As 2019's ITS World Congress begins in Singapore, opening statements reflect on this years theme of , “Smart Mobility, Empowering Cities.” The Congress Chair, Ngien Hoon Ping welcomed everybody to the 26th Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) World Congress at the Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre and said, "The Land Transport Authority of Singapore (LTA) and ITS Singapore are delighted to be co-hosting the World Congress in Southeast Asia for the first time."Ngien Hoon Ping also said he was excited about the potential for creative and innovative ideas at the Congress that everybody will be able to take back to improve their own communities.Singaporean politician and Minister for Transport Khaw Boon Wan told the congress, "annually we subsidise the operating cost of public transport in Singapore to $2 billion keeping transport fares affordable for all."ITS Asia-Pacific Secretary General Hajime Amano said in his opening statement, "Rapid penetration of innovative technologies in transportation, such as electrification of power trains, big data collection and analysis, and automated driving, are accelerating drastic changes in industries, regulatory framework and behaviours of people. In other words, we can no longer develop and deploy new technologies without thorough investigation of societal implications." SMART Highways' podcast, Talking Transport, will be reporting from the congress all week. Keep up to date with all that's going on, even if you weren't able to make it to Singapore! Keep on an eye on the SMART Highways website for all the latest podcasts.