UITP hosted the launch of EBSF_2 project (European Bus System of the Future 2) during its World Congress & Exhibition in Milan on 8-10 June 2015, a project that will continue the drive for bus system innovation that began under the first EBSF project (2008-2012). ITxPT initiative, one of the results of the EBSF project, will also team up with EBSF_2.

The three-year project will bring together manufacturers, operators, research institutes and authorities in order to test and evaluate a set of technological solutions to improve the efficiency and attractiveness of urban and suburban bus systems.

Demonstrations in real service in 12 cities will address several domains for innovation: energy management and auxiliaries, driver assistance, exterior and interior bus layout and the interface of the bus with the system in terms of both intelligent garage and urban infrastructure. Another topic, IT standards, will be developed in close cooperation with ITxPT. In order to ensure a wide market uptake after the end of the project, these technological innovations will deal with various bus systems, from BRT to local lines and all with current propulsion technologies.

“As an association, we have a strategy to double the market share of public transport by 2025. The EBSF_2 project is undoubtedly part of that agenda,” said Alain Flausch, Secretary General of UITP. “Bus systems offer a huge potential to attract new public transport customers and promote low-carbon and resource-efficient mobility”.

EBSF_2 raises high expectations as a continuation of the successful EBSF project. The latter, which ran between 2008 and 2012, was the first European project bringing together the leading European bus manufacturers. It largely influenced the bus sector thanks to several technological innovations and specifications developed within the project, which were later included in the product portfolio of manufacturers and suppliers.

The EBSF_2 project forms a part of Horizon 2020, the biggest EU Research and Innovation funding programme ever.

EBSF_2 in brief:

Duration: May 2015 – April 2018

Budget: €12.4m (€10m EU-funded)

Coordinator: UITP

Website: www. (under construction)

Twitter: @ebsf_2project

LinkedIn: EBSF_2