Andreas Schneider, City of Offenbach

Meet Andreas Schneider – Nominated by Honda R&D Europe

A global perspective on the future of mobility

Born in Russia, raised in Germany and having studied in Italy and Mexico, Andreas brings an international perspective to urban mobility. Since 2015, he has worked as a Project Researcher in Advanced Product Planning at Honda R&D Europe in Offenbach, Germany.

As one of the world's largest motorcycle manufacturers and leading car producers, Honda is focused on the decarbonisation of individual transport. One of its current projects is the European rollout of the Fastport eQuad, Honda's electric cargo bike designed for zero-emission last-mile urban delivery.

In his role, Andreas focuses on market research, identifying emerging trends across Europe's mobility landscape and translating them into potential product and service concepts. By monitoring regulations, market developments, key industry players and customer demand, he helps shape solutions for an evolving mobility ecosystem. 

Turning market insights into real-world innovation

One project Andreas is particularly proud of is developing the concept behind Honda's electric cargo bike for urban last-mile delivery.

By closely monitoring the implementation of Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMPs), the push to decarbonise transport, efforts to reduce urban congestion and the continued expansion of cycling infrastructure across Europe, he identified an opportunity for a new mobility solution that could better meet the changing needs of cities.

Creating cleaner and more liveable cities 

For Andreas, one of today's biggest urban mobility challenges is the continued reliance on predominantly car-based individual transport. With many vehicles still powered by fossil fuels and carrying an average of just 1.5 passengers, reducing air and noise pollution remains a significant challenge for cities.

Looking ahead, he would like to see fewer cars on the road, a higher share of electric vehicles and more people choosing sustainable urban mobility options such as bicycles and other low-impact modes of transport.

Why the Emerging Leaders program?

Andreas first learned about the EIT Urban Mobility Emerging Leaders program while attending the International Transport Forum in Leipzig, where he joined a conference featuring participants from the previous cohort. 

He chose the program as an opportunity to further develop his leadership skills while connecting with peers working on today's urban mobility challenges. He also hopes to exchange knowledge and contribute to developing solutions collaboratively with participants from across Europe.

Leading innovation beyond technology

The program aligns closely with Andreas' ambition to evolve from a primarily product- and technology-focused perspective towards ecosystem leadership and strategic influence.

By strengthening his leadership capabilities, he hopes to help bridge the gap between innovation and implementation, ensuring promising ideas can be translated into meaningful real-world solutions that create lasting impact.