European Platform Of Transport Sciences, Epts Foundation E.v.

What European Platform Of Transport Sciences, Epts Foundation E.v. does

European Platform of Transport Sciences, EPTS Foundation e.V. is a German-registered non-profit scientific association (eingetragener Verein) headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, founded in June 2001 when representatives from nine national transport scientific associations signed the Vienna Protocol. The Foundation serves as the pan-European coordination body for transport science research, connecting 44 member organizations across 22 European countries through conferences, publications, and community programs. Its core offerings are the annual European Transport Congress (ETC), the refereed open-access journal European Transport Studies (ETS) published in partnership with Elsevier on ScienceDirect, the YFE (Young Faculty of Transport Sciences) program including annual summer schools on barrier-free public transport, and a free newsletter. There is no proprietary technology platform; the organization's underlying infrastructure is event logistics, an Elsevier-hosted journal, a website (epts.eu), and email distribution.

EPTS generates revenue through three streams: membership dues from the 44 national associations, Article Processing Charges on the ETS journal (currently waived to zero through end of 2025, with 10% member discounts afterward and 20% for Eastern European members), and event registration fees for ETC and summer schools. No financial figures are publicly disclosed. Governance is provided by an Executive Board chaired by Prof. Dr. Janos Tóth with Prof. Dr. Jon Shaw and Prof. Dr. Ueli Haefeli, and Sebastian Belz as Secretary General. The organization is collectively governed by its members with no parent entity, venture capital, or private equity ownership.

In 2026 EPTS celebrated its 25th anniversary (silver jubilee) at TU Vienna, and the 24th ETC was co-hosted with ÖVG's 100th anniversary. The 25th ETC is scheduled for June 9-11, 2027 at the University of Győr in Hungary, and the 2026 summer school on barrier-free public transport is organized with the University of Žilina. Strategic partnerships include Elsevier, TU Wien, ÖVG, the University of Győr, the University of Žilina, and the Austrian Hilfsgemeinschaft.

Name

European Platform Of Transport Sciences, Epts Foundation E.v.

Legal name

European Platform of Transport Sciences - EPTS Foundation e.V.

Website

https://epts.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

EPTS Foundation e.V. is a Frankfurt-based non-profit scientific association, founded in 2001, that coordinates European transport science research across 44 member organizations in 22 countries through conferences, the ETS journal (Elsevier), and the YFE program for young researchers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Frankfurt

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Journal Publication Fees (APC): European Transport Studies journal generates Article Processing Charges (APC). APC is waived to zero until end of 2025. After that, EPTS members receive 10% discount (20% for Eastern Europe).
2. Membership Dues: EPTS Foundation e.V. has 44 member organizations from 22 European countries. National transport scientific associations pay membership dues.
3. Event Registration Fees: Various conferences and events under EPTS branding (ETC, Summer Schools, etc.) generate registration fees from participants.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

EPTS Foundation e.V. is a non-profit scientific association that promotes transport sciences across Europe. It coordinates an annual European Transport Congress (ETC), publishes the open-access European Transport Studies (ETS) journal in collaboration with Elsevier, runs the Young Faculty of Transport Sciences (YFE) program for early-career researchers, and connects 44 member organizations from 22 European countries.

Product overview

The EPTS Foundation e.V. is a non-profit scientific association serving as a European platform for transport sciences. It operates as a coordination and networking organization rather than a software product company. The organization offers the European Transport Studies (ETS) journal published by Elsevier (fully open access), organizes the annual European Transport Congress (ETC), hosts the Young scientists of Transport Sciences Forum (YFE) program with annual summer schools, provides a newsletter service, and maintains downloadable resources including founding documents and conference materials. The Foundation connects 44 member organizations from 22 European countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• European Transport Congress (ETC): Annual congress organized by EPTS Foundation for transport science researchers and practitioners across Europe
• European Transport Studies (ETS)
• YFE (Young Faculty of Transport Sciences)

Products and services

• European Transport Studies (ETS) A refereed international transport scientific journal published by Elsevier in collaboration with EPTS, fully open access with APC waived until end of 2025. Targets transport science researchers, professors, and academics across European universities and research institutions.
• European Transport Congress (ETC) Annual international congress organized by EPTS that brings together leading figures from academia, politics, and practice to discuss transport infrastructure challenges across Europe.
• Young Faculty of Transport Sciences Forum (YFE) A youth forum supporting young researchers in transport sciences through annual summer schools (notably on barrier-free public transport), networking, and professional development activities.
• EPTS Newsletter A free newsletter providing regular updates about EPTS Foundation activities, events, and publications to subscribers across the European transport sciences community.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• University of ŽilinaminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 June 2026Organizing EPTS Summer School 2026 on Barrier-Free Public Transport in Zilina, Slovakia, with virtual sessions June 26 and July 10, and physical sessions June 29 - July 3, 2026.
• Technical University Vienna (TU Wien)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 May 2026TU Wien hosted the 24th European Transport Congress 2026 and the EPTS silver jubilee celebration. Long-standing host for EPTS events in Vienna, Austria.
• University of GyőrminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 May 2026Organizing the 25th European Transport Congress scheduled for June 9-11, 2027 in Győr, Hungary.
• Austrian Association in Support of the Blind and Visually Impaired (Hilfsgemeinschaft)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2024Co-organizer of EPTS Summer Schools on Barrier-Free Public Transport (BFPT), focusing on accessible and inclusive cross-border public transport.
• ElseviercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 February 2024Collaboration with Elsevier to publish European Transport Studies (ETS), a refereed international open-access transport scientific journal. EPTS members receive discounts on Article Processing Charges (10% for standard, 20% for Eastern Europe).
• ÖVG (Austrian Society for Transport Sciences)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2001One of the founding member organizations. Currently hosts the 24th European Transport Congress 2026 as part of ÖVG's 100th anniversary celebration.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Peers

• International Transport Forum (ITF): Intergovernmental transport policy think tank linked to the OECD; comparable in convening transport stakeholders and producing research but operates at a policy/intergovernmental level rather than purely scientific.

Broad incumbents

• Transportation Research Board (TRB): US-based division of the National Academies that convenes transport researchers and publishes the Transportation Research Record; broader in scope and budget but the closest analogue in function and constituency.
• UIC - International Union of Railways: Global association for the railway sector; comparable as an international transport-sector association with research, conferences, and publications, though rail-specific and industry-led rather than purely academic.

Emerging players

• ALICE - Alliance for Logistics Innovation through Collaboration in Europe: European technology platform for logistics and supply-chain research and innovation; comparable as a pan-European research coordination body with overlapping transport/logistics constituencies.
• ERTRAC - European Road Transport Research Advisory Council: European technology platform coordinating road-transport research agendas; comparable as a Europe-wide transport research coordination entity but focused on road transport and EU agenda-setting.

Direct peers

• ÖVG - Österreichische Verkehrswissenschaftliche Gesellschaft: Austrian Society for Transport Sciences, an EPTS founding member; comparable in mission and structure, hosting the 24th ETC 2026 in conjunction with its own centennial.
• ECTRI - European Conference of Transport Research Institutes: European association of transport research institutes; directly comparable as a pan-European transport-research coordination body with overlapping membership and conference activities.
• World Conference on Transport Research Society (WCTRS): Global scientific society organizing the World Conference on Transport Research, directly comparable in mission (advancing transport science research and conferences) and constituency (academic transport researchers).
• DVWG - Deutsche Verkehrswissenschaftliche Gesellschaft: German national transport science association and EPTS member; directly comparable as a national transport science society with conferences, publications, and academic members.

Others

• Elsevier (Transport journals portfolio): Publishing partner and platform for ETS; comparable as a channel/ecosystem enabler rather than a competitor, since Elsevier hosts several competing transport journals (e.g., Transport Policy, Research in Transportation Economics) that compete for the same author pool.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/european-platform-of-transport-sciences-epts-foundation

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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