Mobility Planning in an Era of Rapid Change
From driverless cars to the Hyperloop, significant change is coming to urban mobility. Few cities have begun to seriously address this disruptive change however. Recognizing this gap, Brooks Rainwater from the National League of Cities identifies four ways urban mobility will change: Demographic and workforce change; infrastructure financing; the growth of public and private mobility systems; and new modes of transportation. There are great opportunities on the horizon, but forward thinking policies are needed now, rather than as reactions to a future we knew was coming. It’s worth noting that throughout history, urban mobility has faced all of these changes before. While we need a deeper understanding of the disruptive technology that is on the horizon, it might not hurt to dig out the urban mobility history books, either.