Developing these solutions requires innovation and fundamental change — from the way we commute to the movement of goods to the establishment of our communities. It also requires new partnerships between states, municipalities, transit agencies and utilities. Implementing these changes can make our transportation systems greener, more sustainable and more equitable. There are three key goals to achieve for advancing this vital transition.

Accelerate adoption of greener vehicles and cleaner fuel
Electric vehicles have already started making an impact on our transportation system. By 2030, electric cars will make up about 28 percent of new car sales, a significant increase compared to the expected 2.7 percent sales increase for 2020. And even now, according to Electric Vehicles Outlook, this small increase is displacing 1 million barrels of daily oil demand.

After recognizing the impact of GHG emissions, states, cities’ utilities and transit agencies are converting conventional public vehicle fleets to electrified vehicles — a move that accelerates electrified vehicle adoption and advances state and local economies as well as social equity goals.

Implementing infrastructure that supports these vehicles creates jobs. A study conducted by the Political Economy Research Institute estimates that school and transit bus fleet electrification could create 280,000 jobs over the next five years. Reducing GHG emissions would improve cities’ air quality, particularly in low-income neighborhoods, which are often home to fleet vehicle terminals. A recent Ontario Public Health Association study showed that electrifying fleets has a social benefit of US$1.1 billion annually and can save up to 143 lives per year.

Policy changes also advance electric vehicle adoption. For example, in June, the California Air Resources Board mandated that all buses purchased in the state after 2030 should be electric and beginning in 2024, trucks must be zero emission. The Board has a goal to have all trucks zero be emission by 2045. All municipal buses in the state are expected to be electric by 2040 with more policy changes to follow that encourage the adoption of clean vehicles across the state. These mandates are being provided economic support. Congress’ proposed INVEST bill significantly increases grants to transit agencies that move to low or no emissions vehicles and provides billions to support transportation agencies aiming to reduce their carbon emissions.

Develop partnerships for electrification
Decarbonization requires strategies such as electrification and connecting mobility options. Oftentimes, success hinges on partnerships between groups that have not traditionally worked together and incentivizing shared risks and rewards that drive innovation. Collaborations between utilities, cities, public and private fleet owners, and landowners ensure we incorporate key issues like public health, access to mobility services, jobs and equity in infrastructure decisions.

Strategize and plan for the future of clean energy infrastructure
A cohesive, infrastructure development strategy is essential to enable clean energy use in our transportation networks. These strategies must extend beyond borders and include utilities that provide the energy for vehicles, making electric vehicles more attainable and cost effective. The objective is to put infrastructure in place that supports a range of clean energy solutions including microgrids, vehicle to grid, renewable power generation as well as charging facilities and smart infrastructure for electric vehicles.

A more resilient, sustainable transportation network requires a multi-level approach. With a robust ecosystem of clean energy solutions, partners including public transportation and transit agencies, utilities and private investors will be able to capitalize on a technology that promises improved efficiency and operations. By establishing a multi-faceted network, communities will benefit for years to come.

The post Imagining sustainable transportation: How new technologies and cleaner fuels can transform our transportation network appeared first on Blog.

It’s not just about the vehicles

While the vehicles are where the development and excitement are in the public eye, they’re only one part of the automated future. Before any car is automated, it will need to be connected — to other vehicles nearby, to the infrastructure around it and to the people traveling in the public right of way. Future automated vehicles will leverage image sensors, radar sensors and LiDAR sensors to recognize and react to anything within 300 yards of the vehicle, and they’ll also need to know if there’s an obstruction 1 mile down the road or congestion 20 miles away. While some of that information will come from the vehicles, much of it will come from the infrastructure that supports them.

Infrastructure will need to change to support automated vehicles, whether through improvements such as vehicle-to-infrastructure technology that can communicate signal timing, or traffic management centers that will oversee the hundreds or thousands of vehicles traveling the roadway network. While the first automated vehicle may not be on the market for a few years, these technology improvements are available today. Cities should take the time now to rethink how their existing, planned and future infrastructure will need to be connected to automated vehicles to optimize their true capabilities.

Data is the passenger

For decades, cities have planned transportation goals around moving people, but with automated vehicles, the new passenger will be data. Vehicles will create massive amounts of information about passenger movements, the transportation system and driving conditions. How this data moves will become the new infrastructure cities will need to develop. Fiber optic networks and 5G small cells that create a low latency, reliable “data freeway” will be a must-have for cities looking to embrace automated technology. With this infrastructure evolution, cities will need to recognize that updating data communication tools and intelligent transportation system architecture will be just as important as repairing bridges and building roads.

Benefits beyond transportation

When you ask people about their biggest concern for a city, you’ll usually get answers like homelessness, cost of living and jobs. It’s interesting to think about how automated vehicles could play a part in addressing those concerns.

In the mindset of many, automated vehicles may simply be a method of transportation, but the technology can actually unlock much of the urban land we have in our cities. Interestingly enough, in many major metropolitan areas, more than 1/3 of the land is used for parking — valuable space that could be used for affordable housing, commercial space or retail stores.

Recent studies by the University of Toronto estimate that parking lots for automated vehicles could hold as much as 87 percent more cars than traditional parking lots, greatly reducing the overall square footage needed for parking, thus freeing up land for more important uses that improve quality of life. While not all of that land can be made available, the right automated vehicle regulations and infrastructure can make a significant impact.

Get ready now

These are just a few of the things to know about a future with automated vehicles; there are many more considerations about how these emerging technologies will change our cities. This technology will impact the way we design our infrastructure, plan our days and live our lives. It’s important now, prior to when these vehicles put rubber to the road, for city leaders and planners to strategize how they can optimize adoption and receive every benefit out of the eventual automated future.

The post Three things all cities should know appeared first on Blog.

Many of us have envisioned a future filled with flying cars, homes run by artificial intelligence and travel at supersonic speeds. As new technologies make these ideas a reality and begin to revolutionize our infrastructure, we take a look at some of the emerging trends and imagine a day in the life in the year 2030.

Sustainable infrastructure designed for you

It’s 2030 and you’re asleep in your environmentally friendly home, constructed more durably, precisely and cost-effectively than those built just a few years ago, due in large part to 3D printing technologies.

Your home lighting and temperature controls automatically respond to the elements outside to create an ideal inside atmosphere. Every fixture and feature is designed to sense and react to your needs. Some, such as your smart walls, are made of programmable materials that respond to external stimuli. Others are directed by sensors you control with a word or a flick of the wrist.

Systems built into homes, offices and other buildings also capture, store and treat rainwater for everyday use. And more and more homes are powered by super batteries that store and use energy generated via solar panels and other renewable sources.

Alternate transit = space for living

More people rely on walking, biking, public transportation and mobility-as-a-service (MaaS) providers, who integrate multiple modes into a single transportation service platform, including fleets of autonomous electric vehicles. As a result, urban and curbside real estate once filled with vehicles is being reclaimed for communities.

Your home is located in a former multi-story parking lot, re-purposed in record time using 3D printing, providing sustainable, affordable housing for the city’s growing population.

It’s good to talk

Your transit agency app alerts you that your usual multi-modal journey is congested and advises you of a new plan that includes a shared, electric, connected and autonomous vehicle (CAV) to get to the office.

The introduction of CAVs, combined with MaaS, improved “connected vehicle” services, shared vehicle use and sustainable fuels have revolutionized transportation, improving safety, easing congestion, improving air quality and increasing social inclusion and mobility options.

Connected vehicle technologies allow transport systems, roads, infrastructure and smart devices to speak to each other and process big data. Automated technologies enable vehicles to respond in real time to avoid potential dangers, such as missed red lights, speeding vehicles and sudden stops, as well as congestion or travel issues.

Charge as you go

Smart powered lanes help CAVs go the distance, using wireless technology that enables vehicles to charge their batteries as they drive on the road at full speed. Any excess energy generated can be used to power people’s homes, workplaces and communities.

As your CAV bus drops you off at the nearest mobility hub to your office, you complete the last part of your journey with a Pod on Demand (PoD). These next-generation PoDs are a sustainable, cheap and fast way to move around, helping people, businesses and communities better connect with each other.

Your PoD moves seamlessly from road to sidewalk, directed by connected and autonomous technologies, navigating around pedestrians and other vehicles efficiently and safely.

The only way is down

Urban real estate remains at a premium, driving many businesses to locate themselves in deep-basement offices. When you get to work, you go down. Energy-efficient trap lights, which run throughout the building, use photoluminescent pigments to capture and give out light. This, alongside a glass atrium, helps keep the structure bright.

Express delivery

In the morning, your packages are delivered via Hyperloop. This high-speed technology enables goods and passengers to be transported comfortably and seamlessly in pods capable of traveling at subsonic speeds through low-pressure tubes. Crossing hundreds of miles in a matter of minutes, people and businesses are no longer limited by their location. The Hyperloop system works in conjunction with other transit and pod systems, helping to balance and drive economic growth.

A virtual journey

In the afternoon, using augmented reality (AR) as part of your work, you digitally recreate a planned finished building, using photorealistic textures, materials and lighting to take a walk through an upcoming project. Incorporating digital building information modeling (BIM) data, you’re able to highlight potential delays and issues, and contact other team members to discuss possible fixes — weeks in advance.

You have a catch up with colleagues, who beam in from around the world as holograms.

Catching a flight home

At the end of the day, you take an aviation taxi home. The sky is increasingly populated by delivery drones, running alongside flying autonomous vehicles, and governed by strict air traffic control rules and initiatives, such as designated flight lanes and tolls.

After a short wait, your taxi — an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft — arrives to fly you home ready for tomorrow and what the future will bring.

For the full article and source material, visit: https://www.archtam.com/infrastructure-innovation  

The post Infrastructure and daily life in 2030 appeared first on Blog.