The UK’s Transport Systems Catapult (TSC), a transport solutions firm, has announced that businesses and academic institutes it leads will develop state-of-the-art innovations for governing bodies within the Middle East – starting in Dubai.

The programme is the result of an alliance between The TSC and Dubai & UK based innovation and IT Infrastructure company Texpo which signed an agreement in principle to explore potential prospects in the UAE earlier this year and have now agreed a “dynamic framework which will administer innovative programmes in Dubai to develop leading-edge transportation systems”.

The TSC said that, in collaboration with Texpo, it will co-ordinate innovative small business and universities in the UK to develop a series of projects to alleviate congestion, improve transportation safety and augment Public Transport Ridership.

TSC and Texpo team at the agreement signing ceremony

The projects, extensively based on AI and Blockchain, will improve application of data across Dubai’s public transport, Traffic and Roads Agency, Dubai Taxi, Rail Agency, and Licensing Agency. These projects will also address Connected and Autonomous Vehicles, Virtual Reality testing, Artificial Intelligence and integrated business models.

Furthermore, this working framework will help TSC and Texpo predict and identify the Dubai Government’s ongoing and forthcoming requirements and challenges around hosting the World Expo 2020 and achieving their 2030 Mobility strategy.

Transport Systems Catapult CEO Paul Campion, said: “Dubai is a city that fearlessly embraces innovation, with a powerful vision to create a world leading transport system to support their ambitions. We are excited to be announcing this fantastic opportunity for UK businesses and research institutes. Our agreement with Texpo recognises the strength of UK innovation and the vast eco-system of SME’s working in the UK on ground-breaking transport solutions. We will be giving UK organisations access to a progressive new market on the international stage, as well as the opportunity to shape the future transport of Dubai as the city seeks to become a world leader.”

CEO of Texpo, Raheel Alam, commented: “Signing this agreement with the Transport Systems Catapult is a notable instance of Texpo steering the most progressive innovations by various UK companies into the region we operate. This mutually conducive collaboration would prove advantageous to several Governments within the UAE and beyond.

“It is indeed a great privilege and honour for Texpo to be playing its part in the expansive growth of the UAE, particularly Dubai. We believe that our world-class innovation around transportation and logistics can play a strategic role in the advancement of Dubai and help set up the future cities and modern transportations as per the directives of HH Sheikh Muhammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President of UAE & Ruler of Dubai”.

From its base in the UAE, Texpo has created a high profile governmental and public-sector client portfolio across the Middle East, and Central and South Asia. The company provides end-to-end IT infrastructure services for large-scale telecommunication networks, design and development of Satcom systems, design and build of major data centers, and complex IT application services to governments for citizen-centric portals. Recent projects include the implementation of systems at the Dubai Roads and Transportation Authority’s (RTA) Data Center.