The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) announced its partnership plans to establish its Research and Innovation Centre at the University of Birmingham’s new campus at Dubai Academic City.

It will create a facility that will help drive the RTA’s innovation agenda and support the next generation of innovators, start-ups, universities and technology companies to collaborate effectively to manifest the latest innovations in the areas of transportation and mobility.

Nasser Abu Shehab, CEO, Strategy and Corporate Governance, on behalf of the RTA, and Prof. David Sadler, University of Birmingham Dubai Provost, on behalf of the university, have signed the agreement in the presence of Wendy Morton MP, UK Minister of State in the Department for Transport, who is visiting the campus whilst representing the UK Government in the UAE.

The signing builds on an agreement signed in 2019 to develop the education and research programme which has resulted in a one-of-a-kind partnership between the authority and a university to establish an Innovation and R&D Centre inside a university. The centre which is 1,151 square metres, spread across two floors will feature co-working spaces, prototype areas and facilities to conduct Innovation Labs and Training Programmes.

Nasser Abu Shehab commented, "Pursuing the vision of RTA ‘To be the world leader in seamless and sustainable mobility’, to demonstrate innovation leadership of the authority, the engagement with our key strategic partners such as universities, start-ups, partners and customers is the RTA’s key success factor. The Innovation and R&D Centre at the University of Birmingham Dubai is an important milestone in the ‘RTA’s Innovation Roadmap’ as it will not only provide tools and resources to enhance the culture of innovation and experimentation at the RTA, but it will also allow the authority to effectively engage with external ecosystem."

The centre will support an education and research programme based at the campus, which opens shortly to deliver a flexible, hi-tech student experience.

The Centre will also aim to support and strengthen the collaboration between the two organisations in the areas of education and training programmes and scientific research.

Wendy Morton said, "This partnership between Dubai and the University of Birmingham is a fantastic opportunity to drive innovation in transport and create exciting opportunities for research and education."

Prof. Sadler commented, "We are proud to work with the RTA in further building a partnership that will drive innovation in roads and transport, whilst creating exciting opportunities for research and education collaboration.

"We look forward to welcoming the RTA staff to their new home within our iconic new campus and anticipate many years of fruitful co-operation ahead, as we work together to innovate and train the next generation of UAE transport engineers."

The transport education and research programme provide a means for the RTA to access all academic programmes offered by the University.