27.01.2022
The final report of the Act 8 Smart Gateway project has been published - smart transport solutions to promote exports and environmental issues
The main themes highlighted in the final report of the Act 8 Smart Route project were the use of new technologies to improve transport efficiency, social and environmental issues related to smart roads and infrastructure related to special transports.
The final report of the Vt 8 Älyväylä project managed by the Kasitie network has been completed. The project served as a preliminary study on the needs of the business community and the possibilities of the intelligence of the route to serve the needs of Western Finland's export industry. The project started in 2021 and was designed and implemented by WSP Finland Oy.
In total, three workshops were carried out in which representatives of the business community, together with regional authorities, were able to map the challenges of highway 8 from the perspective of the export industry. The first workshop took place on 7 October 2021. The topics discussed in the workshop were the needs of business supply chains, as well as intelligent transport services connected to infrastructure and their utilization.
The participants of the workshop wrote their thoughts on these themes on virtual notes, which were categorized by themes after the workshop. The main themes were the use of new technologies to improve transport efficiency, social and environmental issues related to smart roads, and infrastructure related to special transports. Of the individual cases, the shortcomings of current data and its sharing were most often highlighted.
The second workshop on 5 November 2021 addressed issues related to the vision of Highway 8: What things the vision of Highway 8 should include and what Highway 8 will look like in 2032. The main themes highlighted in the workshop were the importance of highway 8 as the main route connecting the entire west coast, road safety, environmental friendliness, the availability of road-related information and the ability of different modes of transport to combine.
The third workshop on 17 December 2021 discussed the development paths for the next few years to realise the vision. During the workshop, it was recognized that the implementation of the vision requires broad commitment from state-level actors and determined development in cooperation. A concrete proposal in this regard was to explore company models that could bring together operators in the region under a common administrative structure.
To promote this, it was considered necessary to identify an owner for the entire smart bus development, who would coordinate the development and ensure the implementation of the vision. The most suitable entity for promoting the intelligent transport ecosystem of Highway 8 was considered to be the Kasitie network.
The chairmanship of the network will be transferred to the Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia next summer.
