March 2, 2009
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UITP to Convene 58th Congress; FTA, APTA Promoting U.S. Firms
The International Association of Public Transport’s (UITP) 58th World Congress and concurrent Mobility & City Transport Exhibition will take place June 7-11 in Vienna, Austria. The Federal Transit Administration, working in conjunction with APTA and the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service in Vienna, is providing assistance to participating U.S. companies.
 They have created a business plan for U.S. participants in the show, which includes elements of business matchmaking, market information, and networking—and extends beyond Austria into central and eastern Europe. CS Vienna will also provide U.S. firms with information about pending public transportation projects in the region.
In addition to promoting the show and the exhibit to U.S. companies in America and Europe, CS Vienna will work with area partner offices to advance the presence of the U.S. exhibitors to likely UITP participants throughout the region. Other activities will include a half-day business seminar for U.S. companies and a reception for approximately 100 invited guests.
The theme of the UITP World Congress is “Public Transport: making the right mobility choices,” which changes the question facing communities from whether to invest in public transportation to selecting which mode is the best option for their needs.
John Inglish, general manager and chief executive officer of the Utah Transit Authority in Salt Lake City, will speak at the event, as will more than 100 other individuals representing 36 countries.
Public transportation provides approximately 5.5 million trips each weekday throughout Austria—or 2,084 miles on average per person per year, the largest figure in the European Union. Wiener Linien, the Vienna public transport company, operates a public transport network of 120 lines (including five underground lines, 32 tram lines and 83 bus lines), and 782 underground trains, 527 tram cars and 478 buses that operate with liquefied petroleum gas.
More information is available by contacting FTA’s Rita Daguillard.
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