Facilitating market take up of innovative transport infrastructure solutions

Specific challenge: The White Paper ‘Towards a Single European Transport Area’ aims at the completion of efficient, interoperable and integrated transport infrastructure network by 2050. These long term goals can only be achieved when infrastructure innovation, supported by targeted up-stream research activities, is deployed at integrated system level. However, testing and implementing solutions at system level is much more challenging than at component level in view of the number of technological and organisational parameters involved, their interdependency, the scale of investment and the potential impact on stakeholders.

Although many technological solutions relative to transport infrastructure are already available for all transport modes, the challenge consists in overcoming highly fragmented demand. Decision-makers (mainly from the public sector) are often unaware of the availability and efficiency of highly innovative solutions and are not familiar with the use of public procurement for innovation.

Scope: Actions should lead to the improvement and capacity building in the field of public purchasing of innovative solutions in transport infrastructure leading to implementation of best available solutions on cross-border TEN-T network and other business cases representative of typical European situations. Proposals should be driven by clearly identified procurement needs of infrastructure owners (the procurers), including life-cycle and cost-benefit assessments and environmental impacts under the life-cycle perspective, and should effectively control budget across various European regions. The work should contribute to the revision /development of relevant standards and regulatory framework, and to study strategies oriented to favour the innovation in transport sector. Good practices should be made available for replication.

The Commission considers that proposals requesting a contribution from the EU of between EUR 1 to 5 million each would allow this specific challenge to be addressed appropriately. Nonetheless, this does not preclude submission and selection of proposals requesting other amounts.

Expected impact: The selected actions are expected to:

      Serve as pilot projects to demonstrate the effectiveness and reliability of advanced (long-life) technological solutions in reducing the total cost and risk of ownership of transport, the environmental impact and the effectiveness of new supply chain models and contractual arrangements.

      Allow for a better coordinated dialogue between procurers and suppliers contributing to long-lasting stakeholder partnerships with clearly defined roles and responsibilities.

      Contribute to competence building in the sector by enabling public procurers to improve their knowledge about available innovative solutions and leveraging the benefits of European cooperation in exchanging experience in procurement practices.

      Build a coherent basis for progressive step changes to regulation, standardisation and public procurement practices fostering innovation and sustainability in transport infrastructure.

Type of action: Public Procurement of Innovative Solutions (PPI) Cofund