Mapping the multimodal future of US mobility
Mobility leaders are looking for a collaborative approach
Emerging modes
The expansion of escooters across US cities has driven an increased emphasis on safety, and firms have stepped up efforts to integrate into cities’ ecosystems, rather than compete with them.
Brian Buccella, Bird’s Senior Vice President of Global Policy and Consumer Products, said: “Our innovations are finally starting to make it to the market — things like our advanced GPS systems that allow sidewalk detection and the implementation of some of the parking solutions that cities are looking for.
“I think we’re finally at the point where we can provide these solutions to cities and build that framework for years to come.”
Establishing this framework requires collaboration between the public and private sectors.
Arnaud Legrand, CEO, RATP Dev USA, said: “There’s no one solution, no silver bullet that can solve all problems.”
“It’s always a combination of different solutions and technologies — things that can address the different problems that cities face to create integrated modes of mobility that are expected from users.”
Incorporating safety technologies like light detection and ranging (lidar) has allowed cities to “see” the world in 3D, providing machines and computers with an accurate representation of the surveyed environment.
Jon Barad, Vice President of Corporate Development at Velodyne Lidar, said: “One of the reasons lidar is interesting is that it can be used in all lighting conditions, and it protects people’s privacy.”
“It doesn’t allow for any facial recognition, which is a growing concern among city operators.”
Planning for the future
In April 2019, Austin, Texas, adopted itsStrategic Mobility Planto guide transport planning and implementation across the city over 20 years.
At the plan’s heart was a focus on shifting how residents commute — moving away from the car to more sustainable and active modes of transport.
By delivering a coordinated approach among municipal departments and regional partners, the city wants to integrate all transportation modes so they complement, not compete with, each other.
“Cities need to look at how we can create a level of commonality among large esoteric topics like electrification,” said, Jason JonMichael, Assistant Director of Transportation, City of Austin.
“Its important to be able to share with others, and learn from others what challenges they’re facing and what their perspectives are, whether this is around infrastructure, policy or community.
“Austin is seeing a level of growth that it’s never seen before — during the pandemic the number of people moving to the city increased from 65 people a day to 185 people a day.”
Similar growth is happening in Miami, which has forced the wider city region to rethink how this expansion can be managed sustainably.
Carlos Cruz-Casas, Assistant Director, Department of Transportation and Public Works, Miami-Dade County said: “We’re building a city of the future — we have a lot of infrastructure initiatives, such as improving bike safety and infrastructure, and trying to implement data policies to ensure we can maximize the benefits from this.
“There are a lot of moving parts, the dynamics of commuting is changing.”
“Right now, public-private partnerships have really gathered a lot of steam in Miami, such as theport tunnel project,” he added.
“Having all these different players from the private sector offering solutions is really going to get us where we need to go.”
Story byCities Today
Cities Today is the leading news platform on urban mobility and innovation, reaching an international audience of city leaders.Cities Today is the leading news platform on urban mobility and innovation, reaching an international audience of city leaders.
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