In August 2020 a two-day event The Future of Autonomous Transport in the Baltic Sea Region takes place in Tallinn. Event consists of a public exhibition in Kadriorg Park on August 26 and a high-level conference at Proto Invention Factory on August 27.
Conference for cities and industry focuses on shaping the future of mobility
The conference Future of Autonomous Transport in the Baltic Sea Region on 27 August will bring together policy makers and cities, as well as representatives of the automotive industry in Europe. The discussion focuses on the obstacles and drivers for society to move towards autonomous public mobility as well as the further development needs in the Baltic Sea Region in terms of self-driving vehicles.
Keynote is given by Henrik Hololei, Director-General for Mobility and Transport. Experts like Head of Urban Solutions Chong Lee, Volkswagen Group and TalTech’s Autonomous Vehicles lab-competence center research group leader Raivo Sell share knowledge related to future transport needs, sustainable solutions and how cities as well as mobility industry are transforming to face the future challenges. Panel discussions with panelists like the tech-entrepreneur, Forbes’ 30 under 30 listed Kristjan Maruste, Business Director Anssi Krooks, railway consulting company Proxion and Area Manager Damien Guerrero, Navya group, cover questions such as how to upscale the new mobility industry, how the new technologies benefit cities and what is the role of private-public partnership in the smart mobility ecosystem.
When will the autonomous vehicles become common goods in public transport? Who they will serve and create value to? These questions are approached based on the lessons learned and user experience data analysis from automated bus pilots in Gdansk, Helsinki, Kongsberg, Tallinn, Vejle and Zemgale region.
Public open air exhibition brings vehicles of the future to the park
On 26 August, the open air exhibition in the lower garden of the Kadriorg Art Museum is organised for the public interested to get acquainted with innovative means of transport and exciting existing technological solutions that help improve mobility in a complex urban environment.
Navya, Bolt, Iseauto, Volkswagen, Audi and other companies operating at the forefront of future transport will participate in the exhibition, including the only e-kickscooters produced outside of the People’s Republic of China, Estonian Tuul.
Estonian band Traffic performs during the day and science theater is amusing the younger audience. The event is admission free.
Pilot in Tallinn this summer
Tallinners have already had the opportunity to get acquainted with self-driving buses several times. During the Estonian presidency of the Council of the European Union, a self-driving bus for participants ran between Kultuurikatel and Mere puiestee. In the summer of 2019, the pilot of the Sohjoa Baltic project started in Kadriorg Park, where Navya’s self-driving bus traveled along Weizenberg Street to KUMU. From mid-June 2020, the bus operates again in Kadriorg Park.
Take a robot bus ride in Virtual Reality
Autonomous shuttles are not yet a common sight in the cities. With help of virtual reality, an immersive travel experience is possible anytime, anywhere. Project Sohjoa Baltic designed a Virtual Reality robot bus ride to serve the curious audience. The vehicle runs in a beautiful, imaginary small-town landscape. The ride takes about 6 minutes. During the experience passenger is seated. Taking the trip requires wearing a VR headset. The ride is designed for one person at a time. The Virtual Reality robot bus ride is available at Future of Autonomous Transport events in Tallinn, served by Metropolia University of Applied Sciences.
More information
- Conference website https://tallinnconference.eu shares latest news
- Find daily updates on Twitter @TallinnAV2020
- Conference agenda on event website
- Exhibition programme and news on event website
Event organizers
Responsible event organizers are Tallinn Transport Department and Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences’s Smart Mobility Innovation Hub, supported by TalTech.
The event shares the fruits of project Sohjoa Baltic, funded by the European Regional Development Fund’s Baltic Sea Region Program and coordinated by Metropolia UAS, with project partners from 8 countries around the Baltic Sea Region. Sohjoa Baltic (2017-2020) is researching, introducing and piloting self-driving electric minibuses as part of public transport, especially in the so-called first or last mile connection.