The autonomous car - A blessing or a curse for the future of low carbon mobility? An exploration of likely vs. desirable outcomes

Certain developed countries have experienced the ‘peak car’ phenomenon. While this remains to be confirmed longitudinally, it looks certain that future mobility in Europe and elsewhere will be shaped by a particular technological development: driverless or autonomous transport. The ‘autonomous car’ ignites the imagination, yet the research and debate on this topic largely focus on the ‘autonomous’ and not adequately on the ‘car’ element. Like any new technological development, autonomous transport presents ample opportunities to better our mobility system, but similarly it carries risks and can lead into a future mobility that exacerbates, rather than relieves, current deficiencies of our mobility systems, including its high carbon and high cost characteristics. Now it is high time to explore these, before we lock ourselves into the autonomous car future. Using Low Carbon Mobility (LCM) as a guiding framework to assess mobility patterns and based on an extensive literature review, this paper aims to explore where there is a gap between the likely and desirable outcomes when developing the autonomous car and suggest how we might reduce it. Moreover, enhancing on global empirical evidence and forecasts about the opportunities and threats emerging from ICT deployment in transport and initial evidence on the development of the autonomous car, the paper concludes that a desirable outcome will only come if technological development will be accompanied by a social change. A change where public and sharing will be seen as superior to private and individual transport, could make the autonomous car a blessing

An ethical assessment of low carbon vehicles using cost benefit analysis

Global concerns about climate change, as confirmed at COP21, have led to lower carbon emissions environmental policies, particularly in the road transport sector. Through an empirical analysis of low carbon vehicle (LCV) policies in California, this paper contrasts the findings from diverse distribution theories between income quintiles - used as a proxy for societal groups - to address vertical equity concerns and offer an overview of impact distribution to policy makers. Thus, it contributes in operationalising ethical theories within transport cost benefit analysis and revisiting impact distribution when promoting low carbon vehicles. Findings indicate that manufacturer penalties are the most effective policy measure to avoid cost transfer between stakeholders. Yet, the analysis shows that those purchasing small LCVs may face disproportional vehicle purchase cost increases which needs to be considered by policy makers. Thus, this paper makes a methodological contribution regarding CBA in practice as well as providing policy relevant recommendations

Mobility as a service Inclusion Index (MaaSINI): Evaluation of inclusivity in MaaS systems and policy recommendations

According to UN statistics, the population of people in vulnerable social groups, namely elderly people, people with disabilities, and low-income populations, has increased over the recent decades. It is projected that this trend will continue in the future. Thus, their mobility and access to transport services are important areas to study. Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is a digital platform (smartphone application) that aims to encourage more sustainable travel. MaaS is promoted as being accessible to all user groups. However, there are limited studies linking MaaS with vulnerable social groups and their particular needs. This paper comprehensively reviews studies on the emergence of such platforms since 2014 until today to identify the research gaps with respect to vulnerable social groups. A framework and MaaS Inclusion Index (MaaSINI) are then proposed to evaluate the inclusion in MaaS services, focusing on vulnerable social groups’ needs at a service level instead of a city/area level. The framework and policy recommendations proposed in this study will make a significant contribution in guiding stakeholders and policymakers in implementing accessible-for-all-users MaaS services targeting sustainable and inclusive transport

Can a Blockchain-Based Maas Create Business Value?

In this paper two contemporary technological novelties are combined to introduce the concept of a blockchain-based MaaS, with the aim of pinpointing where and how business value can be created through data-based services of such a system. Towards this purpose, an integrated version of the Business Model Canvas is deployed, combining the advantages of the Lean Canvas and the Ethics Canvas. The overview of data flows among the versatile system stakeholders are outlined to highlight the potential benefits for diverse industries through sharing and collaboration

Autonomous and Connected Transport as Part of an Inclusive Transport System: WG2: Social Challenges

This report has been written within the framework of COST Action CA16222: Wider Impact and Scenario Evaluation of Autonomous and Connected Transport (WISE-ACT), which has been co-funded by the European Commission H2020 program. The ‘action’ encompassed five working groups, each addressing different issues and themes related to autonomous and connected transport. This thematic report describes the main concepts and recommendations of Working Group (WG) #2, which was tasked with examining the potential social challenges of autonomous and connected transport (ACT). WG#2 addressed a number of key social challenges, namely accessibility, equity, personal security and privacy

Who is willing to share their AV? Insights about gender differences among seven countries

The introduction of shared autonomous vehicles into the transport system is suggested to bring significant impacts on traffic conditions, road safety and emissions, as well as overall reshaping travel behaviour. Compared with a private autonomous vehicle, a shared automated vehicle (SAV) is associated with different willingness-to-adopt and willingness-to-pay characteristics. An important aspect of future SAV adoption is the presence of other passengers in the SAV—often people unknown to the cotravellers. This study presents a cross-country exploration of user preferences and WTP calculations regarding mode choice between a private non-autonomous vehicle, and private and shared autonomous vehicles. To explore user preferences, the study launched a survey in seven European countries, including a stated-preference experiment of user choices. To model and quantify the effect of travel mode attributes and socio-demographic characteristics, the study employs a mixed logit model. The model results were the basis for calculating willingness-to-pay values for all countries and travel modes, and provide insight into the significant heterogeneous, gender-wise effect of cotravellers in the choice to use an SAV. The study results highlight the importance of analysis of the effect of SAV attributes and shared-ride conditions on the future acceptance and adoption rates of such services

Specific Threats to Human Rights Protection from the Digital Reality : International Responses and Recommendations to Core Threats from the Digitalised World

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