Mobility and Transport Technologies - The Third Transport Research Programme of the German Federal Government

Transport is of huge economic and social importance to the Federal Republic of Germany. Modern transport systems are a hallmark of highly developed industrial nations. The ability tomeet a range of business and recreational mobility requirements is an essential prerequisite for economic growth and prosperity, and for removing any barriers to participation in all areas of social life.

However, we should not overlook the fact that the consequences of consuming resources for transport and the effects on climate and health are associated with significant costs to the economy. Research and technological innovation provide essential support in confining these consequences to a manageable level.

The current, third transport research programme has been christened “Mobility and Transport Technologies”. This distinguishes it from earlier programmes and places its focus squarely on the fostering of technology. Currently pressing issues and emerging challenges relating to land-based transport are tackled with a view to seeking a solution through the concerted efforts of industry and science. The programme forms part of the Federal Government’s High-Tech Strategy, and implements its underlying principles in the area of transport. It incorporates all of the general conditions necessary for innovation, and provides particular support for strategic partnerships between industry and science to develop new technologies.

This programme and the associated funding structure have been defined by various government departments, under the auspices of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. As such, it constitutes an official programme of the Federal Government.
The technology component of the programme is based on the following three pillars:

A) Intelligent logistics

B) Mobility of people in the 21st century

C) Intelligent infrastructure

Research and technological innovation in these areas have particular potential to provide solutions for a more efficient use of the various modes of transport, the reduction of dependency on fossil fuels, the adaptation of transport systems in preparation for demographic change, and the further tightening of road safety with assistance systems to provide technical information.
The programme will be funded by the federal budget. The funds allocated will be used both for project funding and to finance contract/departmental research. Public funding will also be allocated to the institutional transport research carried out by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) under this program.

The German transport research programme is coordinated with Community research funding within the European Union. National and European Community funding complement one another, with the EU funding programmes focussing mainly on specifically European objectives. In accordance with the subsidiarity principle, European funding is intended to build on and enhance national programmes.

Bilateral and multilateral alliances based on national transport research programmes have been established as best practice formany years. Deufrako, a bilateral Franco-German scientific and technical research programme, has been in place since 1978. Many years of close collaboration between the two nations is reflected in the identically worded Annex to this German programme and to the French transport research programme PREDIT-4, which will come into force around the middle of 2008. Multilateral cooperation is facilitated by the ERA-Net Transport and Eureka programmes. In contrast to Community research funded by the research programmes of the EU, these bilateral and multilateral programmes are publicly financed by the nations involved.

You can download the research programm or order a free brochure.