to deliver more resilient infrastructure and inclusive regional growth.
“Inter Modal Logistics – Unlocking Urban Deliveries Through Containerisation” – Freight is one of the biggest sources of urban emissions. Today, only around 10% of urban deliveries are made by cargo bike — but with containerisation, the potential rises to 50%.
Pre-packed units can transfer seamlessly from rail into city centres, cutting out vans and depots while scaling capacity. Steve Evans, Director of Inter Modal Flow, explored in this presentation how this model can transform zero-emission logistics across UK cities.
“Coventry Very Light Rail – Delivering a Demonstration Line” – In this keynote presentation, Nicola Small (VLR Programme Director at Coventry City Council and Regional VLR Programme Director at Transport for West Midlands) talked about the progress and challenges in delivering Coventry’s first major Coventry Very Light Rail (CVLR) demonstration line, which is an 800-meter, twin-track route from the Railway Station to the University Technology Park.
The Demonstrator is required to prove the technology for future commercial lines, with operation in live traffic expected by October 2027 to coincide with the ITS World Congress, showcasing a quick, affordable, sustainable transport solution. This next-phase demonstrator builds on earlier trials, allowing public rides and testing integration with city traffic, aiming to attract global interest in the council’s home-grown VLR system.
“From Blocks to Better Streets: Empowering Young People to Reimagine Public Realm through Minecraft” – Walk Wheel Cycle Trust provide advice and consultancy to make walking, wheeling and cycling safer and easier. They are trusted by public and private sector partners to deliver projects that transform routes, spaces and travel habits.
This presentation explored how Minecraft can be used as a joyful, accessible tool for engaging young people in engineering thinking and placemaking design. Drawing on recent projects, Lorenzo Ciancarini (Senior Engineer) showed how virtual modelling supports child‑led insight into street layouts, movement, safety, and public space quality.
The session highlighted how blending digital play with hands‑on engagement and local conversations can spark collective imagination, build stronger relationships between young people and their surroundings, and inspire more responsive, community‑rooted active travel and public realm improvements.
“The Transition to a Franchised Bus Network for the West Midlands and the Benefits that Franchising will Bring” – The West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) is transitioning to a bus franchising system, aiming for full implementation by the end of 2029. Restoring public control will allow Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) to set routes, fares, and service standards, and see WMCA purchase key bus depots and vehicles to support the new, competitive network.
In this keynote, Sandeep Shingadia (Executive Director) and Pete Bond (Director, Integrated Transport Services) delved into the backdrop, process and benefits of bus franchising for the West Midlands region, including the primary goals stated by Mayor Richard Parker to improve service reliability, better integrate transport, and make fares more affordable.
The scope of the presentation included:
- Transport as a key enabler of the WM Growth Plan and TfWM’s key role in delivering the LTP Core Strategy vision (‘Journeys for Everyone’);
- Why franchising? Local transport outcomes, the importance of buses, how services work now, and addressing accountability;
- Franchising approach and principles;
- Approach to fleet, depots and lotting contracts, and provisional lotting strategy;
- Timeline to date, proposed phasing, and Bus Franchising Programme delivery;
- Sprint – A transformational BRT system for the Walsall to Solihull corridor.
“Maximising Co-Benefits and Minimising Cost of EV Deployment and Charging – No One Plug will Rule them All” – This presentation on behalf of UK-based home EV charging solutions innovator Nodum focused on learnings from deploying a handful of guerrilla installs of cross pavement solutions (that are not a gully style).
With a focus on making EV ownership more accessible for more people, Ben Macdonald (Founder and Managing Director) also looked forward to how V2G could help alleviate some of the wider challenges around grid congestion and supply constraints. Key to this is enabling as many people to plug in as often as practicable – especially on those cold miserable February days.
Those qualifying to receive the presentation videos and rich media content from this event 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.
Register your details via the “Download form” below to receive a unique link enabling complimentary access!
