Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Programme 2021 - 2027 Interreg VI-B North Sea

Date of latest update: 2026-05-13

Description

Description (EN):

Challenge The EC targets a 55% reduction of GHG emission for 2030. Each kilometer cycled reduces emissions by 89% compared to car, contributing hugely to greening of transport in the NSR. Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) will make cycling safer, faster, more reliable and easier to use, adding a digital dimension to traditional investments in cycling infrastructure. Expected change MegaBITS will embed cycling ITS in sustainable mobility governance by demonstrating ITS applications for cycling in 5 flagships. Each flagship combines innovative ITS applications focused on a specific theme, e.g. smart cycling corridor. In addition, open data and the Bicycles and ITS Directory will highlight good practices for further replication outside MegaBITS. Outputs and who benefits Output Who benefits 5 flagship projects (in 7 cities/regions) Cyclists experiencing smart cycling Citizens in the regions/cities Other cities learning from flagships Tested ITS solutions for industry CycleDataHub Data owners sharing data Policy makers using data App developers using data Bicycles and ITS Directory ITS and cycling industry showing ITS solutions and building cycling innovation cluster Cities/regions finding ITS solutions and knowledge Knowledge transfer ITS industry, cycling industry Cycling policy makers Academic world Transnational approach Joint shaping of flagship implementations Sharing data through the CycleDataHub Showcasing ITS products, services and knowledge through the Bicycle and ITS Directory ITS Leaders and Followers Comparability and transferability through common evaluation methodology Scaling up from flagship evaluation to policy recommendations on NSR and EU level Connecting to a.o. National Access Points and EU dataspace What is new MegaBITS moves from stand-alone ITS applications (in BITS) project) to integrated ITS flagships, demonstrating a.o. smart cycling corridors, smart cycling management, smart cycling data fusion and digitizing urban cycling.

Actual Achievements (EN):

In this reporting period 15 out of 25 MegaBITS pilots reached the demonstration phase. 3 pilots are in the implementation phase, which means that they are almost ready for demonstration. Overall, the planning of most pilots is according to schedule. Furthermore, new products & best practices have been added to the BITS Directory. This adds up to a total of 143 products/best practices (out of 200 planned). Regarding the Cycle Data Space (CDS) onboarding of the data has started. In addition, the city Hamburg and imec prepared a tender for a project using the CDS infrastructure and data. This will serve as a test of the concept and to inspire and contribute to future use cases. Discussions have started about the continuation of the CDS and BID after project end. We have continued working on the cookbook for Floating Bike Data. Evaluating partner Chalmers University is in contact with the demonstration cities and regions and started drafting the evaluation reports. Each of the flagships is now actively evaluating (at least one of) their pilots. We have communicated the project results at numerous events, such as the Velo-city conference (Gdansk), ITS congress (Sevilla), Urban Mobility Days (Vilnius), Eurobike (Frankfurt) and various local/national/online events. We had two SG-meetings: 1 digital (16-17 June) and 1 live meeting in Hamburg (24-25 September). Next to that, we had an Advisory Board meeting on 13 May '25. We continued the cooperation with the MERIDIAN project and published the road map for smart cycling. With this document we support the further development and impact of smart cycling in and beyond Europe.

Website: https://www.interregnorthsea.eu/megabits

Thematic information

Green technologies Transport and mobility

Type of intervention: 084 Digitalisation of urban transport

Partners (10)

Lead Partner: Provincie Overijssel

Partner’s ID if not PIC: NL00.19.00.328.B01

Address: Luttenbergstraat 2, 8012EE Zwolle, Netherlands

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Regional public authority

Website: http://www.overijssel.nl

Total budget: EUR 1 309 500.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 785 700.00

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 60.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 523 800.00

GBER schemes / de minimis:

Provincie Antwerpen

Name: Provincie Antwerpen

Partner’s ID if not PIC: N.a.

Address: Koningin Elisabethlei 22, 2018 Antwerpen, Belgium

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Regional public authority

Website: http://www.provincieantwerpen.be

Total budget: EUR 400 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 240 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 60.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 160 000.00

GBER schemes / de minimis:

Les industries du Vélo en Europe AISBL

Name: Les industries du Vélo en Europe AISBL

Partner’s ID if not PIC: N.a.

Address: Avenue Marnix 17, 1000 Brussels, Belgium

Legal status: private

Organisation type: Interest groups including NGOs

Website: http://www.cyclingindustries.com

Total budget: EUR 415 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 249 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 60.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 166 000.00

GBER schemes / de minimis: GBER

Kobenhavns Kommune

Name: Kobenhavns Kommune

Partner’s ID if not PIC: DK 64942212

Address: Borups Alle 177, 2400 Copenhagen, Denmark

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Local public authority

Website: https://www.kk.dk/

Total budget: EUR 599 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 359 400.00

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 60.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 239 600.00

GBER schemes / de minimis:

Interuniversitair Micro-Electronica Centrum vzw

Name: Interuniversitair Micro-Electronica Centrum vzw

Partner’s ID if not PIC: BE0425.260.668

Address: Kapeldreef 75, 3001 Leuven, Belgium

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Other

Website: http://www.imec-int.com

Total budget: EUR 423 387.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 254 032.00

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 59.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 169 355.00

GBER schemes / de minimis:

Gemeente Zwolle

Name: Gemeente Zwolle

Partner’s ID if not PIC: NL001900249B01

Address: Lübeckplein 2, 8017JZ Zwolle, Netherlands

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Local public authority

Website: https://www.zwolle.nl/

Total budget: EUR 300 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 180 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 60.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 120 000.00

GBER schemes / de minimis:

Gemeente Enschede

Name: Gemeente Enschede

Partner’s ID if not PIC: NL.001589623B01

Address: Hengelosestraat 51, 7514AD Enschede, Netherlands

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Local public authority

Website: https://www.enschede.nl

Total budget: EUR 310 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 186 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 60.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 124 000.00

GBER schemes / de minimis:

Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg - Behörde für Verkehr und Mobilitätswende

Name: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg - Behörde für Verkehr und Mobilitätswende

Partner’s ID if not PIC: DE 118509725

Address: Alter Steinweg 4, 20459 Hamburg, Germany

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Local public authority

Website: https://www.hamburg.de/bvm/

Total budget: EUR 499 040.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 299 424.00

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 60.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 199 616.00

GBER schemes / de minimis:

Communauté Urbaine Le Havre Seine Métropole CU LHSM

Name: Communauté Urbaine Le Havre Seine Métropole CU LHSM

Partner’s ID if not PIC: FR50200084952

Address: 19 rue Georges Braque, 76620 Le Havre, France

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Local public authority

Website: https://www.lehavreseinemetropole.fr/

Total budget: EUR 321 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 192 600.00

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 60.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 128 400.00

GBER schemes / de minimis:

Chalmers tekniska högskola

Name: Chalmers tekniska högskola

Partner’s ID if not PIC: SE556479559801

Address: Hörsalsvägen 5, 41296 Gothenburg, Sweden

Legal status: public

Organisation type: Higher education and research organisations

Website: https://www.chalmers.se/

Total budget: EUR 320 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing: EUR 192 000.00

Partner’s programme co-financing rate: 60.00%

Partner contribution: EUR 128 000.00

GBER schemes / de minimis:

Partners map

Partners and Projects info

Province of Antwerp

Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Partners and Projects info

Cycling Industries Europe AISBL

Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Partners and Projects info

City of Copenhagen

Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Partners and Projects info

Interuniversitair Micro-Electronica Centrum vzw

Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Partners and Projects info

Municipality of Zwolle

Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Partners and Projects info

Municipality Enschede

Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Partners and Projects info

Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg - Ministry of Transport and Mobility Transition

Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Partners and Projects info

Urban Community Le Havre Seine Métropole

Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Partners and Projects info

Chalmers University of Technology

Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Partners and Projects info

Provincie Overijssel

Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Lead partner

Project partner

Summary

Operation of strategic importance (OSI) or above EUR 5 million

Project name (EN): Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Project acronym: MegaBITS

Project ID: D4a5lZNeX

Project start date: 2023-05-01

Project end date: 2026-04-30

Project status: closed

Relevant mentions and prizes:

false

Total budget/expenditure: EUR 4 896 927.00

Total EU funding (amount): EUR 2 938 156.00

Total EU funding (co-financing rate): 60.00%

Co-financing sources:

ERDF: Amount, EUR 2 938 156.00. Co-financing rate, 60.00%.

Investments, deliverables, policy contributions

(bullets are inserted automatically and may be incorrectly placed)

Deliverables:

1.1 Implementation plans to prepare ITS flagship projects for cycling / Joint transnational development of ITS flagships for cycling in each of the cities/regions. A flagship is a combination of integrated innovative ITS applications in one area focused on a specific theme, e.g. smart cycling corridor. Flagships are tailormade to each area to optimize impact. Annex 3 describes potential ITS applications for each flagship. Preparation concerns a.o. talking to suppliers, coordination with other departments in their city/region, discuss synergies with other flagships.
2.1 Developments plans for the improved and upscaled CycleDataHub (CDH) and Bicycles and ITS Directory (BID) / Develop plans for CDH and BID, taking into account developments (e.g. NAPCORE, EU mobility data space, revised ITS directive, user needs, tech developments). Transform CDH to a format that allows automatic interaction and meta-information exchange with other data portals. Follow-up on EU standards for cycling data, specifically for datasets implemented in the dataspace (Act 2.2). Transform BID into the portal on cycling ITS systems, services, best practices and knowledge.
3.1 Impact evaluation / For each flagship an evaluation will be carried out, highlighting the main findings, lessons learnt and recommendations. Evaluation will focus on changed behaviour (from car to cycling) as result of ITS applications. These will be used to embed ITS for cycling in the sustainable mobility plans of the flagship regions. The evaluations will be both quantitative and qualitative, with co-creative elements to include also how solutions were perceived by cyclists and implementing partners.
1.2 Demonstration of ITS flagship projects / All cities/regions will run the ITS implementations for cycling in their flagship under real-life conditions for a sufficiently long period to demonstrate the benefits of the ITS within their sustainable mobility policy. During the demonstration, special effort will be put into collecting and analyzing the necessary data (quantitative/qualitative) as input for the evaluation, understanding user behaviour and replication activities, as well as for the CycleDataHub and Bicycles and ITS Directory.
2.2 Implementing improved and upscaled CycleDataHub (CDH)) and Bicycles and ITS Directory (BID) / In this activity the current CDH and BID will be upgraded with new functionalities and then be launched. The new CDH will be in line with the EU data space initiatives and will allow for expansion and collaboration with other mobility subdomains and other fields. The BID will be ready to function as the portal for publishing and searching ITS solutions for cycling and to publish and find relevant knowledge in this domain (best practices, EU regulation, relevant projects, etc.).
3.2 Policy recommendations on NSR and wider EU level / Based on the evaluation of the flagships and interaction with the local stakeholders, recommendations and lessons learnt will be drawn on NSR and wider EU level. These will be used to embed the ITS for cycling in the overall sustainable mobility policy at NSR and wider EU level. A report will be compiled to gather lessons learnt.
2.3 Research on floating bike data / This research will support the consortium in its need for knowledge on floating bike data (FBD) and issuing tenders to purchase this data from third parties. The following methods are used in this research:-Deskresearch-Interviews with experts and suppliers-Write technical guidelines + provide tips and tricks for partners on the FBD themeFinally, a white paper will be produced with a summary and outcomes of the research. This white paper can also feed the work of NAPcore on FBD.
1.3 Communication of ITS flagship results / The outputs of the flagships and lessons learnt will be communicated to the outside world, particularly to cities/regions interested in cycling and/or ITS in and around the flagship regions. This will be done through regional events, 1 per flagship. In addition to the regional events, the flagships results will regularly be disseminated through dedicated MegaBITS communication channels (website, newsletter and social media), as well as by the project partners and supporting organisations.
3.3 Replication meetings with EU representatives / Meetings will be set up with DG Move and DG Grow staff, Members of European Parliament and other EU level stakeholders (e.g. POLIS, ECF, ERTICO) to inform them about the need and potential of cycling ITS to contribute to the greening of the European mobility system. This can be formal and/or informal meetings, both internal and external events. Important input will come from the evaluation results of the demonstations and formulated recommendations for large scale implementation.
1.4 Change management / The change manager will use the outcomes of the flagship projects to ensure proper embedding and integration of ITS and cycling in the organisation’s sustainable mobility policies (e.g. SUMPs) and/or will liaise with and promote ITS and cycling to external stakeholders. As such the change manager will be important for the long-lasting effect of the MegaBITS project.
2.4 Promotion and capacity building on the CDH and BID among policy makers, implementers, data owners and ITS providers / Once improved CDH and BID are completed and launched, guidelines will be developed so that third parties, governments, cycle communities are empowered and able to use both services. Promotion to target groups will be done through targeted (online) European events (13), bringing together policy makers and private sector; articles in magazines (5); dissemination through our social media, website and newsletters as well as those of our partners and other connections (ECF, Velo-City, Gaia-X).
3.4 Input to wider EU policy through position papers and policy consultation / MegaBITS knowledge will be used for position papers anticipating or in reaction to EU policy initiatives, as well as reacting to EC policy consultations. CIE will ensure the learnings derived from MegaBITS are integrated into EU consultations and working groups on topics such as urban mobility, MaaS (MPMF), the review of the ITS Directive (currently on-going) and the review of the Muti-Modal Travel Information Services (MMTIS) Delegated Regulation (planned for 2023).
2.5 Strategy for the future development and adoption of the CycleDataHub and Bicycles and ITS Directory / Two action plans: CDH future development direction BID future development direction Both plans will focus on guaranteeing adoption, continuation and use of CDH and BID after project lifetime and defining ownership. CDH Action Plan will elaborate how cycling data can be made more interoperable, and how it can be linked with other EU data spaces and National Access Points. BID Action Plan will focus on developing a more dynamic and user-centric updating of products and services listed within BID.
3.5 Communication / Results of the evaluation and recommendations will becommunicated through:• 3 academic papers for academics• 3 workshops/academies for policy makers and practitioners• 10 publications in EU/international magazines/websites, forprofessionals and academicsThe following communication activities will also be carried out, butthese are already taken into account as indicators in 2.4:• Presentations at EU conferences, for policy makers/practitioners/academics• Attending local and international events

Contribution to wider strategies and policies:

The Green Deal aims to make Europe climate neutral by 2050. Considering the fact that transport emissions account for around 25% of the EU's total greenhouse gas emissions, the use of emission-free transportation should become more widespread. With MegaBITS, we therefore aim to make cycling more attractive by applying ITS. By expanding and integrating innovative ITS applications, we aim to demonstrate how cycling can be a viable alternative to other, polluting means of transport.
In the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy (SSMS), digitalization is one of the flagship implementation strategies “making connected and automated multimodal mobility a reality: The EU needs to take full advantage of smart digital solutions and intelligent transport systems (ITS).” This calls for a boost in the uptake of zero-emission urban mobility. MegaBITS provides such a boost by making cycling more attractive through ITS in 5 flagships, all integrating innovative ITS applications.
To facilitate data sharing, in order to support future data-driven innovation, the EU is looking at the establishment of data spaces: “a data ecosystem, whereby decentralised infrastructure enables trustworthy data sharing with commonly agreed capabilities”. With MegaBITS, we aim to expand and further develop the CycleDataHub developed under the BITS project and create links with other (ongoing) initiatives and organisations (FIWARE, EU DAtaspace, GAia-X, etc).
Cycling is part of the Mobility Ecosystem Transition within the EU Industrial Strategy. The two pillars are sustainability and digitalisation – fitting MegaBITS, which will be a lighthouse demonstration for Europe, strengthening the leading role of the NSR as standard-bearer in these fields. A genuine EU strategy for cycling will be vital to build production and R&D capabilities in Europe (incl. Cycling Clusters), enhance infrastructure development and accelerate innovation in mobility services.
The Urban Mobility Framework, as part of the Efficient and Green Mobility Package, among others stimulates requires cities identified as urban nodes to create and adopt concrete Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMPs) that foresee an increase in the city’s modal share of active transport modes such as cycling. ITS is one of the tools identified to achieve this modal change, apart from (among others) more cycling infrastructure, bike parking facilities and integrated multimodal transport.
Goals of the Commission’s Rural Pact and EU Rural Action Plan include fostering territorial cohesion and ensuring better infrastructure and services in rural areas. MegaBITS will play a part in this by creating ‘smart cycling corridors’ through the application of ITS to cycle highways. Such corridors will create better linkages between urban and rural areas while also connecting cycle highways to the public transport system, thus improving access to public transportation services in rural areas.
The revision of the ITS Directive (2021) is mainly focused on motorized traffic, as it focuses on collecting road data for motorised transport networks without direct mention of cycling and walking data, and lacks any references for standards to protect cyclists or vulnerable road users in general (non-drivers). This shows that the importance of ITS for cycling is still not widely acknowledged, even at EU level, as a tool for promoting cycling as a clean alternative for motorized transport.
MegaBITS contributes to local/regional/national mobility policies, e.g. Hamburg: Green City Plan, ITS Strategy and Digital Strategy of Hamburg Flanders: Cycling Policy Plan (under development) and Mobility Vision 2040 Enschede: Cycling Vision Enschede 2030 aims for more cyclists through priority to cyclists at traffic lights, use of cycling data in monitoring Province Overijssel: ITS innovations to promote cycling Netherlands: National Cycling Vision includes ITS, thanks to BITS project.

Programme Common Output Indicator:

RCO 084 - Pilot actions developed jointly and implemented in projects, Measurement unit:
RCO 083 - Strategies and action plans jointly developed, Measurement unit:

Delivered output indicator(s):

(RCO84) Pilot actions developed jointly and implemented in projects: 756
(RCO83) Strategies and action plans jointly developed: 256

Programme Common Result Indicator:

RCR 104 - Solutions taken up or up-scaled by organisations, Measurement unit:
RCR 079 - Joint strategies and action plans taken up by organisations, Measurement unit:

Delivered result indicator(s):

(RCR104) Solutions taken up or up-scaled by organisations: 12
(RCR79) Joint strategies and action plans taken up by organisations: 8

Information regarding the data in keep.eu on the programme financing this project

Financing programme

2021 - 2027 Interreg VI-B North Sea

Latest month of project-partner-call data publication

2026-05

No. of projects in keep.eu / Total no. of projects (% of projects in keep.eu)

65 / 65 (100%)

No. of project partnerships in keep.eu / Total no. of project partnerships (% of project partnerships in keep.eu)

832 / 832 (100%)

Notes on the data

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Mobilizing Europe's Green Ambition through Bicycles and Intelligent Transport Systems [FA]

Description

Thematic information

Partners (10)

Partners map

Summary

Investments, deliverables, policy contributions

Information regarding the data in keep.eu on the programme financing this project

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