This week, we hear from George Lunt, technical director and new mobility specialist from our Future Mobility team based in Bristol, United Kingdom, as he discusses his work leading an innovative e-scooter trial in the south-west of England.  

The West of England region is one of just four Future Transport Zones (FTZ) in the country, set up to trial the latest innovations for creating convenient, accessible alternatives to car travel and encourage a much-needed modal shift.  

Hailed as the most successful trial of its kind in England, this e-scooter project — run by the West of England Combined Authority and part of the FTZ — demonstrates the exciting potential of this green and cost-effective mode of transport being rolled out on a wider scale elsewhere.  

With 20 years of industry experience, George has a wealth of knowledge and technical expertise, having previously led the Capri autonomous vehicle (AV) trials in Bristol and at London’s Olympic Park — a three-year project that made great strides in building public trust and accelerating momentum for AVs in the UK. 

Tell us more about the micro-mobility trial you are leading in the West of England and how it is benefiting communities and the environment. 

Currently, I am working with the West of England Combined Authority — the overarching transport authority that covers Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol and South Gloucestershire — to support the FTZ.  

As part of this programme, several projects are underway that ArchTam is closely involved in, including Mobility Hubs, which is trialling more community-focused transport interchanges; Mobility as a Service, which streamlines integrated journey planning and ticketing onto one smartphone app; and Demand Responsive Transport (DRT), which is replacing traditional fixed bus routes by enabling drivers to be more agile and dynamic about where people are picked up enroute.  

Although I am involved in all these projects in some shape or form, the project I have been working most closely with is the e-scooter trial, which I am currently leading. Launched almost three years ago, this trial is the most successful of its kind in England — if not in Europe — and has been highly popular in the West of England, providing real benefits to local communities. Since the trial started, there have been 430,000 users and more than 12 million rides.  

As part of this work, we have been collaborating with the University of the West of England to evaluate the impact of scooter users and so far, from the surveys we’ve done of participants in these trials, we’re seeing a shift away from all other forms of transport. When you take all the changes into account, we are seeing that the e-scooter trial has contributed to reduced carbon emissions across the whole region. So, in terms of having an impact on carbon and air quality, that’s an immediate benefit that we can demonstrate.  

In addition, we’re looking at individual stories from users through in-depth interviews. The remarkable thing is that when you start talking to users, you see how much they’re embedding this mode of transport into their daily lives. People are telling us stories about how accessible the scooters are and how they’re enabling them to undertake trips they would not have been able to do before.  

One of the nice things about the trial in the West of England is that there are significant discounts for people who are on income support, such as Jobseeker’s Allowance. This way, we can really target interventions to the right people in the right way — and that’s because the e-scooters are technology-enabled and app-based. Thanks to the ease in which these kinds of initiatives can be implemented, using digital technology, positive impacts can be made at pace. 

The next phase of the trial is to try and take some of the things we’re doing with e-scooters and move them over to rental e-bikes. We’re especially keen on this because e-bikes enable you to travel longer distances more comfortably, so the overall carbon impact is going to be greater. 

Ultimately, what we want to do is to integrate with other modes of transport that enable people to travel more sustainably — such as making it easier for people to get to a train or bus stop, when they might have otherwise taken a taxi or driven. By trialling this project here in a part of the West of England, we can create a blueprint, if you like, for being able to roll it out more significantly across the wider region.

Did you come across any challenges during the project and how did you overcome them? 

We certainly came across challenges on the e-scooter trial. I prefer to think of them as opportunities though, because the whole point of these projects is to learn from them. So, I think if you don’t have challenges, it means you’re not pushing the boundaries far enough and you’re not challenging yourself to get the most learning. 

Some of the difficulties have been around striking the right balance between having enough e-scooters on the road to make it a convenient service for users, whilst keeping them tidy and organised so that it prevents street clutter. When it comes to valuable road users — like blind or partially-sighted people, or people with wheelchairs — poorly parked e-scooters on already cluttered footways are a big challenge.  

What we’re looking to do over time is to introduce more on-road parking where possible, because in my view, the footways need to be for pedestrians. But we also didn’t want that to be a barrier to the whole trial from the outset. So, that’s been a challenge in terms of the logistical side of things: How do you educate people to park in the right way and be compliant, and how do you push the operator to enforce those rules and get the message out there? 

This requires a strong relationship between the Transport Authority and the local Highway Authority responsible for maintaining public highways. The goal is getting that partnership right, identifying where the correct parking areas should be, and getting them signed off and approved across all parties to get that working. 

Another challenge was helping to reverse negative perceptions of e-scooters, such as people reporting e-scooter riders jumping red lights and riding on the footway, etc. We really need to listen to those concerns and use the technology and all the measures we have to improve that. Interesting our research shows that e-scooter riders and cyclists have similar levels of compliance, whether it be jumping red lights, riding on the footway, and other inappropriate behaviour. So, this demonstrates to me the need for better infrastructure. For example, our research shows that people often feel the need to ride on a footway because they feel it’s too dangerous to ride on the road. Therefore, the big uptake of e-scooter riding in the West of England really helps put forward the case for better cycling and e-scooter infrastructure in general. 

What lessons have you learned from this project and how are you going to take them forward into your future work? 

A big lesson I’ve learned is the level of collaboration that’s needed to make things work at scale. In terms of the e-scooter trial’s success, that’s largely down to the collaborative work that we’ve done with the West of England Combined Authority, the operator and the Unitary Authorities — as well as all the wider stakeholders including the police and fire service. 

We’ve also worked with an equality group — which supports valuable road users — and universities. The University of Bristol, for instance, has done some quite innovative retrofitting of air quality sensors on scooters and is currently trialling that technology. I have learnt a massive amount by working with all the great people on my team too.  Another key factor for success is investment. We’ve been fortunate in the West of England that the trial has been partly funded by the FTZ. This has enabled us to give the project the attention it needs and deserves to make it a success.  

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What inspires you most in your new role as Houston executive?

I have always had tremendous respect for ArchTam as a leader in the global marketplace and especially admire the diversity of our workforce as a large global company. Houston’s client base and workforce are exceptionally diverse and embody an innovative culture that continues to be a growth engine for our region. My goal is for our two local offices to mirror the diversity and inclusion of Houston, which is one of the most diverse cities in the country.

The competition for talent isn’t showing signs of slowing. What sets ArchTam apart as the employer of choice in Houston?

ArchTam’s Houston office is growing. We currently have 28 open requisitions in a variety of disciplines and job levels. As the world’s premier infrastructure firm, our planners, designers, engineers, consultants and construction managers work with visionary clients, partners, colleagues and mentors and our people have access to the largest network of professional expertise in the industry. The variety of our cross-disciplinary work, coupled with the places you can go, make for a dynamic career experience. ArchTam offers talented professionals a scope and scale of opportunities that other firms cannot match. We are proud to employ more than 9,000 military veterans on projects around the world, across professions, disciplines and markets. Their leadership, team-building and analytical skills, coupled with an unwavering commitment to a job well done, are critical in making decisions in the face of uncertainty and ensuring safe operations in high-risk environments.

You’ve been at the forefront of developing revenue growth strategies for a wide range of multi-discipline industries. What strategy delivers consistently, even in unprecedented times?

A successful revenue growth strategy is multi-faceted; it’s the execution of best practices resulting from listening to our clients and applying innovative solutions to overcome their most complex challenges. We are currently advising our government and private clients during the coronavirus pandemic to help prepare for the anticipated economic stimulus. Now more than ever, if I’m doing my job as a leader, I must spend as much time with our customers as I spend mentoring our employees. When our clients are successful, we are successful, with growth being a byproduct.

The city continues to experience rapid growth. How is ArchTam addressing Houston’s changing infrastructure and helping cities ensure they are choosing the right solution at the right time?

ArchTam has been part of the Houston community for 50 years. While we are a global firm, our local employees are Houstonians and experience the changing demands of Houston’s infrastructure. We understand the need to develop smart and sustainable infrastructure. Our teams can leverage advanced technology and shared learning throughout the company to uniquely address infrastructure challenges. ArchTam’s designated Cities practice draws on our diverse expertise from across the company to help make cities better places for the future. As we continue our pursuit for the METRONext Program, a plan of 500 miles of travel improvements to ease traffic congestion, it will be critical to deliver future mobility enhancements spanning multiple ongoing projects that create a universally accessible built environment for Houston.

What does the future hold for the city of Houston over the next 5-10 years?

Based on the past decade, Houston will remain on a growth trajectory into the foreseeable future. The population is projected to reach 10 million in the next 15 to 20 years – the equivalent of adding the combined city population of Dallas and San Antonio to the Houston metro area. Developing the infrastructure to support Houston’s strategy to meet the growing demand is paramount and improving connectivity through innovations in mobility will provide a strategic advantage to Houston to retain and attract new businesses. ArchTam is at the forefront of developing solutions to address these challenges and excited to be part of the future of Houston.

Who inspires you most as a leader?

For me, my inspiration comes from within. It’s triggered by my sense of responsibility to others. I do best in team environments that are fueled by determination and desire to see the invisible and accomplish the impossible, which in turn embodies my passion for leadership.

Staying safe on and off the job is a top priority at ArchTam. What is our company doing to address concerns during this current climate?

In the U.S., ArchTam has quickly and effectively pivoted our global workforce to deliver work remotely in accordance with nationwide mandated stay-at-home orders. Our interpretation of government orders, including in Texas, is that the work we perform is “essential” so our physical office locations remain open for designated employees. We still maintain a considerable number of staff who are working in the field to deliver on projects. In every case, we maintain adherence to CDC guidelines as we prioritize the safety of our people while maintaining business continuity on vital client projects.

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