Athens, Greece, July 3, 2025 — The International Road Federation (IRF) held its Annual Summit and Strategy Workshop from June 29 to July 3, 2025, in Athens, Greece, convening global mobility leaders, policymakers, and infrastructure experts. Among the distinguished participants was Mr. Akhilesh Srivastava, President of the IRF India Chapter and ITS India Forum, representing India at the global stage in his first official participation as the newly elected IRF IC President. His presence signified a growing global recognition of India’s transformative journey in intelligent transportation systems (ITS), road safety, and digital mobility.
This year’s summit focused on redefining the strategic
roadmap for IRF’s 2025–2030 vision, emphasizing a more impactful, inclusive,
and intergenerational approach to road infrastructure and sustainable mobility. Mr. Akhilesh Srivastava, as a core member of the IRF Strategy
Group and a newly elected member of the IRF Board of Directors, contributed
significantly to these deliberations.
Shaping IRF’s Five-Year Strategy
At the Strategy Workshop, IRF
leadership, including newly confirmed President Dimitrios Mandalozis, and
re-elected Board Members such as Bill M. Halkias, Anouar BENAZZOUZ, Nicolas
Miravalls, and others, worked alongside new appointees like Mr. Akhilesh Srivastava to set a new agenda for IRF’s future.
Discussions revolved around:
· Mainstreaming Artificial
Intelligence (AI) and digital twin technologies in infrastructure management
·
Strengthening
international collaboration on road safety and ITS standards
· Scaling capacity building and
knowledge transfer initiatives, particularly for Global South nations
·
Supporting harmonized road user
charging systems and sustainable financing models
Mr. Akhilesh
Srivastava’s insights, grounded in India’s large-scale implementation of ITS
and tolling reforms, were particularly well received. He emphasized India’s
ongoing evolution from manual to digital and satellite-based tolling,
successful AI-powered ATMS deployments, and the use of CV2X technologies for
emergency preemption systems.
Highlighting
India’s Leadership in Traffic Management
At
the Traffic Management Symposium, held as part of the IRF Summit, Mr. Akhilesh Srivastava actively participated in discussions
addressing future-ready traffic governance. He showcased India’s innovations in
traffic management, particularly the NHAI Data Lake project, implementation of
GNSS tolling pilots, and the landmark “Road Safety 2.0” initiative, adopted
across multiple states.
His presentation highlighted India’s capability to scale complex ITS
projects with strong public-private collaboration. Real-world examples, such as
the CV2X Emergency Corridor in Bengaluru and Intelligent Traffic Enforcement
through AI-ANPR in Delhi and Maharashtra, illustrated India’s unique ability to
create customized, scalable, and outcome-focused digital solutions.
Strengthening
Strategic International Ties
The Athens Summit
also served as a powerful forum for bilateral and multilateral collaboration.
Mr. Akhilesh Srivastava engaged with global leaders to deepen India’s
integration with key international stakeholders:
- Joost Vantomme, President of
ERTICO-ITS Europe, and Mr. Akhilesh
Srivastava discussed harmonizing ITS standards between Europe and India.
Their meeting highlighted the need for enhanced collaboration on 5G V2X,
data governance in connected mobility, and safety-critical
interoperability.
- Dimitrios Mandalozis, the newly
elected IRF Global President, welcomed India’s increasing role.
Mr. Akhilesh Srivastava conveyed India’s readiness to co-lead global
discussions on mobility-as-a-service and sustainable transport finance
models.
- Norbert Schindler, Founder of GNSS
Consulting, expressed his appreciation for India’s adoption of GNSS
tolling. Their discussions focused on learnings from European tolling
transitions, and possible collaborations to enhance satellite-based
tolling architecture in India.
These meetings
underscored India’s readiness to not only adopt global best practices but also
to contribute meaningfully to shaping them.
Recognition of
Indian Innovation on Global Platforms
It was a proud
moment to see Indian innovations receive recognition at this prestigious global
event. Companies such as Kataline Infraproducts, known for their
intelligent road safety interventions, Interise Trust for their
innovative works, and TRL works in Kerala, were honored for their
innovative contributions to road infrastructure development in India.
Kataline was honored under the IRF Circle of Excellence for its
data-driven intervention at Waddhamna Junction. Interise Trust also received
accolades for pioneering road infrastructure models that address last-mile and
underserved regional needs. These recognitions serve as a testament to the
progress Indian companies are making by combining indigenous innovation with
global standards. The fact that such interventions are being piloted in Indian
states like Maharashtra and Kerala and acknowledged internationally is a clear
indication that India is moving towards becoming a global leader in digital
road safety.
Mr. Akhilesh Srivastava congratulated these teams and
reiterated IRF India Chapter’s commitment to supporting and amplifying such
impactful work. He also shared the plans for expanding the IRF Innovation
Accelerator in India to nurture similar startups in the field of AI-enabled
infrastructure and ITS.
Charting the
Course to Atlanta and Beyond
As
the IRF Summit concluded, attention turned toward the ITS World Congress
2025, to be held in Atlanta. Under Mr. Akhilesh Srivastava’s
leadership, the IRF India Chapter will coordinate India’s country presence and
technical showcase at this global forum. The India
Pavilion will highlight use cases on Free-flow tolling, integrated ATMS
platforms, digital enforcement systems, and the Safe Driving Score framework.
Additionally, strategic planning is underway to
host a special session titled “India@2047: Digital Highways and Safer Roads”,
featuring senior Indian government officials and global partners. This
initiative will mark India’s vision for future-ready infrastructure aligned
with the goals of Viksit Bharat 2047.
A Transformative Moment for India
India’s participation in
the IRF Annual Summit and Strategy Workshop 2025 was not just symbolic—it was
transformational. It positioned India as a frontrunner in the global mobility
transformation, bringing real-world deployments, research-backed frameworks,
and policy innovations to the international arena.
Mr. Akhilesh Srivastava’s leadership, backed by his deep
involvement in India’s digital transformation journey in highways, road safety,
and transport governance, brought clarity and momentum to India’s voice on
global platforms. His inclusion in the IRF Board ensures that India will
continue to shape the next generation of sustainable mobility solutions and
contribute toward global knowledge sharing.
As India prepares for its ambitious highway expansion under the PM
Gati Shakti and Bharatmala programs, aligned with AI, data-driven monitoring,
and carbon-neutral design, the learnings from Athens will serve as a cornerstone
in aligning with global benchmarks.
Looking at India’s spectacular and consistent
progress in road infrastructure development over the last decade—under the
visionary leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and the
dynamic guidance of Hon’ble Minister Shri Nitin Gadkari—the world is now
looking toward India with high expectations. This
growing confidence was strongly echoed during the Athens summit, where several
international partners expressed their enthusiasm to join India’s flagship
event GRIS-2026 (Global Road Infratech Summit) to be held on 5–6
February 2026 at The Ashok Hotel, New Delhi.
This annual summit, hosted by the IRF India Chapter, will serve as a
global platform to showcase India’s innovations, policy leadership, and opportunities
in road infrastructure and smart mobility. With participation expected from
over 30 countries and top global companies, GRIS-2026 promises to be one of the
most consequential events in the global mobility calendar.
Conclusion
The IRF Annual Summit 2025 in Athens stands out as
a historic moment for India’s international mobility diplomacy. From policy
shaping to innovation showcasing, and from collaborative partnerships to
recognition of excellence, India’s presence was influential, strategic, and forward-looking.
Through continued collaboration with global partners and an
unwavering focus on sustainable, intelligent, and inclusive infrastructure, the
IRF India Chapter under Mr. Akhilesh Srivastava is poised to lead India’s
mobility transformation into its most impactful era yet.
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