San Bernardino, CA – Urbanization and rising incomes have been driving rapid motorization mostly in major cities across the United States, if no action is taken, the cars associated with this growth literally threaten to choke tomorrow’s cities, bringing with them a host of negative consequences that would seriously undermine the overall benefits of urbanization and quality of life. Automation is one of the suggested ideas to solve this problem. One of the main potential advantages of automation is safer driving. A safer autonomous system could allow for different and significantly lighter vehicles that would need less energy to ride. A fleet of easily available automated vehicles could also make ride-sharing more attractive, and potentially reduce levels of auto ownership.
Additional Story – Leonard Transportation Center Highlights Autonomous and Connected Vehicles
However, digital innovation does not automatically guarantee that the future of mobility will indeed be more sustainable. If we don’t get it right, these disruptions could also exacerbate existing urban transport problems. It is not clear how autonomous vehicles will perform in a mixed environment – computer and human. Jaywalking pedestrians or less-than-perfect manual drivers would cause autonomous cars to stop. Moreover, by making driving virtually effortless, automated vehicles may also encourage longer trips and an exodus to the suburbs, translating into more urban sprawl. Combined with the ease of shared mobility, these factors can increase congestion and make public transport less viable.
This series is being hosted at a new location, the Loma Linda University San Manuel Gateway College facility, right off the 215 freeway in San Bernardino. Come out and join us, this will be an exciting conversation about the future of automotive technology.
We will have two speakers presenting the full range of opinions on this topic:
- Tim Hale, Deputy Executive Director, Contra Costa Transportation Authority
- Jim Barbaresso, Senior Vice President, HNTB
- Greg Larson, Office Chief, Caltrans Office of Traffic Operations Research (Invited)
Registration is now open and limited to the first 50 people. To register: https://commerce.cashnet.com/eCampus
