Future of transport mobility - keeping the sector safe and secure

techUK’s Intelligent Mobility and Transport Steering Board’s goal is to deliver a digitally enabled, inclusive and integrated transport network in the UK. It collaborates with the UK government to provide strategy and ideas, respond to consultations, and react to multiple different papers regarding transport legislation and building a connected future for transport in the UK.

Key projects include:

• Providing expert views on the Great British Rail Transformation – which aims to tackle cost and promote energy efficiency in the transport sector.
• Supporting the Supply Chain Summit, to influence the global transport supply chain.
• Engaging with the Department for Transport’s Future of Freight strategy - the first cross-modal, cross-governmental plan for the UK freight and logistics sector.
• Providing thought-leadership to raise awareness around how transport and technology can be part of the solution to the cost-of-living crisis.

The Board welcomes internal contributions from a wide range of member organisations including cyber security firms such as NCC Group, to ensure all voices are heard. By including these companies in discussions, policymakers and the transport community can be confident in knowing that cyber security is, and security agendas, are included during techUK’s information gathering processes.

Following her appointment as vice chair of the techUK Intelligent Mobility and Transport Steering Board, NCC Group’s senior security consultant Dr Liz James shares more about how by advising and collaborating with policymakers, she will be helping to keep the smart transport sector secure.

Why did you join the council, what will your role be?

I put myself forward for this role because I felt that giving both info and cyber security a prominent voice would ensure that the future of transport and mobility would be safer and more secure. In this role I will be focusing on facilitating conversations and reviewing both our strategy and deliverables from a cyber safety perspective to highlight any risks and security issues in advance.

How will NCC Group’s research help and give you insight in this role?

I’m a research engineer and have spent my time at NCC Group building both a broad range of experiences across the transport sector and a huge range of contacts. Leveraging NCC Group’s research and huge community of cyber specialists, I will sense check and regulate ideas and objectives passing through the board, to ensure that digital ramifications and safe data collection are at the forefront of any decisions being made.

It’s really important to ensure that someone with cyber awareness is involved in these conversations with policymakers and other organisations across the transport ecosystem.

What does this mean for the future?

By encouraging cyber professionals such as myself to join the Intelligent Mobility and Transport Steering Board, it not only addresses a skills gap but ensures safety and security will be at the forefront of the Board’s engagement with policymakers.

In my new role I look forward to working with my fellow Board members, policymakers and other organisations to make a meaningful contribution to the transport sector. I am proud to be working on this Board, implementing new ideas and discussion points, and look forward to seeing a more connected future for the transport sector.