Reflecting on 2024: Highlights from the past twelve months at ITS UK
As 2024 comes to an end, we wanted to take a moment to celebrate an incredible twelve months of key milestones, wins for members and great events. From new initiatives, to industry-leading conferences, thought leadership reports and advocacy on behalf of the sector, 2024 has been a busy, but productive and successful year for us. We’ve travelled the length and breadth of the country, met with thousands of members and supported the sector over what has been a year of considerable change.
Join us as we take a whistle-stop tour through the highlights that made this year one to remember—and set the stage for an exciting 2025.
A year of success
Member satisfaction: First, some ‘hot off the press’ news from our latest membership satisfaction survey, conducted by the independent Pulse Business. The new figures show our highest membership satisfaction scores yet, with 82% of ITS UK members in the top two categories of happiness, up from 75% last year. Nearly 50% put themselves in the highest ‘really happy’ category too. If there’s a figure we always strive to improve, it’s this one, and we’re immensely proud of seeing satisfaction scores continue to tick up year on year.
New Members: A huge welcome to the 25 new members who joined ITS UK this year, taking our membership to 175+ organisations across the public and private sectors. It’s particularly fantastic to see the diversity of members now part of the association, from micro to multi-national businesses, private and public sector, as well as academia, and from all modes of transport. Growing our membership impacts every aspect of the work we do, and I’m sure I speak for all of ITS UK when I say we’re grateful for the new perspectives that every new member brings.
Busy Events Calendar: Our events are at the heart of what we do – they are where members meet, network and hear the latest on what is going on in the sector. In 2024 we held a massive 50 events where more than 2,000 registered attendees took part. From receptions to in-person and online forums, executive dinners, and our awards ceremony; it’s fantastic to see members taking full advantage of the networking, knowledge sharing, and innovation opportunities we provide. Plus, this year we flew the ITS UK flag at international events across world, attending Intertraffic in the Netherlands, the ITS World Congress in Dubai and collaborating with the ITS Network of Nationals at various meetings to represent the UK abroad.
Advocacy and Policy: 2024 was a year of change in UK politics, but it also marked a key moment for ITS UK to act as the voice of the sector. Following the General Election being called, we published our ‘Manifesto for the Future of Transport’ detailing 10 recommendations for the new Government to leverage transport technology. Then, after the new Government was in place, we got to work ensuring these policy asks were heard at the highest levels, holding meetings with the Future of Roads Minister, civil servants, and a number of MPs. In addition, we responded to more Government consultations than ever before, including on the Industrial Strategy or Autumn Budget, ensuring the sector’s views are represented.
Thought leadership: Over the last 12 months, we placed significant efforts into producing industry leading reports, recognising the value of providing evidenced research and recommendations on behalf of the industry. Our ‘Future State for the UK Motorway Network’ set out the case for a long-term National Motorway Technology Transition Strategy and a programme for its delivery. We’ve collaborated this year with the Crown Commercial Service to explore issues around the procurement of transport technology, holding roundtables on smart ticketing, delivering value and AI and automation. And, working with the Open Data Institute, we’ve kicked off conversations on what a ‘smart data’ scheme in transport would look like. All this whilst holding regular forums on a number of pertinent issues for the ITS sector.
What’s in store in 2025?
The good news is that 2025 looks to be just as exciting as the outgoing year. We have a huge amount planned, including new events and initiatives that will help drive the industry forward. Some of the things you can expect to see include:
- Expanding engagement with local authorities to broaden the ITS community.
- Engagement on the Integrated National Transport Strategy and key Parliamentary Committee inquiries
- New thought leadership, including economic research to establish the size of the sector.
- More support for overseas opportunities, working with our partners from across the world.
- And new events, including on Digital-TROs, at Party Conferences and more!
And finally… Thank you!
ITS UK’s accomplishments would not be possible without our vibrant and growing community of 175 member organisations and many individuals who give up their time and expertise to feed into our work – including our Board and Forum Officers. A big thank you to all who have supported our successes this year.
We wish you a restful and restorative Christmas and New Year. Thank you for an extraordinary year. Here’s to an even brighter 2025!
