By Monica Menendez, Associate Dean for Graduate Programs; Director of the Research Center for Interacting Urban Networks (CITIES); Professor of Civil and Urban Engineering at NYU Abu Dhabi
Earlier this month, Stockholm announced a plan to ban diesel-and-gas-powered vehicles from entering large parts of its city center, in one of the world’s most far-reaching efforts to combat automobile emissions. It also potentially marks the beginning of the end for a form of transport that came to define urban landscapes. Indeed, one survey of US cities showed that downtowns devote an astonishing 50 to 60 percent of their space to vehicles.
While this situation wasn’t really questioned by planners for many decades, today, there is a growing environmental and social movement to re-imagine urban transport systems with people, rather than cars, at the center. Here are a few options that policymakers might consider.
Data optimization
Any discussion about the future of transport in most cities still begins with how to optimize car transportation, and data analytics of traffic is key to successful outcomes. Sensors and cameras capture vast amounts of data about traffic flow, pedestrian movement, and public transport usage. When properly analyzed, this data provides city planners with real-time insights into the needs and patterns of its residents.
These tactics can yield impressive results. For instance, San Francisco’s SFpark project utilizes sensors to gauge parking availability and then adjusts prices in real-time, ensuring optimal parking occupancy and reducing search time for drivers. Sensors have also been deployed all over in the UAE, especially at traffic lights where they activate the lights in response to traffic, helping optimize traffic flow, while also collecting data. Zurich also uses traffic lights to slow the movement of cars to the center once it starts getting congested, and then speed up their exit in the afternoons. In Singapore, vehicles are charged based on road congestion levels, effectively reducing traffic during peak hours. Singapore also utilizes data analytics to anticipate and manage public transport demand.
Moving forward, there is a lot more we data analysts can do with the right information.
Future solutions
Along with pricing and taxation, and initiatives such as car park charges based on peak demand, there are many other tools that can improve efficiencies. For example, 60 percent of Copenhagen’s residents now commute by bicycle, thanks to continuous infrastructure development.
Many cities, particularly in Europe and the US, have pedestrianized key areas, which has helped revitalize areas that were lost to traffic. New York’s Time Square and London’s Trafalgar Square are two famous examples. This approach can also be implemented on a more flexible basis. Bogotá, the Colombian capital, introduced ‘Ciclovía’, an initiative that closes around 120 km of streets to cars every Sunday, allowing pedestrians and cyclists to take over. Other methods to restrict traffic flows include London’s Ultra Low Emissions Zone, which has also led to a five times faster reduction of pollution in London than the rest of the UK.
In the coming years, a combination of new technologies and sustainability goals will further redefine urban transport. Autonomous Vehicles could reduce the need for personal vehicle ownership, parking spaces, and lowering traffic congestion. The shift to electric vehicles, including buses and taxis, also seems inevitable, with cities across the world investing in EV charging infrastructure to cater to future demand. Helping coordinate and unify more complex and fluid transport systems, Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS), envisioned as a singular digital platform, would combine various modes of transport – buses, trams, bikes, and ride-shares – offering an optimized commuting solution. This could especially help with first- and last-mile solutions.
Looking further ahead, technologies like Hyperloop and magnetic levitation (Maglev) trains promise speeds surpassing traditional rail or even flights for inter-city transport. And while it might sound like science fiction, drones for delivery and passenger urban air mobility could become a part of the urban transit ecosystem.
Societal values vs efficiencies
It’s important to note that there is no one strategy that fits every city. Older cities that were not built for cars can sometimes adopt strategies to discourage vehicles more easily than cities built around modern roads. Cycling in Amsterdam makes more sense than it does in Abu Dhabi, for example, due to the layout of the city centre, cultural expectations, and climate.
Some Asian cities, including Tokyo, Singapore, and Hong Kong, successfully rely on public transportation, but can do so easily because they have very high population densities. There is also public tolerance, or otherwise, to certain measures. Singapore has developed a lot of pricing to discourage car ownership, which might not be so popular in London where initiatives such as 20mph zones have been perceived by sections of the public and media as ‘anti-freedom’. Even pedestrian zones, which have repeatedly been proven to benefit neighbourhoods, can face strong resistance from car-reliant residents. The lesson is that any transport policy must consider the culture and specific needs of residents for it to work.
There is also a wider context of making cities liveable as well as functionable. Studies have shown that the provision of public transport services in bad neighbourhoods leads to lower crime rates and economic growth, due to residents being able to access better education and job opportunities. Conversely, when the Interstate Highway System was built across the US in the 1950s, the freeways were typically routed through poorer neighbourhoods, where real estate was cheaper, which effectively killed many once lively areas.
So we must study these examples and consider what portion of society our policies benefit. When we only invest into cars, are we doing this to the detriment of the people that can only afford to use public transport services? And when we push people to more expensive electric cars, where does that leave people who cannot afford to upgrade?
Some of these questions do not have easy answers. Thankfully, technology and data can empower decision-making, allowing cities to tailor solutions that are efficient, sustainable, and most importantly, people centric. By learning from global examples and embracing futuristic technologies, urban centers can pave the way for a revolution in transportation, ensuring a harmonious – and fairer – coexistence of people, technology, and the environment.