The Future Of Transportation Must Be A “Connected” One

In the recent past, there was a perception that when autonomous vehicles (AVs) were on the streets, a “driverless utopia” would soon follow. That utopia consisted of a reduction of fatal auto accidents, the declining need for parking garages close to city centers, the ability to relax in a car while commuting, and the maximum use of commuter vehicles that sit idle most of the working day. Unfortunately, reality has dictated otherwise, as can be seen with the initial introduction of autonomous robotaxis in cities like San Francisco and vehicles with similar advanced autonomous features like Tesla’s Autopilot, which recently is subject to a massive recall for deficiencies in failing to prevent drivers from using it when they are not in control of the vehicle or where Autopilot isn’t designed to be used.

The future of transportation requires critical connectivity infrastructure and mindset shifts to . . .

[+] maximize and fully enable new technologies such as autonomous vehicles. What’s the problem? Mixing advanced technology vehicles on roads that are not yet equipped to handle them and with unpredictable human behavior has produced an ambitious but equally toxic cocktail without regard for on-the-ground reality. Even if it is “advanced” technology, it is an unfair expectation that AVs could be introduced in a “sink or swim” environment, especially when these AVs are not connected to each other (i.

e. , V2V) or to the infrastructure they are relying on (V2I). And, because it is not connected to the road being driven on, via traffic signals and other infrastructure, and is not communicating with other vehicles on the road, an AV is simply a car without a driver.

What’s the solution? To answer that question, a philosophical analysis may help. What is at the root of technology? The core of all technology is its application to solve problems that humans face, like finding food, shelter, and — most relevant here — transportation. One pertinent example is the invention of the wheel, which made travelling long distances much easier for humans and was the initial step forward for the ongoing advancement of transportation technologies.

What is the current purpose of AVs on widely used city streets/highways? Setting aside the possible future utility of autonomous long-haul trucks to address human driver shortages, right now, the utility of passenger AVs is nothing more than entertainment via social media posts and to make humans feel like they are living in a more advanced state than reality because passengers can ride in a car that “mostly” drives itself. In other words, passenger AVs, as they have been currently rolled out, do not solve a direct problem. The solution is for AVs to have a real purpose.

And, at least during their initial rollout, that purpose should primarily focus on “connectivity”: AVs should be connected to the current transportation echo system to enhance other existing and expanding transportation options, such as public transit. Plugging into the echo system will require a major shift away from the current shared roadways environment and separating V2V and V2I-enabled AVs into their own dedicated lanes or paths, where they can operate at their maximum utility and efficiency. A study by the Center for Transportation, Equity, Decisions, & Dollars has indicated, through complicated mathematical analysis, that dedicated lanes can lead to network flows that should yield significant savings in total system travel time.

One reason is that dedicated lanes for AVs will allow for such vehicles with embedded technologies to communicate with other AVs through V2V and with infrastructure through V2I. V2V in particular helps AVs move together in the form of platoons, due to their ability to synchronize their operations by simultaneous braking and acceleration, thus leading to better traffic control and reduced travel costs. Dedicated lanes can generally come about in one of two ways.

One way is to convert existing highways, roads, or streets and dedicate them strictly for connected autonomous vehicles. For example, in Michigan, Senate Bill 706 was passed into law in late 2022 and designated specific segments of state roads as “automated vehicle roadways. ” Construction has commenced on transforming a lane on westbound Interstate 94 for the “ CAV Corridor Pilot Project .

” The other way is to build new, separate lanes or guideways that can only be used by connected AVs, like projects in development in San Jose, California, to connect its airport to the existing transit line and a project in East Contra County, California, along Highway 4. The two California projects are meant to use personal rapid transit (“PRT”), which is a system of small (four- to six-passenger), lightweight, AVs operated on or suspended below an elevated guideway with passengers specifying their destination without scheduled routes. PRT systems are not new: many PRT systems have been proposed and most of the prior proposals have been on fixed tracks or guideways that don’t maximize the advanced technologies that are available today.

Only a handful of PRT systems are operational, with the Morgantown Personal Rapid Transit in West Virginia being the oldest and most extensive, moving small groups nonstop in AVs on fixed tracks. In an ideal PRT system, passengers can board an PRT vehicle upon their arrival at a station, and can – with a sufficiently extensive network of tracks – take relatively direct routes to their destinations without stops. The low weight of PRT vehicles allows for smaller lanes or guideways and less noticeable support structures compared to light rail, which should also result in more manageable construction costs.

How do we pay for the infrastructure needed for dedicated AV lanes? “Connected” also refers to a necessary mindset shift for this new technology to solidify and alter cities for the better. That mindset shift includes thinking differently about how to finance the critical infrastructure needed to maximize the efficiency and security of AVs, and continue to adopt and adapt to disruptive technology and infrastructure. Transportation funding can come from a variety of sources, including local sales taxes and state diesel fees, as well as grants from the federal government through programs like the Infrastructure and Jobs Act.

However, some states are looking to expand existing funding sources. For example, with a monumental 2024 ballot initiative (Assembly Constitutional Amendment No. 1), Californians will have the opportunity to vote on paying more toward critical transportation infrastructure.

The amendment proposes to lower the voting threshold for debt from its current two-thirds requirement to a 55% threshold, which is primarily aimed at expanding the ability to issue bonds for affordable housing purposes, but also includes “public infrastructure,” which is defined to include “improvements to transit and streets and highways. ” With voter buy-in, and ultimately, citizens paying more toward the future of transportation, the glue of transportation connectedness will get stickier. What’s next in creating a “connected” future of mobility? Well over a century ago, transit was faster than walking, which was the only affordable alternative available to most Americans.

Today, automobiles — unlike public transit — can take people from door-to-door faster. This fact should not be denied; it must be accepted while promoting all the other tasks that transit riders can achieve while not driving themselves. One way to market using public transit can be to reframe it as “smart multitasking.

” Of course, talking on a phone is almost out of the question (especially if you are polite), but almost everything else is achievable on public transit (including PRT vehicles): reading, writing, emailing, texting, social media scrolling, etc. , which are individual benefits that every rider can experience while simultaneously lowering personal expenses and contributing to a lower carbon footprint . To build a driverless utopia, we must be willing to pay for the critical infrastructure needed to support the safety and efficiency of AVs while adopting and adapting to transportation alternatives and promoting the individual benefits that can come from using public transit.

This can only come by having AVs become connected to the multimodal transportation options that exist today and that are continuing to be built. By doing so, we may someday live in a world with reduced traffic deaths, better commuting conditions, and maximum use of assets and resources: a true utopia. .