The Council adopted Conclusions on an Action Plan for the deployment of intelligent transport systems in Europe.
The Council welcomes the Commission Communication, of 16 December 2008, "Action Plan for the Deployment of Intelligent Transport Systems in Europe" and takes note of the accompanying proposal for a Directive laying down the framework for the deployment of ITS in road transport.
The Presidency is invited to convene, in the framework of discussions of the ITS Directive proposal, a special working session to discuss and achieve clarity on all the specific actions mentioned in the ITS Action Plan.
The Commission is invited to facilitate a Europe-wide regulatory framework, comprised of specifications for compatibility, interoperability and continuity of ITS services and cross-border effectiveness as appropriate.
The Council calls on the Commission and the Member States to accelerate their work to identify and remove any obstacles to compatibility, interoperability and continuity of ITS systems and services and to define functional specifications in order to initiate and foster European standardisation, and to facilitate trans-European applications with the following objectives:
Measures to be taken: the Council considers, in particular, that the following measures should be pursued as a priority, by a better integration and coordination of ITS between all modes of transport based on cooperation between private and public sectors:
(1) The definition of the necessary requirements: (i) to make real-time traffic and travel information accurate and available across borders to ITS users; (ii) for the collection of road and traffic data and for their provisioning to ITS service providers, including appropriate measures for event and crisis management; (iii) where possible, to make accessible existing road and traffic data used for digital maps accurate and available to digital map producers and service providers; (iv) for the provision where possible of "universal traffic messages" free of charge to users, especially related to situations which endanger road safety (e.g. congestion and accidents).
(2) The definition of the minimum/necessary requirements for the continuity of ITS services for freight and passengers along transport corridors and in urban/interurban regions as well as across different transport modes.
(3) The definition of the necessary measures to: (i) use innovative technologies in the realisation of ITS applications for freight transport logistics; (ii) promote the harmonised introduction of an interoperable EU-wide eCall; (iii) develop the European ITS Framework Architecture, addressing specifically ITS-related interoperability, continuity of services and multi-modality aspects; (iv) improve the safety of road users with respect to their on-board Human-Machine-Interface and the use of nomadic devices, as well as the security of the in-vehicle equipment; (v) provide ITS based reservation and information systems for safe and secure parking places for trucks and commercial vehicles; (vi) integrate different ITS applications on an open platform allowing the possibility to equip vehicles with a unique on-board unit; (vii) promote deployment of advanced driver assistance systems; (viii) finalise a standard for open interfaces to facilitate communication within the vehicle, between different vehicles and between vehicles and roadside infrastructure.
The Commission is called upon, inter alia, to: