2nd Symposium on Management of Future motorway and urban Traffic Systems (MFTS 2018): Booklet of abstracts: Ispra, 11-12 June 2018

The Symposium focuses on future traffic management systems, covering the subjects of traffic control, estimation, and modelling of motorway and urban networks, with particular emphasis on the presence of advanced vehicle communication and automation technologies. As connectivity and automation are being progressively introduced in our transport and mobility systems, there is indeed a growing need to understand the implications and opportunities for an enhanced traffic management as well as to identify innovative ways and tools to optimise traffic efficiency. In particular the debate on centralised versus decentralised traffic management in the presence of connected and automated vehicles has started attracting the attention of the research community. In this context, the Symposium provides a remarkable opportunity to share novel ideas and discuss future research directions.JRC.C.4-Sustainable Transpor

Teenagers and Automated Vehicles: Are They Ready to Use Them?

ABSTRACT: Mobility needs, expectations, and concerns vary across age groups and are closely linked to users' views on the future of the road transport system. Automated vehicles are expected to have a significant impact on the future of the road transport system, and pilot deployments are increasingly being tested in Europe and beyond, which is also thanks to the evolving regulatory landscape. As a result, several studies have started to analyse citizens' attitudes towards this technology. However, very few studies have focused on teenagers' views on automated vehicles, although today's children and teenagers could be among the first users of such vehicles. Studying teenagers and the way they envisage automated vehicles in the future is of particular significance in defining transport planning strategies and supporting upcoming policy orientations. To cover this gap, the present study aims to explore teenagers' views about automated vehicles and whether and how they could fit into their future transport setting. A series of on-line and face-to-face focus groups, a demonstration of an automated vehicle prototype, supporting engagement activities, and a post-pre survey were used to collect their views on the topic. The results show that even though the teenagers acknowledged the potential advantages, they also expressed concerns in relation to the interactions with other road users, to automated driving systems' reliability, to safety, and to data privacy. In particular, these safety concerns revealed an unwillingness on the part of the teenagers to be among the first users of automated vehicles.This research has been funded by the European Commission Joint Research Centre Institutional Funds

An analysis of possible socio-economic effects of a Cooperative, Connected and Automated Mobility (CCAM) in Europe

A Cooperative, Connected and Automated Mobility (CCAM) is likely to have significant impacts on our economy and society. It is expected that CCAM unveils new and unprecedented mobility opportunities that hold the potential to unlock a range of safety, environmental and efficiency benefits. At the same time, it is anticipated that it will bring deep changes in the labour market, progressively making some occupations and skills less relevant, while at the same time opening up new opportunities for different businesses and requiring new and more advanced skills. With Europe accounting for 23% of global motor vehicle production (Acea Statistics, 2016) and almost 72% of inland freight transported by road in Europe (European Commission, 2017a), the full deployment of Connected and Automated Vehicle (CAV) technologies is expected to have a substantial impact on the European economy. The economic impacts of CAVs will go far beyond the automotive industry, into sectors like insurance, maintenance and repair or health, among others. While it is clear that CAVs could offer unique opportunities for value creation, it is also essential to acknowledge that they might imply a substantial transformation of our industries and our social and living systems. The study is aimed at analysing the value at stake for both industry and society as a result of a transition towards a CCAM mobility in Europe. It aims at identifying the economic sectors that are most likely to be affected by CCAM as well as the influencing factors driving future changes in each sector. The ultimate goal is to estimate ranges of potential effects for the main affected sectors, with the support of a set of scenarios. The study also aims at analysing the potential effects of CCAM on the workforce and pursues the identification of skills that need to be addressed in the mobility transition. The focus of the study is exclusively paid on road transport and covers both passenger and freight transport.JRC.C.4-Sustainable Transpor

Engaging with different transport user groups for a smooth transition to Connected and Automated Mobility

Connected and automated vehicles could benefit society by increasing transport safety, environmental sustainability and inclusiveness. Engaging with citizens to raise awareness and discuss about the opportunities and threats they bring is paramount for a successful deployment of such technologies. This paper presents the results of several activities with women and teenagers participants: focus group discussions, demonstrations of an automated vehicle prototype and feelings’ capture associated to automated vehicles, engaging with them, aiming at acquiring their knowledge, expectations and concerns for a smooth transition to connected and automated vehicles. The work conducted shows that technological innovations could result in societal benefits, once a technology is understood and accepted at societal level where the role played by knowledge sharing and dissemination are key

Women’s opinions, attitudes and concerns about automated vehicles - If and how automated vehicles could fit into women mobility needs

Automated Vehicles are expected to transform the transport sector by contributing to reduce transport externalities and improving the mobility of people, which may depend on several influencing factors to their acceptance. Gender differences exist with regard to transport and mobility patterns, also when considering opinions, attitudes and concerns about Automated Vehicles. Despite women being half of the world population, their views on their current and future mobility are still under investigation and little research has been conducted regarding their opinions towards Automated Vehicles. This research aims at shedding light on European women current mobility and if and how Automated Vehicles could fit into mobility needs and habits, arguing as well about possible mobility improvement as well as problems associated with such vehicles. It identifies key issues based on relevant existing literature and presents the results of Focus Group discussions, surveys and citizen engagement activities conducted by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, the German Aerospace Center and the University of Cantabria. It concludes by providing policy insight on the topic and indicating future research areas of investigation

Exploring the acceptance of connected and automated vehicles:Focus group discussions with experts and non-experts in transport

ABSTRACT: The successful deployment of connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) will largely depend on public opinion. Expectations and concerns are essential components driving the speed of market uptake and final adoption of these technologies. We have studied user expectations and concerns, as well as their provenance, by conducting a series of Focus Group (FG) discussions with transport area experts and non-expert participants, in Italy, Germany, and Spain. Together with user acceptance, potential advantages and disadvantages that CAVs may bring at a societal level were explored. Results show that benefits like increased safety and accessibility and improved travel experience for both driver and passengers could support CAVs' deployment. Nevertheless, a variety of concerns were raised during the discussions, related to privacy, responsibility in case of an accident, and increase in maintenance and repair costs. These aspects could significantly hamper or delay CAVs acceptability and need to be carefully considered by stakeholders. The reported insights from the FG discussions and the fact that some participants noted positive changes of their initial idea of CAVs due to their participation in the discussion, exemplify the importance of citizen engagement activities to address mobility challenges.The views expressed here are purely those of the authors and may not, under any circumstances, be regarded as an official position of the European Commission. The authors wish to thank the Chair of the WISE-ACT COST Action, Nikolas Thomopoulos for his valuable support during this activity. The FG discussions organised by the German Aerospace Center are conducted within the project “D.Move – Data-Driven Mobility and Traffic Management” which is funded by DLR’s programmatic research funds as part of the Helmholtz Association. The FG discussions organised by the University of Cantabria are part of the project "AUTONOMOUS - InnovAtive Urban and Transport planning tOols for the implementation of New mObility systeMs based On aUtonomouS driving”, 2020-2023, funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation / ERDF (EU) (PID2019-110355RB-I00)”. Moreover, the research team would like to thank all the respondents that took part in the FG discussions and made this research possible