Hamburg and Continental agree on mobility partnership

Joint ITS projects: protection of vulnerable road users and more efficient use of parking spaces​​​​​​​

Today, the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg signed a partnership agreement with the technology company Continental on the future development of urban mobility at the World Congress for Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) in Singapore. Continental has had close links with Hamburg since the acquisition of the Phoenix plant in the Harburg district in 2004. The partners plan to implement joint ITS projects to improve the safety of vulnerable road users and to make the use of parking spaces more efficient. Hamburg will host the ITS World Congress from October 11 to 15, 2021 at the CCH and the trade fair halls – a significant milestone in the ITS Senate strategy through to 2030.

Michael Westhagemann, Senator for Economic Affairs, Transport and Innovation, remarked: “We are delighted that more and more technology companies are opting for Hamburg as an innovation location to shape the mobility of the future. Continental is a key partner in the deployment of intelligent transport systems with whose expertise we aim to test out new solutions for improved safety, greater efficiency and reduced emissions.“

Dr. Hermann Meyer, Vice President Smart City Solutions at Continental Interior Systems & Technology, said: “Continental is a provider of mobility services and intelligent transport systems with an extensive product portfolio. We look forward to the partnership with Hamburg as we see the opportunity to deploy some of our solutions there in an innovative environment and in cooperation with other highly dedicated companies.”

One of the planned projects aims to improve road safety. This involves a collision warning system to protect particularly vulnerable road users. Using mobile edge computing, a cloud-based calculation of potential collisions with road users, such as cyclists, pedestrians and e-scooter users, is to be carried out at black-spot crossings in Hamburg and a warning message sent wirelessly in dangerous situations. The ‘mobile edge’ approach drastically reduces response time on the network (latency) and enables road users to communicate with each other via the cloud almost in real time. 

Another area of cooperation envisaged is parking, which is one of the biggest, yet least optimized, fields in urban environments. It takes motorists ten minutes on average to find a parking space, accounting for 30% to 40% of inner-city traffic and creating significant emission of pollutants. The partnership will seek to make the management of the parking facilities available in Hamburg more efficient. Various solutions, such as the sensor-based, in-vehicle detection of available parking spaces, navigation to the nearest parking space or paying for parking spaces both on and off the street, will be examined and implemented if feasible. No infrastructure-related measures are required. E-charging stations, parking spaces for disabled people or other special user group attributes could also be identified by this service.

Continental develops pioneering technologies and services for sustainable and connected mobility of people and their goods. Founded in 1871, the technology company offers safe, efficient, intelligent and affordable solutions for vehicles, machines, traffic and transportation. In 2018, Continental generated sales of €44.4 billion and currently employs more than 244,000 people in 60 countries and markets. 

The former Phoenix plant, which was founded in the south of Hamburg in 1856, has been part of Continental since 2004. It manufactures high-quality black and color rubber compounds which are turned into products such as tires and seals. The models of almost all leading automotive manufacturers include components with compounds from Hamburg. The plant with its workforce of roughly 850 manufactures rubber-metal components, air spring systems for trains and commercial vehicles as well as coolant hoses and systems. The modern training center is not only available to Conti­nental trainees, but is also used by other companies in Harburg. Continental also develops components for the automotive industry, special-purpose hose applications and conveyor belting in Hamburg-Harburg. The technology company recently built a state-of-the-art innovation center on the plant site where innovations for the industry of tomorrow will be produced in the future.

Over the course of this development, a close partnership with Hamburg Innovation, Tutech Innovation GmbH and the organization responsible for business development in Hamburg has been formed. 

Hamburg’s ITS strategy and current ITS projects: www.hamburg.de/its