Smart, green and integrated transport : transport research in Horizon 2020.
Date: 2015-05-12
Institutions: Directorate-General for Research and Innovation
Subjects: EU environmental policy, European undertaking, Framework Programme for Research and Development, competitiveness, environmental protection, innovation, research and development, research programme, small and medium-sized enterprises, sustainable development, transport policy

Smart, Green and 
Integrated Transport 

in

Horizon 2020

European Union 
Framework 
Programme 
for Research 
and Innovation 
2014 - 2020

Research and 
Innovation

What is Horizon 2020 ? 
Horizon 2020 is the EU Research and Innovation Framework Programme with a 
budget up to €77 billion of funding for 7 years (2014 to 2020), adopted by Council 
and Parliament in December 2013.

Horizon 2020 is the financial instrument implementing the Innovation Union initiative, 
a Europe 2020 flagship aimed at securing Europe’s economic dynamism and global 
competitiveness.

The programme focuses on excellent science, industrial leadership and societal 
challenges.

It aims at producing world-class science and technology, removing barriers to 
innovation and making it easier for the public and private sectors to work together in 
delivering innovation.

What is new in Horizon 2020 ?
A single programme bringing together 3 separate programmes or initiatives: the 
Research and Innovation Framework Programme, the innovation aspects of the 
Competitiveness and Innovation Programme (CIP), the activities of the European Institute 
of Innovation and Technology (EIT).

Coupling research to innovation, basic science to application, covering all forms of 
innovation.

Focus on the societal challenges facing EU society, including ‘Smart, Green and 
Integrated Transport’.

User-friendly access for all companies, universities, research centres and other players 
in all EU countries and beyond, with simplified rules for participation and faster time-to-
grant.

This approach is meant to make sure that new projects get off the ground quickly and 
achieve results faster.

The Transport Challenge
The logic of the Transport chapter in Horizon 2020 is a holistic approach that 
recognises modal specificities, that is focused on the societal challenges, caters for 
users’ needs, responds to policy requirements and takes into account the imperatives 
of competitiveness. 

It encompasses the different dimensions of the transport system: the transport 
means, the modes, the infrastructure and the services. It covers both the development 
of technologies and the socio-economic aspects.

Budget 

• Transport Challenge budget 2014-2020: € 6.339 million

The four key objectives of the Transport Challenge

 1. Sustainable Transport 
‘Resource efficient transport that respects the environment’ 

• Cleaner, quieter aircraft, vehicles, vessels:

  - Cleaner propulsion technologies
  - Use of low emission alternative energies
  - Lighter materials, leaner structures, innovative designs

• Smart equipment, infrastructure and services
• Improved transport and mobility in urban areas

2. Seamless Transport 
‘Better mobility, less congestion, more safety and security’ 

• Substantial reduction of traffic congestion
• Improved mobility of people and freight:

  - Air: traffic management, passenger and freight handling
  - Waterborne: integrated planning and management, port operations
  - Road and rail: optimisation of network and traffic management

• New concepts of freight transport and logistics
• Reducing accidents and casualties, improving security

3. Competitive Transport
‘Global leadership for the European transport industry’ 

• Next generation of transport means:

  -  Aircraft, trains, vehicles, vessels; propulsion, operation and control

• On board, smart control systems:

  -  Vehicle/infrastructure interfaces : operational standards

• Advanced production processes:

  -  Design and manufacturing techniques: production, maintenance, recycling

• New transport concepts:

  -  Innovative transport systems and services, including automated vehicles

4. Responsive Transport 
‘Socio-economic and behavioural research and forward looking activities for 
policy making’ 

• Data, models and scenarios:

- Data collection, models, mobility patterns, scenarios, foresight

• User needs and behaviour:

- User behaviour, social acceptance, accessibility, vulnerable users

• Transport economics:

- Economic trends, business models, land use, social cohesion, skills

• Policy support:

- Policy analysis and impact, internalisation of externalities, innovation uptake

Transport in other parts of Horizon 2020

• Enabling industrial technologies: nanotechnologies, materials, manufacturing, ICT, 

satellite navigation 

• Energy: smart cities, alternative fuels, electro-mobility, batteries, smart grids
• Secure societies: transport security
• Climate and environment: resource efficiency, climate change, mitigation and 

adaptation

• Health: transport impact on health
• Food security ... marine and maritime and inland water research: ‘Blue Growth’

In addition, many other cross-thematic components of Horizon 2020 can 
complement the activities of the Transport Challenge

• European Research Council: bottom-up basic research
• Future and Emerging Technologies: long-term, high risk research
• Marie Sklodowska Curie actions: training and mobility of researchers
• Access to risk finance: debt and equity schemes
• Spreading excellence and widening participation
• Science with and for society: “responsible R&I”
• European Institute of Innovation and Technology: urban transport
• “Fast Track to Innovation” pilot actions: small, lean, close to market

• The SME instrument: dedicated funding for innovative SMEs

Joining forces to achieve major breakthroughs

Public Private Partnerships: contractual PPPs and Joint Technology Initiatives

• European Green Vehicles Initiative PPP
• Clean Sky 2 JTI
• Sesar Joint Undertaking
• Shift 2 Rail JTI

European technology platforms

• ACARE, Advisory Council for Aviation Research and Innovation in Europe 
• ERTRAC, European Road Transport Research Advisory Council
• ERRAC, European Rail Research Advisory Council
• WATERBORNE, European Technology Platform Waterborne
• ALICE, Alliance for Logistics Innovation through Collaboration in Europe

Examples of transport policy targets

• Halving casualties in road transport by 2020 and close to zero fatalities in road 

transport by 2050

• 30 % shift  of road freight over 300 km to other modes such as rail or waterborne 

transport by 2030 and more than 50% by 2050
• CO2-free city logistics in major urban centres by 2030
• 40 % CO2 emissions reduction from maritime bunker fuels by 2050
• 40 % low-carbon sustainable fuels in aviation by 2050

Participation of SMEs and international cooperation

Strong participation of SMEs

• 20% of the total budget for societal challenges and industrial technologies to go to 

SMEs

• Simplification of particular benefit to SMEs: single entry point, two-step evaluation
• A new SME instrument used across all societal challenges and industrial technologies 
• A dedicated activity for research-intensive SMEs in ‘Innovation in SMEs’
• ‘Access to risk finance’ with a strong SME focus: debt and equity facility

European Transport Research and Innovation open to the world

• Anybody can participate, submit proposals, join consortia
• Participants from developing countries can get 
• EU funding. Participants from industrialised and emerging countries can get EU 

funding only exceptionally

• Some topics in the Work Programme may target cooperation with specific countries in 

given areas

Simpler rules and funding rates: one project = one rate

Forms of 
Funding

Types of 
actions / instruments

Funding rate 
up to

Min n° of 
partners

Research and Innovation 
Actions / RIA

Innovation Actions / IA

Grants

Coordination and Support 
Actions / CSA

Marie Sklodowska Curie 
Actions / MSCA

European Research 
Council / ERC grants

ERA-Net co-fund

PCP / PPI co-fund

Programme 
cofund

Prizes

Inducement prizes

Procurement

Tenders

Financial 
instruments

Debt instrument

Equity instrument

SME Instrument

Specific 
Procedures

Fast Track to Innovation 
(pilot)

* MS: Member States / AC : Associated Countries

100%

70%

100%

100%

100%

33%
(top-up)

PCP 70%
PPI 20%

Lump sum
(result based)

100%

-

-

Lump sum 
(Phase 1)

70%
(Phase 2)

70%

3
(from 3 MS / AC)*

3
(from 3 MS / AC)*

1

1

1

3
(from 3 MS / AC)*

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

K
I
-
0
2
-
1
5
-
0
4
8
-
E
N
-
N

The Transport chapter of Horizon 2020 aims to boost the 
competitiveness of the European transport industries and achieve a 
transport system that is resource efficient, environmentally friendly, 
safe and seamless, for the benefit of citizens, the economy and society.

All information about  
Transport Research 
in Horizon 2020 : 

© European Union, 2015. 

Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.Printed in Belgium.
1st and 3rd sentences must be on this page, the 2nd sentence has to be checked with the author if necessary.
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«Research and Innovation policy»

ISBN 978-92-79-45238-3
doi:10.2777/063907