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TANGENT · Project

Smart Traffic Management Tools That Cut Travel Time and Emissions Across All Transport Modes

transportPilotedTRL 6
tangent-h2020.eu

Imagine a city where buses, trams, cars, bikes, and delivery trucks all talk to each other through one smart system — instead of each running on its own schedule causing jams and delays. TANGENT built software tools that predict where traffic will pile up and automatically suggest how to spread people and goods across different transport options. They tested it in real cities like Lisbon, Rennes, and Manchester, using actual traffic data from roads, public transport, and even pedestrian flows. Think of it like a GPS for an entire city's transport network, not just one driver.

By the numbers
10%
Reduction in travel time
8-10%
Reduction in CO2 emissions
5%
Reduction in accidents
5-10%
Increase in public transport and active mode usage
10%
Reduction in economic costs due to more efficient management
16
Consortium partners
9
Countries represented
39
Total deliverables produced
3
Real-city case studies (Rennes, Lisbon, Greater Manchester)
The business problem

What needed solving

Cities lose billions annually to traffic congestion, with emissions rising and accidents persisting because each transport mode — buses, cars, bikes, freight — is managed separately with no coordination. Transport authorities lack tools that can predict demand shifts in real time and optimize across all modes simultaneously, especially as connected and autonomous vehicles enter the mix.

The solution

What was built

TANGENT delivered a coordinated traffic management system including: prediction and simulation models for transport demand and supply, optimization tools for balancing passenger and freight flows across modes, travel choice behaviour models (released as working code in two iterations), a decision-support dashboard with APIs for real-time and strategic recommendations, and communication channels for multi-actor transport coordination.

Audience

Who needs this

City and regional transport authorities managing multimodal networksUrban freight and last-mile delivery operators fighting congestionITS software vendors building mobility-as-a-service platformsPublic transport operators seeking to increase ridershipSmart city consultancies advising municipalities on transport strategy
Business applications

Who can put this to work

Urban Mobility & Transport Authorities
enterprise
Target: City transport management agencies and metropolitan transport authorities

If you are a transport authority dealing with growing congestion and rising CO2 targets — TANGENT developed a decision-support dashboard with APIs that gives real-time traffic management recommendations across all modes. Tested in Rennes, Lisbon, and Greater Manchester, it targets a 10% reduction in travel time and 8-10% cut in CO2 emissions. The tools help you shift demand between transport modes dynamically instead of building more roads.

Logistics & Freight Management
mid-size
Target: Urban freight operators and last-mile delivery companies

If you are a logistics company struggling with urban delivery delays and route inefficiency — TANGENT built prediction and simulation models that cover both passenger and freight transport in multimodal networks. The optimization techniques balance demand flows between transport modes, targeting 10% reduction in economic costs from more efficient management. This means fewer trucks stuck in congestion and better coordination with public transport schedules.

Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) Vendors
any
Target: Software companies building traffic management and mobility-as-a-service platforms

If you are an ITS vendor looking to add multimodal optimization to your product — TANGENT delivered a set of travel choice models with working code, prediction engines, and transport network optimization algorithms. The system handles both automated and non-automated vehicles, with APIs ready for integration. With 39 deliverables including two releases of travel choice modelling code, there is substantial IP to license or build upon.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to implement these tools in our city or network?

The project data does not include specific licensing or implementation costs. As a publicly funded RIA project, the core research outputs may be available through open access or licensing agreements with the consortium. Contact the coordinator at Universidad de Deusto to discuss terms.

Can this scale beyond the three pilot cities to other urban areas?

TANGENT was tested in three real cities (Rennes, Lisbon, Greater Manchester) plus a virtual case study in Athens, each with different traffic conditions and transport modes. The tools were designed as a general-purpose set with APIs and a dashboard, suggesting they can be adapted to other cities. Scaling would require local traffic data integration.

Who owns the intellectual property and how can we license it?

The consortium of 16 partners across 9 countries jointly developed the tools. IP ownership typically follows Horizon 2020 rules where each partner owns what they created. The travel choice modelling code was delivered in two releases, suggesting structured IP that could be licensed through the coordinating university.

Does this work with connected and autonomous vehicles?

Yes. TANGENT explicitly designed its tools to handle both automated and non-automated vehicles in the same network. The prediction and simulation models account for mixed traffic scenarios, which is critical as cities see growing numbers of autonomous shuttles and delivery robots alongside conventional vehicles.

What measurable improvements can we expect?

Based on the project objectives, TANGENT targets 10% reduction in travel time, 8-10% reduction in CO2 emissions, 5% fewer accidents, 5-10% increase in public transport and active mode usage, and 10% reduction in economic costs. These targets were tested against real-world data in the pilot cities.

Does this meet EU transport and emissions regulations?

TANGENT was funded under the Horizon 2020 MG-2-11-2020 topic focused on traffic management. The CO2 reduction targets of 8-10% directly support European Green Deal compliance. The multimodal approach aligns with EU Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan requirements that many cities must now follow.

How does it integrate with our existing traffic management systems?

The project delivered a dashboard with associated APIs specifically designed for integration. The system provides both real-time recommendations and strategic planning support, and enables multi-actor cooperation through built-in communication channels. This two-fold approach means it can layer on top of existing infrastructure.

Consortium

Who built it

TANGENT brings together 16 partners from 9 countries with a strong industry orientation — 8 industrial partners (50% of the consortium) and 5 SMEs. This is a well-balanced team for a transport technology project: two universities provide the research backbone, two research organizations add domain expertise, and the industry partners ensure practical applicability. The coordinator is Universidad de Deusto in Spain. The geographic spread across Belgium, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, and the UK covers major European transport markets. For a business looking to adopt these tools, the high industry ratio signals that the solutions were built with commercial deployment in mind, not just academic publication.

How to reach the team

Universidad de la Iglesia de Deusto (Spain) — reach out through their research transfer office or the TANGENT project website contact page.

Order a report on this consortiumSee UNIVERSIDAD DE LA IGLESIA DE DEUSTO ENTIDAD RELIGIOSA profile →
Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want an introduction to the TANGENT team or a tailored brief on how their tools fit your city or network? Contact SciTransfer — we connect businesses with EU research teams.

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