CCAM on the Move: Global Insights from ITS World Congress Atlanta

Tom Alkim, Strategic Advisor Connected & Automated Mobility for the Dutch company MAPtm and recently inducted into the Intertraffic International Advisory Board, traveled to Atlanta for the ITS World Congress and ITFVHA. As chairman of the International Task Force on Vehicle-Highway Automation (ITFVHA) he organizes this unique, by invitation only meeting, that traditionally takes place the day before the World Congress kicks off. More than 50 experts from across the globe gathered in Atlanta for a full day to share International developments and discuss a variety aspects related to CCAM (Connected, Cooperative & Automated Mobility). Intertraffic is one of several sponsors of this meeting and as a spin-off will likely see many participants come to Amsterdam next year to continue the CCAM debates.
 

The motto of the World Congress was deploying today, empowering tomorrow and CCAM was one of the main ingredients. Not for the sake of technology itself, but to help shape responsible mobility systems across the globe that are safe, sustainable, efficient and inclusive for all. And deployments are indeed taking place already from robo-taxis in the US and China, to automated shared transportation in Europe and Japan and even automated trucks in Texas, Shanghai and Sweden.

 
Tom Alkim with the Intertraffic team at the Olympic Rings, Atlanta
 

Tom either spoke or moderated in no less than five sessions in the fully packed program, sharing insights, learning new developments and engaging in constructive dialogues with multiple stakeholders. From the congress, but also the exhibition and even the city of Atlanta itself, it became clear that the learning by doing approach combined with crawl, walk run is starting to pay off. One of the hottest tickets in town was trying to get a Waymo ride through the Uber app as the service has been open to the public since June 2025. Not everyone was successful as demand was clearly higher than supply, but on the last day before flying back, Tom managed to get two interesting rides with Waymo. Compared to earlier experiences over the past years in San Francisco and Los Angeles, the progress is noticeable, and the rides are getting smoother and more assertive.

 
Waymo autonomous car during ITS World Congress in Atlanta
 

If you want to know more about international CCAM developments, save the the date for the upcoming Intertraffic in Amsterdam (10-13 March 2026), where Tom and other international experts will be present to share their knowledge and experiences in multiple sessions and on the exhibition floor.