Event Report: Amsterdam 2025

Special Thanks and Event Setting

A special word of thanks goes to Gazelle and, in particular, to Maarten Pelgrim, whose outstanding commitment was instrumental in making the event a success. By providing the inspiring venue “MOVE Amsterdam,” Maarten and the Gazelle team created the perfect setting for collaboration, innovation, and hands-on demonstrations. Their dedication extended far beyond logistics: Maarten played a central role in organizing the event and ensuring a welcoming atmosphere for all participants. One of the true highlights was the guided bike tour through Amsterdam, personally arranged and led by the local team. This unforgettable experience allowed attendees to discover the city’s iconic cycling culture, explore hidden gems, and gain firsthand insight into why Amsterdam is considered the biking capital of the world.

Special recognition also goes to Christian Cosyns from Bosch eBike Systems, who skillfully moderated the event. Christian’s professionalism and dedication—together with the collective efforts of all organizing partners—ensured a smooth program, engaging discussions, and a collaborative atmosphere throughout the event.

The Coalition for Cyclist Safety held its inaugural face-to-face event on April 9-10, 2025, in Amsterdam, marking a pivotal moment for global efforts to improve cyclist safety. This landmark gathering brought together a diverse group of influential leaders from the automotive industry, cycling brands, technology innovators, and road safety advocates, all united by a shared mission: to make roads safer for cyclists through the accelerated deployment of Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) technology.

Amsterdam, renowned for its cycling culture and progressive urban mobility policies, provided the ideal backdrop for this international summit. The event served as a platform for open dialogue, knowledge exchange, and hands-on demonstrations, fostering cross-sector collaboration and inspiring new partnerships. Participants explored the urgent need for innovative solutions, recognizing that traditional measures such as infrastructural improvements, driver education, enforcement, and visibility enhancements, while important, are no longer sufficient to address the rising challenges faced by an increasing number of cyclists in increasingly complex traffic environments.

Central to the event was the Coalition’s commitment to the Vision Zero philosophy—the goal of eliminating all traffic fatalities and serious injuries. By bringing together key stakeholders from across industries and geographies, the Coalition aims to drive the adoption of advanced technologies like V2X, which enable real-time communication between vehicles, cyclists, and infrastructure. This technology holds the promise of preventing crashes before they occur, fundamentally transforming road safety for vulnerable users.

The Amsterdam event featured a dynamic program of keynote speeches, interactive workshops, and live technology demonstrations. These sessions not only highlighted the latest research and technological advancements but also resulted in concrete action plans and strategic commitments for the future. The collaborative spirit and strategic alignment achieved during the event underscored the Coalition’s determination to turn vision into action, setting the stage for tangible progress in cyclist safety worldwide.

With this first face-to-face meeting, the Coalition for Cyclist Safety has taken a decisive step toward uniting the global community around a common cause. The event’s outcomes reaffirm the importance of innovation, partnership, and public engagement in building safer, more inclusive streets for everyone.

Detailed Highlights:

Megan Hottmann, delivered an emotionally powerful keynote that vividly illustrated the personal and societal impacts of cyclist crashes.. Drawing on her own experiences as both a cyclist and legal advocate, she shared compelling personal stories to highlight the real-life consequences of crashes—not only for victims, but for their families and communities as well. Megan emphasized that obviously, based on the sad statistics, traditional approaches are no longer sufficient to address the growing risks cyclists face on today’s roads.

She called for immediate technological interventions, particularly the accelerated deployment of Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) solutions, to make cyclists digitally visible and proactively protected. Megan also addressed the importance of legal education and awareness, encouraging both cyclists and drivers to understand their rights and responsibilities. Her presentation underscored the need for a collective, cross-sector effort to create safer roads and prevent further tragedies.

Megan’s address inspired the audience to recognize the urgency of action and the importance of combining technology, advocacy, and community engagement to achieve meaningful, lasting change in cyclist safety.

Jarrett Wendt, CEO of Spoke Safety and President of the Coalition for Cyclist Safety, emphasized the urgent need to address rising cyclist injuries and fatalities, particularly in the U.S., where over 41,000 cyclists are injured annually. He highlighted the Vision Zero movement, with more than 60 U.S. communities committed to eliminating traffic deaths but stressed that traditional safety measures are no longer enough. Jarrett called for rapid deployment of V2X technology, which enables real-time communication between vehicles, cyclists, and infrastructure, making cyclists digitally visible and proactively protected. He showcased U.S. initiatives like Caltrans’ smart corridors and Montgomery County’s connected infrastructure as examples of V2X in action. Jarrett concluded that industry-wide collaboration and accelerated V2X adoption are essential to make Vision Zero a reality and ensure safer roads for all cyclists.

Raymond Gense, Vice President at Cycle Industries Europe, gave an in-depth overview of the economic, health, and safety impacts of cycling in Europe. He explained that cycling generates more than €150 billion annually, thanks to improved public health, less congestion, and environmental advantages. Raymond pointed out the rapid growth in e-bike sales and cycling participation, especially among older adults, but also highlighted growing safety concerns: accidents and fatalities are rising, with 70% of fatal bicycle accidents involving collisions with motor vehicles and half of all cycling fatalities affecting people over 65. He emphasized that while cycling offers major societal benefits, investment in safe infrastructure is not keeping pace with increased cycling activity. Raymond called for stronger policy support, more investment in infrastructure, and greater industry involvement in European mobility initiatives. He concluded that integrating cycling into broader mobility strategies and accelerating the adoption of safety technologies like V2X are essential to maximize the benefits and protect vulnerable road users.

Thomas Lich, Senior Expert for Accident Research at Bosch, provided a data-driven analysis of cyclist and e-bike accidents based on national and international statistics. He highlighted that crashes involving cyclists remain a significant and growing concern in countries like Germany, the U.S., and Japan, with intersection collisions between cars and bicycles being especially frequent and dangerous. As these are mainly urban and sub-urban scenarios he mentioned that the risk of being fatally injured occurs more often on rural roads as cyclists were overseen, due to higher speeds of the collision opponent i.e., car. Using detailed case studies and in-depth accident investigations, Thomas illustrated how limited visibility at intersections and obstructions such as fences or signage often led to drivers overlooking cyclists, resulting in severe crashes.

He explained that traditional countermeasures—like improved signage or mirrors—often fail to address the root causes of these accidents. Thomas emphasized the crucial potential of Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) technology to prevent or mitigate such collisions by enabling real-time communication between vehicles and cyclists, especially in complex scenarios where visibility is limited. He also discussed the factors influencing the effectiveness of new safety technologies, including their technical performance, market penetration, and actual usage rates.

Thomas concluded that accident research is essential for developing effective road safety solutions. He called for a stronger focus on human factors, infrastructure design, and the rapid deployment of connected technologies like V2X to significantly reduce cyclist injuries and fatalities.

Chen Tamir, Product Manager at Autotalks, presented how Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) technology can transform cyclist safety by enabling direct communication between vehicles and bicycles—even when they are hidden or in poor weather conditions. He explained that V2X is unique as the only sensor that can detect road users outside the line of sight, allowing for preventive warnings and actions before a collision risk becomes critical. Chen explained the importance of regional standards and a “common language” for V2X, using common message sets like the Basic Safety Message (BSM) according to SAE standards in the US and Cooperative Awareness Message (CAM) according to ETSI standards in the EU, which ensure that all road users and vehicles can reliably exchange safety information.

He outlined the technical requirements for effective V2X use, including accurate bike positioning, secure and anonymous data exchange, and robust wireless connections using the 5.9 GHz band. Chen also discussed the need for large-scale pilot projects to validate V2X solutions in real-world cycling environments, gather user feedback, and inform future regulations. He concluded by calling for strong industry and regulatory collaboration to accelerate V2X adoption, ensuring that cyclists everywhere benefit from this life-saving technology.

Jannis Fritz, V2X-Expert at Volkswagen, continued Chen’s overview by presenting the current state of V2X standardization for cyclists in the European Union. He explained that the deployments in Europe rely on both direct (ITS-G5/WLANp) and network-based (cellular/5G) communication, coordinated by organizations like ETSI and the CAR 2 CAR Communication Consortium. Key standards such as the Cooperative Awareness Message (CAM) and Decentralized Environmental Notification Message (DENM) enable real-time alerts and event-based warnings for all road users.

Jannis emphasized that recent updates to the European Basic System Profile now include specific requirements for bicycles, covering accurate positioning, secure communication, and operational rules tailored to cycling. He highlighted that these standards are already being deployed, with over 1.7 million V2X-equipped vehicles in 31 countries. Jannis concluded that harmonized standards and detailed profiles are essential for seamless communication and effective cyclist protection, ensuring that V2X technology delivers real safety benefits across Europe.

Andreas Wienss, Senior Expert at Bosch ebikes Systems, focused his presentation on the importance of clear definitions, trust, and unified messaging within the Coalition for Cyclist Safety. He emphasized that the coalition’s effectiveness depends on all members working toward common goals and using consistent language to describe safety concepts and technical solutions. Andreas introduced a framework for categorizing driver notifications—ranging from general information to awareness messages, to safety-critical warnings—highlighting the need for all stakeholders to adopt these definitions for clarity and impact.

He also addressed the technical and organizational requirements for trust in V2X systems. Andreas discussed two models for building trust: contract-based systems (where requirements are set by mutual agreements) and open systems (where requirements are defined through standards such as the European Basic System Profile, and certification).

Finally, Andreas encouraged the coalition to focus on deploying solutions that are ready for implementation while identifying and addressing gaps in technologies that still need development. His presentation underscored that only through alignment on definitions, trust requirements, and messaging can the coalition effectively accelerate the adoption of V2X and maximize safety for cyclists.

Impactful Live Demonstrations:

A cornerstone of the event was the series of live demonstrations featuring industry leaders such as Spoke, Audi, Volkswagen, Bosch, and Commsignia. These demos vividly illustrated the practical capability of V2X technology to prevent collisions by enabling real-time communication between cars and bicycles, providing attendees tangible proof of the technology’s immediate safety benefits.

Interactive Workshops and Strategic Discussions:

The three-part workshop focused on sharpening the Coalition’s mission, identifying key success factors and barriers, and developing a clear strategy.

In the first session, participants defined the Coalition’s mission—to champion cyclist safety through innovative V2X technology—and set a vision for safer, digitally connected roads within the next decade. The second session highlighted success factors like strong collaboration, clear standards, and regulatory support, while also addressing challenges such as technical integration and user awareness. In the final session, the group developed a strategic action plan, assigning responsibilities and timelines to ensure the rapid and effective deployment of V2X solutions for cyclist safety.

Media and Public Engagement Resources:

An extensive collection of multimedia assets, including professional photography, a dynamic event aftermovie, and detailed V2X demonstration videos, was created to empower Coalition members in driving public awareness and media engagement effectively.

Conclusion and Strategic Next Steps:

The Coalition for Cyclist Safety event in Amsterdam marked a critical step forward, setting a unified and ambitious course for the future. The collaboration and strategic alignment achieved at this event underscore the global commitment to implementing tangible, immediate solutions to improve cyclist safety worldwide. Moving forward, the Coalition invites broader industry participation, media coverage, and public support to further amplify its impact.