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ISTSS History

Safety and Security have been high on the scientific agenda for decades, no more so than after the tragic attacks of nine-eleven in New York. The success of the
International Symposium on Tunnel Safety and Security (ISTSS) is a tribute to the pressing need for continued international research and dialogue on tunnels and  underground facilities.

We are very proud to have been able to establish a regular ISTSS tunnel symposium that normally attracts over 200 delegates from all parts of the world. The following symposiums have been arranged or is planned within the series of ISTSS.

• The 1st ISTSS symposium was held in Greenbelt, USA 2004
• The 2nd ISTSS symposium was organised in Madrid 2006
• The 3rd ISTSS symposium was organised in Stockholm 2008
• The 4th ISTSS symposium was held in Frankfurt am Main in March 2010
• The 5th ISTSS symposium was held in New York in March 2012
• The 6th ISTSS symposium was held in Marseille in France in March 2014
• The 7th ISTSS symposium was held in Montréal Canada in March 2016
• The 8th ISTSS symposium was held in Borås Sweden in March 2018
• The 9th ISTSS symposium should have been held in Munich in March 2020, but was postponed to an online event in May 2021 because of the pandemic
• The 10th ISTSS symposium was held in Stavanger Norway in April 2023

In order to guarantee the quality of the papers accepted, a Scientific Committee will review all papers. The Scientific Committee is comprised of leading experts in the field of fire and security. The focus has mainly been on fires and safety in tunnels, but it is shifting more and more towards security. The new terrorist threats and focus on how to solve these problems is increasing. The need for expertise in this area for underground infrastructure in general is continuously increasing. We urge scientists and practicing engineers in this field to consider ISTSS as good quality forum for presenting their results. The aim is to make ISTSS as a natural forum for scientists and practicing engineers to exchange information in the future.