Call for papers deadline: Friday 30 January, 12pm
Date: 15 - 16 July 2026
Location: Manchester Metropolitan University
About the Transport Practitioners’ Meeting
The Transport Practitioners’ Meeting (TPM) is the must-attend annual gathering for all transport planners, modellers, placemakers, and urban transport designers. This event brings together practitioners, policymakers, and academics who will present numerous topical papers over the course of two days, fostering lively debates, networking opportunities, and the dissemination of the latest thinking across the profession. TPM serves as the annual meeting place for the wider transport and built environment community, offering two days of world-class networking, idea sharing, and spirited debate.
We are excited this year to be heading to Manchester. The city’s well-connected transport infrastructure, recent bus franchising and the expansion of the Bee Network make it a natural meeting point for TPM. Manchester boasts a rich history of innovation and industrial heritage, making it an ideal backdrop for discussions on the future of transportation and promises to offer a compelling and engaging backdrop for the conference that encourages knowledge exchange, networking, and forward-thinking.
Why attend TPM?
Sessions covering the latest developments and emerging best practice on a wide variety of topics including Global Trends, Shared Economy, Smart Cities, Transport Economics and many more!
Hands-on workshops and over one hundred unique paper presentations highlighting challenges, solutions and innovations in the transport sector
Sponsored networking drinks reception, prestigious annual awards ceremony and dinner
Two-day discounted rates, discounts for select membership organisations, return of the two-for-one Local Authority rate
- Hear the latest thinking and best practice from across the transport profession
- Build skills and insights through practical workshops and paper sessions
- Grow your network at dedicated socials, awards and informal meetups
- Access two days of CPD at competitive rates with generous discounts
A nice event, formal enough for a sound knowledge sharing moment and informal enough to challenge ideas in a constructive manner.
Presentation Types at TPM
We welcome a variety of presentation formats to suit different topics, styles, and levels of experience:
Full Paper Presentation
Paper presentations are 20-minute talks plus 10 minutes of Q&A, ideal for sharing in-depth research, evaluations or policy analysis.
Workshops
Workshops are 60-minute interactive sessions focused on collaboration, problem-solving and skills development with active participant input.
PechaKucha Presentation
Pecha Kucha sessions are fast-paced visual talks of 20 slides for 20 seconds each, perfect for bold, creative and concise ideas.
Poster Presentation
Poster presentations offer a visual summary of your work in a dedicated session, ideal for early-stage projects and suitable for all experience levels.
TPM Selection Committee
As we begin gearing up for 2026TPM, we’re looking for passionate, knowledgeable professionals to join the Selection Committee!
This is a great opportunity to:
Help shape the conference programme
Spotlight fresh ideas and emerging voices in transport
Collaborate with peers from across the sector
Support a high-quality, inclusive speaker line-up
Whether you’re experienced in transport planning, active travel, policy, inclusivity, behaviour change or beyond — we’d love to hear from you. The commitment involves reviewing abstract submissions and attending our selection meeting in February 2026, date tbc.
Interested in helping us deliver a dynamic and thought-provoking event?
Contact Shania at shania.mccalla@ptrc-training.co.uk for further details.
Sponsorship
Join us as a sponsor or exhibitor and showcase your brand at one of the UK’s leading transport conferences, bringing together professionals from across the sector to connect, learn, and shape the future of transport.
Get in front of key decision-makers
Build relationships with clients and collaborators
Highlight your thought leadership
Support the conversations that move our industry forward
Highlights from last year:
TPM Materials
Download session materials from past Transport Practitioners’ Meetings- practical insights from the transport profession.
PTRC Education & Research Services
Explore PTRC’s transport training and events designed to inspire learning and professional growth in the transport planning sector.
Training
Discover PTRC's welcoming range of transport courses designed to build your skills and confidence in transport planning and modelling.