Support for dissemination events in the field of Transport Research

HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-12 is a Horizon Europe grant opportunity under the MOBILITY call aimed at supporting the Transport Research Arena (TRA) conference planned for 2030. This initiative falls under the Horizon Coordination and Support Actions (CSA) and will provide a lump sum grant of €1,600,000 to a selected consortium. The project is designed to enhance the visibility and relevance of transport research and innovation across Europe by organizing this major international conference.

Eligible applicants include research organizations, universities, national authorities, public entities, and professional conference organizers. A strong focus is placed on consortium requirements, specifically mandating collaboration among national authorities intending to host the event, various European Technology Platforms, and a Professional Conference Organizer (PCO).

The funding is structured under the HORIZON Lump Sum Grant model, streamlining financial management compared to traditional reimbursement models. Proposals must indicate a co-funding plan, emphasizing the need for financial and organizational capacity from national authorities. The geographic scope covers EU Member States and Associated Countries.

The primary objective of this initiative is to facilitate dissemination, communication, and valorization of transport research and innovation rather than primary research execution. The conference will enable stakeholders to discuss various transport sectors including road, rail, waterborne, and aviation, emphasizing innovative solutions, sustainability, and digitalization in transport.

Applications open on June 3, 2027, with a deadline for submission set for October 7, 2027. The application process is single-stage, and proposals will be evaluated on their comprehensiveness, demonstrating a clear strategy for managing and promoting the conference and the associated awards program.

Success rates are expected to be low due to the competitive nature of the grant, with only one grant expected to be awarded for this opportunity. The role of awarded researchers and the establishment of recognition awards for young and senior researchers further underline the initiative's commitment to excellence and career development within the transport research community.

Overall, the project aims to foster collaboration, significant knowledge exchange, and the development of innovative transportation solutions, responding to broader European social and competitiveness needs.

This is a Horizon Europe grant opportunity under the MOBILITY (HORIZON-CL5-2027-06) call, specifically for "Support for dissemination events in the field of Transport Research" with the topic ID HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-12. It is a HORIZON Coordination and Support Action (HORIZON-CSA) with a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS] Model Grant Agreement. The deadline model is single-stage. The planned opening date is 03 June 2027, and the deadline is 07 October 2027 at 17:00:00 Brussels time.

The expected outcomes of the project are: a successful Transport Research Arena (TRA) conference in 2030, conference papers published in proceedings and a recognised scientific journal, higher visibility and political and strategic relevance of the transport sector and of the EU policy in the field, enhanced dissemination, communication and valorisation of transport R&I objectives, perspectives, strategies and results, more effective links and exchanges between research and innovation stakeholders, industry and policy makers to support the development and deployment of innovative solutions in Europe and Associated Countries, increased attractiveness of transport related studies and reinforce the pursuit of excellence in European transport research and innovation by giving recognition and visibility to the best achievements, successful organisation of a series of awards in transport research and innovation to recognise excellence of young and senior researchers covering all transport modes and cross-cutting issues, increased visibility, interest and number of applications for the two competitions for transport research and innovation awards.

The scope of this action involves preparing and providing support to the Transport Research Arena (TRA) conference to be organised in 2030. This conference will gather transport stakeholders to discuss political, industrial, and research issues on a European and global level. The event should address the technological and industrial developments of the transport sector, including road, rail, waterborne, aviation sectors, and cross-modal aspects. It aims to provide a high-level, future-oriented perspective from politics, industry, and the research community, responding to Europe’s social and competitiveness needs and expectations. Specific attention should be given to broad and balanced participation, including students, young researchers, women, under-represented groups, and representatives from many countries.

The action will be implemented in close collaboration with the Management and Programme Committees of the TRA, which includes the European Commission services, the different European Technology Platforms (ERTRAC for road, ERRAC for rail, WATERBORNE TP for waterborne, ALICE for logistics and ACARE for aeronautics and ECTP for construction), the Conference of European Directors of Roads (CEDR), the European Transport Research Alliance (ETRA) and the previous TRA conference organiser (TRA 2028) in order to maintain continuity of the event.

Proposals should address the following aspects: Demonstrate the financial and organisational capacity of the national authorities interested to host the event and provide an economic plan covering the potential additional funding needs. Describe the involvement of the Member State holding the Presidency of the European Union in year 2030 to better ensure a high political and strategic relevance. Support the definition of the overall planning of the conference, including the main thematic pillars of the event as well as the structuring of the technical and political sessions. Contribute to the identification and selection of an appropriate conference venue, support the organisation of the conference’s logistics and include a Professional Conference Organiser (PCO) in the consortium. Provide operational support to the TRA conference, such as in relation to the website and conference management IT tools (e.g. for the registration of participants, handling of speakers’ contributions, submission and selection of scientific papers, conference application). Support the organisation of the demonstration activities and technical visits. Assess and monitor the environmental impact of the event and propose appropriate measures to reduce and mitigate this impact. Organise of high-quality awards series for transport research and innovation awards (TRA VISIONS) covering all transport modes and cross-cutting issues including technological, socio-economic, and behavioural aspects, in line with the EU policy objectives for digitalisation and climate-neutral and environmentally friendly mobility: An award stream for students and young researchers with the goal of stimulating the interest among young researchers/students to develop innovative solutions in the field of transport; An award stream for senior researchers in the field of innovative transport concepts based on results from EU-funded projects only. This will include in addition, a special honorary award as a recognition of outstanding and well-recognised contribution to transport-related research and innovation of a senior researcher who is about to complete or has completed his/her career. Involve the awarded researchers in the conference programme and promote links between the researchers and possible career development opportunities in the field (e.g. traineeships, jobs, courses, training). Foresee a very good media coverage and dissemination activities before, during and after the event for both the TRA conference and for the TRA VISIONS. A mechanism should be put in place to clearly track outreach efforts and evaluate their impact.

The general conditions include: Admissibility Conditions (proposal page limit and layout described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and Part B of the Application Form), Eligible Countries (described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes, with specific provisions for non-EU/non-Associated Countries), Other Eligible Conditions (projects using satellite data must use Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS), Financial and operational capacity and exclusion (described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes), Evaluation and award criteria, scoring and thresholds (described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes), Submission and evaluation processes (described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual), Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement (described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes), and Legal and financial set-up of the grants (eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021, described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes).

Specific conditions are Not applicable.

Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA) information: Application form templates are available in the Submission System (Standard application form (HE CSA)), Evaluation form templates will be used with necessary adaptations (Standard evaluation form (HE CSA)), Guidance is provided in the HE Programme Guide, Model Grant Agreements (MGA) include the Lump Sum MGA, Call-specific instructions are available, a Detailed budget table (HE LS) is required, and guidance on "Lump sums - what do I need to know?" is provided.

Additional documents include: HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 1. General Introduction, HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 8. Climate, Energy and Mobility, HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 15. General Annexes, HE Programme Guide, HE Framework Programme 2021/695, HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764, EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme, Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment, EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement, Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions, and Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement.

The budget overview for the year 2027 includes several topics: HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-04 (HORIZON-RIA, 5,500,000 EUR, 1 grant), HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-05 (HORIZON-CSA, 4,000,000 EUR, 1 grant), HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-08 (HORIZON-IA, 21,000,000 EUR, 3 grants), HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-11 (HORIZON-IA, 5,000,000 EUR, 1 grant), and HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-12 (HORIZON-CSA, 1,600,000 EUR, 1 grant). All are single-stage actions with the same opening and deadline dates.

There are 2 partner search announcements. LEARs, Account Administrators, and self-registrants can publish partner requests.

The submission system is planned to open on the date stated in the topic header. There are no topic Q&As available. General FAQs are available.

Support is available through the Online Manual, Horizon Europe Programme Guide, Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ, Research Enquiry Service, National Contact Points (NCPs), Enterprise Europe Network, IT Helpdesk, European IPR Helpdesk, CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk, and Partner Search.

In summary, this Horizon Europe call focuses on providing support for the Transport Research Arena (TRA) conference in 2030. The goal is to enhance the visibility, relevance, and impact of transport research and innovation in Europe. The funding will be allocated as a lump sum, and the project should involve a wide range of stakeholders, including researchers, industry representatives, policymakers, and national authorities. The project should also address the environmental impact of the conference and promote excellence in transport research through awards and career development opportunities. The call aims to foster collaboration, knowledge sharing, and the development of innovative solutions for the transport sector.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated in the provided text. However, based on the context of Horizon Europe and the nature of Coordination and Support Actions (CSA), eligible applicants could include a wide range of entities such as universities, research institutes, SMEs, large enterprises, national authorities, European Technology Platforms, and other relevant stakeholders in the transport sector. The inclusion of national authorities and a Professional Conference Organiser (PCO) in the consortium is specifically encouraged.

Funding Type: The funding type is a grant, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant, which falls under HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (HORIZON-CSA). Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021 authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme.

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity appears to favor a consortium approach, as it explicitly mentions the inclusion of a Professional Conference Organiser (PCO) in the consortium and encourages collaboration with various European Technology Platforms and the Management and Programme Committees of the TRA. However, the text does not explicitly exclude single applicants.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU Member States and Associated Countries. The text also mentions that a number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects.

Target Sector: The primary target sector is the transport sector, encompassing road, rail, waterborne, aviation, and cross-modal aspects. The program also targets the dissemination, communication, and valorisation of transport research and innovation (R&I) objectives.

Mentioned Countries: The text mentions "EU Member State holding the Presidency of the European Union in year 2030". It also mentions "non-EU/non-Associated Countries".

Project Stage: The project stage is focused on preparing and supporting the Transport Research Arena (TRA) conference to be organised in 2030. This includes planning, logistical support, dissemination, and the organisation of awards. Therefore, the project stage is primarily focused on the development, demonstration, and validation stages, leading up to the commercialization of research and innovation in the transport sector.

Funding Amount: The budget for the HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-12 topic is EUR 1,600,000. Other related topics under the same call have varying budgets:
HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-04 (HORIZON-RIA): EUR 5,500,000
HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-05 (HORIZON-CSA): EUR 4,000,000
HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-08 (HORIZON-IA): EUR 21,000,000 (around EUR 7,000,000 per grant, with 3 grants)
HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-11 (HORIZON-IA): EUR 5,000,000

Application Type: The application type is an open call with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: The beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a lump sum grant to support the coordination and support actions related to the TRA conference.

Application Stages: The application process involves a single stage.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned, but the indicative number of grants for the HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-12 topic is 1. For HORIZON-CL5-2027-06-D6-08 the indicative number of grants is 3.

Co-funding Requirement: The text mentions that national authorities interested in hosting the event should demonstrate their financial capacity and provide an economic plan covering potential additional funding needs, which suggests that co-funding or in-kind contributions may be necessary.

Summary: This Horizon Europe funding opportunity, under the MOBILITY call (HORIZON-CL5-2027-06), aims to support the preparation and execution of the Transport Research Arena (TRA) conference in 2030. The focus is on bringing together transport stakeholders to discuss political, industrial, and research issues at a European and global level. The funding, provided as a lump sum grant, is intended to enhance the visibility and relevance of the transport sector, promote innovative solutions, and foster collaboration between research, industry, and policymakers. Eligible applicants should form a consortium that includes a Professional Conference Organiser (PCO) and demonstrate the financial and organisational capacity to host the event. The project should address various aspects of conference planning, logistical support, dissemination, and the organisation of transport research and innovation awards. The ultimate goal is to contribute to the development and deployment of innovative transport solutions in Europe and Associated Countries, while also increasing the attractiveness of transport-related studies and careers.