Mark Delayer is the chairman of GIE Objectif transport public, vice-chairman of UTP, and General Manager of Transports Publics du Choletais (AGIR Transport).
After being online-only in 2020, the 2022 European Mobility Expo will be an in-person event, running from June 7 to June 9, 2022. What’s the outlook for this edition?
We’re delighted to be able to hold this edition in Paris again after a four-year gap. On the health front, the signs are encouraging and we’re looking forward to a great event. The exhibitors are already out in force, ranging from French and European manufacturers to operators via companies working in civil engineering, ticketing, passenger information systems and beyond. They’ll all be presenting their industrial and technological expertise to the 11,000 expected visitors.
One especially unusual feature of the 2022 edition of EuMo Expo is that it will be taking place in the middle of the French election season. The new president will have been elected a few weeks previously and the legislative elections are due to be held in mid-June. At the inauguration, together with the chairs of GART and UTP I’ll be making the most of this media opportunity to argue the case for sustainable mobility, calling attention to all the benefits of public transport in terms of local cohesion, economic development, and above all in combating climate change.
We’re also very happy to be welcoming Jean-Marc Jancovici to a give a special guest talk on Wednesday 8 June. Jean-Marc is a climate and energy specialist who’ll be sharing his analysis of the climate crisis we’re experiencing and the broad outline of his transformation plan for the French economy.
Other talks will be covering current affairs in transport policy, deregulation, and so on, as well as more technical subjects such as mobility for young people and seniors and how to respond to multi-faceted demand.
General transport policy for the new parliamentary term will be the subject of a keynote talk on the afternoon of Tuesday 7 June. What do you think the major issues facing our sector over the next five years are?
I believe the most pressing and most important issue is that of rising to the challenge of energy transition. The EU has set itself the ambitious goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, together with the mid-term goal of cutting its emissions by 55% by 2030. Transport is responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than any other sector, and is the only sector in which emissions aren’t falling. Much therefore remains to be done. Private cars are still playing too great a role in everyday mobility. In response, we need an ambitious policy to promote a shift to active modes and public transport – but it’s extremely hard to change firmly ingrained habits. Passengers need to be able to benefit from a mobility offering that’s fast, reliable, comfortable, safe, and multi-modal. All operators are working with mobility authorities to deliver this high-quality offering.
Another challenge is to make fleets greener faster, through support for the acquisition of cleaner vehicles, support for charging and maintenance infrastructure investments, and so on. On the morning of Wednesday 8 June, we’ll be discussing issues and technical solutions in energy transition – as well as how to finance and organise networks.
In Pavilion 4, visitors will also be able to meet exhibitors and discover electric, hydrogen, and biofuel-powered buses, alongside solutions such as retrofitting and the very latest innovations in the industry.
On that topic, how does the exhibition make room for innovation?
Innovation will be highlighted in several ways. Firstly, we have the Innovation Awards: a panel of experts will be designating the most innovative exhibitors in a number of categories. Meanwhile the Smart Move Challenge is directed at early-stage startups, with nine shortlisted firms pitching live at the venue on the afternoon of Wednesday 9 June. The prize for the overall winner includes a cash payment of €10,000. The Agora is a forum for 30-minute talks where exhibitors can present a successful experiment, a product, or an innovative service. There’ll also be technical visits to outstanding sites in the Paris region (on a sign-up basis) for visitors. Of course, innovation will also be everywhere at the exhibition itself: exhibitors will be displaying products and solutions for tomorrow’s transport and as part of the high-quality offering I referred to earlier, with special premiere events, new forms of ticketing, passenger innovation, MaaS, energy solutions, vehicles, and more besides.
