Arnold van Zyl new CEO of ERTICO

Brussels, Belgium – Chief executive officer Arnold van Zyl assumed his job at ERTICO on 1 January 2006. Prior to that, he was the Director of EUCAR (European Council of Automotive Research and Development) in Brussels. He started his career as an engineer at DaimlerChrysler and, amongst others, worked in the US as the Secretary General of the Fuel Cell Alliance.

According to him, ERTICO’s task is to contribute to creating an intelligent, efficient, clean and safe European transport system through collaborative activities with its Partners. This should be achieved by facilitating the development and deployment of products and services that enable the exchange of information between the users, the infrastructure and vehicles.

“In my view, the societal concerns associated with the transport system – safety, security, environmental impact and the efficient use of the whole network – can only be addressed through an integrated approach involving contributions from all sectors of the ERTICO membership.” Mr van Zyl says. “Communication and information technology play a key role in this approach.”

He looks forward to extending the activities of ERTICO beyond primarily safety applications to the areas of security, efficiency – especially of freight transport, as well as systems and services that reduce the impact on the environment.

“Nevertheless, technology alone will not be sufficient to deploy ITS systems and services.” Mr van Zyl cautions. “The financial and policy framework enabling the deployment of ITS applications will need to be established at a European level.” For this reason ERTICO will strengthen the profile of its communication and public awareness activities with a view to influencing decision makers and raising awareness on the benefits of ITS.

“Transport is key to Europe’s competitiveness. We must ensure the continued growth of this essential sector, while at the same time reducing the societal impacts associated with it. ITS provide the most effective and cost-efficient solution to this dilemma” Mr van Zyl sums up.