IATR is pleased to welcome Gonzalo Alcaraz, Director General of the International Road Federation (IRF), as its newest advisory board member. IRF is the world’s leading organisation dedicated to promoting safer, greener and more sustainable road systems worldwide.

On joining the IATR Advisory Board, Gonzalo said, “It is a privilege to join the IATR Advisory Board at a time when transportation regulators are navigating unprecedented complexity, from new mobility modes to automation and decarbonisation. Headquartered in Geneva and active on every continent, IRF has long believed that safer, more sustainable mobility depends on bringing together regulators, industry and civil society across borders. I look forward to contributing an international perspective, sharing best practices from IRF’s global membership and working with fellow board members to advance regulatory frameworks that place road safety and sustainability outcomes at the centre of innovation.”

Matt Daus, IATR President, said, “We are honoured to welcome Gonzalo Alcaraz and the IRF to the IATR Advisory Board. Gonzalo brings an impressive background and a strong commitment to improving road safety and sustainable infrastructure worldwide. IRF has played a vital role in advancing collaboration between governments, industry leaders and transportation stakeholders across the world and its global perspective will be an important asset to IATR as regulators continue adapting to evolving mobility technologies and transportation models. We look forward to working closely with Gonzalo and IRF to help advance practical, forward-looking regulatory approaches that prioritise safety, innovation and public benefit.”

In this role, Gonzalo leads IRF’s international programs, policy advocacy, and member engagement by working with governments, multilateral institutions and industry leaders to advance road safety, sustainable infrastructure and connected and automated mobility.

Over a 15-year career spanning IoT engineering, intelligent transportation systems, autonomous fleet management and transport policy, he has worked in the European private sector before moving into international institutional leadership. He has represented the road sector at major events and forums around the world and mentors early-stage ventures through Techstars accelerator programs. He holds degrees from Universidad Blas Pascal (Argentina), Politecnico di Torino (Italy) and Blekinge Institute of Technology (Sweden) and works in four languages.

Active since 1948, the IRF is an international, membership-based organisation headquartered in Geneva that shapes the future of road and transport infrastructure systems for people and the planet. Mobilising the world’s road transport ecosystem through a trusted platform for collaboration, we provide practical knowledge, policy engagement and capacity building to support countries and industry leaders deliver road systems that are inclusive, safe, green and efficient.

As transportation regulation and technology evolve, more government entities and stakeholders are taking on roles in overseeing, coordinating and regulating both emerging and established industry participants. IATR members now regulate not only taxicabs and limousines, but also pedicabs, Transportation Network Companies (TNCs), liveries, black cars, app-based firms, jitneys, shuttles, microtransit services and public and private paratransit. In many regions, they also collect transportation data from licensees and work with technology vendors, automakers and other businesses connected to for-hire ground transportation providers, drivers, and vehicle owners through permitting, authorisation, franchising and regulation.

This expanding regulatory landscape includes airport authorities, multimodal public transit agencies, local transportation and traffic departments, state highway and transportation agencies, public utilities commissions, consumer affairs agencies, taxi and limousine or for-hire departments, police departments, state agriculture departments and weights and measures agencies or divisions. It also now includes state Departments of Motor Vehicles, certain federal agencies, international ministries, land transport authorities and social service regulators responsible for Non-Emergency Medical Transportation. IATR’s diverse membership of government agencies helps the organisation collaborate with peer nonprofits that support education and advocacy, reinforcing the mission and objectives of IATR.

In response to this fast-changing landscape of new mobility, oversight, decarbonisation and road safety, IATR includes a range of organisations on its advisory board to ensure that strong guidance, practical insight and leading practices are shared through conferences, subcommittees, joint projects and industry hackathons. Advisory board members include Together for Safer Roads, the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), the University Transportation Research Center (UTRC) and the Non-Emergency Medical Transportation Accreditation Commission.

Article originally published by IATR