What is EIT´s KIC on Urban Mobility 2018 and why you should join

Boosting local and regional economies, promoting employment and social inclusions are only few of the expected benefits for the parties who will become Co-Location Centres of the Innovation Hub promoted by EIT on urban mobility

written by Daria Delnevo

eseia invites professionals involved in mobility within municipalities, businesses, universities and research institutions, to express their interest in creating a Knowledge and Innovation Community on Urban Mobility (KIC-UM) in the framework of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT).

The aim of KIC UM is to achieve a European mobility system that is resource-efficient, environmentally-friendly, safe and seamless for the benefit of the citizens, the economy, and the society.  Therefore KIC UM pursues a greener, more inclusive, safer and smarter urban mobility system by promoting eco-efficient solutions. World-class partners will work together in new configurations, integrating the three stands of the knowledge triangle: Research and Technology, Business, and Higher Education. KIC UM will strengthen entrepreneurial thinking and will integrate emerging technologies with new value chains, supporting the translation of academic research into innovative products and services. KIC UM will bring together full innovation cycle partnerships of cities, businesses, research centres, higher education institutions, and citizen associations. KIC UM will set up for 7 years an enterprise composed of 7-10 Co-Location Centres (CLCs) coordinated by one Innovation Hub.

Each UM CLC will receive EC funding to boost innovation in urban mobility. EIT provides 25% seed funding with the requirement to generate 75% from other sources. A rough estimate of the total budget for each CLC is on average 40 Mio. €/year including both EC funding and funding from other sources. EC KIC funding does not support any research or innovation projects unless they are of a strategic nature and can be replicated on an international scale.

The benefits of joining eseia and taking part to KIC UM as a CLC are multifold.

Being part of a larger European Urban mobility enterprise will allow the interested party to:

• Create an impact on regional and national level;
• Boost innovation in society, promoting employment, social inclusion, housing;
• Boost local and regional economies by creating new business, solutions for more efficient and affordable mobility services, both for homes and international markets;
• Engage other stakeholders in:

1. Transport: transport organisation, logistics, transport systems safety, and security;

2. Urban planning: bringing work and living closer together, housing, urban design, sustainable urban planning, spatial development at local and regional level;

3. Environmental issues: reduction of greenhouse gases, air pollution, and noise, zero emission;

4. ICT: intelligent ICT schemes for traffic management.

Read EIT´s KIC on Urban Mobility Proposal´s Brief