PTV Mobility (known mainly for planning software in Europe) and Econolite (traffic operations in North America) were brought together earlier this year under the brand name Umovity. Abbas Mohaddes (pictured), Umovity chairman of the board – who was then president and CEO of Econolite – recalls the early conversations about the move. “The first question was: what would that mean?” he says. “What if we bring together those two big, successful organisations from two continents and covered the A-Z for the industry – that’s when we really started getting goosebumps. Now we have a product we can promote globally – that resonated with everybody.”
Abbas Mohaddes
As a board member of ITS America, Mohaddes celebrates the organisation’s role in promoting road safety. “ITS America has always been focused on using technology for safety and the mobility of all,” he says. He points to the way that disciplines such as computing, forecasting and traffic management have come together over the years – and is delighted the Conference & Expo is back in Texas, where he started his career as a traffic engineer 40 years ago. “Texas has always been one of the big hubs of innovation and technology in the world,” he says. “And Texas DOT is one of the most active, innovative and informed DOTs in the US.”
Booth 1007
