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ack in January, Atkins hosted an event tied to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Entitled “A Little Less Conversation,

A Little More Action, please” the discussion A Little More Action, please” the discussion A Little More Action, please”centred around whether the industry spends too much time looking into the future and not enough time concentrating on the here and now.

So how should we balance the two? Are some of the things we envisage actually not going to happen at all, and do we really appreciate the revolutionary things happening today?

I asked four experts to give their views…

Q Do we sometimes forget how far we’ve come in the field of

Intelligent Mobility?Stephen- Probably. Take an example of a recent trip I took from my home city of Bristol to London. Before I left for the station, I looked up the bus time on my

Bapp so that I didn’t have to stand waiting at the bus stop in the rain. Fortunately, Siri had reminded me that I would be needing a brolly. I paid the bus fare with my smart phone. Whilst en route, I used the on-bus free Wi-Fi to find the train platform before collecting my pre-booked ticket from the self-service kiosk and buying a coffee with my Apple wallet. On the train I set up a personal hot spot so that I could tether my tablet to my phone’s 4G and did a good hour’s work before listening to a streamed music playlist. In London, I exerted customer choice and chose between Addison Lee and Uber. Just a normal experience for me and for many millions of others who take connectivity, mobile apps and the Internet of Things (IoT) as a given.

Andy- It’s always on my mind that we talk too much about things that will be happening in the far future, not until the twelfth of never even. But, for me, it’s now or never that we must adopt a more

mobility focus, by building on what we have already and taking small but continuous steps that the customer wants to see and understand. The transport market has been

all shook up by Uber, fusing together proven technology and

a business model that is customer centric. It has caught on like a hound dog as it has taken a few small steps the customer can understand and see benefits from, and woven in technology. It’s appealed to a need

Now or never? “ Rather than waiting for a great, momentous invention, we should learn to recognise progress through numerous small and frequent improvements, which we can think of as cities in a state of ‘permanent beta’ ”

now or never that we must adopt a more mobility focus, by building on

what we have already and taking small but continuous steps that the customer wants to see and understand. The transport market has been

my Apple wallet. On the train I set up a personal hot spot so that I could tether my tablet to my phone’s 4G and

work before listening to a streamed music playlist. In London, I exerted customer choice and chose between

all shook up by Uber, fusing together proven technology and

a business model that is customer

WORDS BY LEE WOODCOCK

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way down in the human psyche for mobility on demand but in a “hands off” way.

Ian- I think we have done a lot more than we give ourselves credit for. Our downfall is we want to improve on our deliverables, make them smarter and more efficient, so we are not always shouting the news from the rooftops. We are looking to be the first to deliver the best we can at that moment in time, but always thinking of the next iteration, the next improvement, this is the way of the technology driven entrepreneur inside us.

Jim- It’s difficult to think of another area with the same level of enthusiasm and excitement as Intelligent Mobility. The developments and deployments involving iM seem to be gaining momentum daily. The collaboration of engineering companies with software developers and other non-traditional partners has resulted in rapid transformation in terms of driverless vehicles, safety features, and have included all aspects of the journey, from tolling to intelligent roadways.

Q So do we deliver a better game than we actually talk?

Andy- I just can’t help believing that there are far too many suspicious minds involved in developing transport into new mobility services… and I think I am becoming one of them. This is because I have perhaps too healthy a suspicion that we cannot jump straight to some of the future mobility scenarios that I often see presented. You will have seen for example the simulations of junctions with 100 per cent automated vehicles yet with no pedestrians or cyclists. These give me a wooden heart. And what city really wants that type of highly automated human free future – and more importantly what politician will propose this change or even the first steps on the path to it – it’s a walk down a lonesome road for the

first to suggest it. The far future

clearly is bright – but until then we have to take it one step at a time, and stay this side of the edge of reality.

Stephen- The issue is that many still expect the future to arrive with a whizz and a bang. When I was a boy this would have been in the form of a flying car. Nowadays, the connected and autonomous vehicle has taken its place: there will be no doubt that the future is here when our highways are full of them! I presume this is how the Victorians must have felt when they experienced the wonders of electricity, sewers and running water for the first time. But even though Bristol, through the Venturer and Flourish projects, is leading the way in understanding driver and pedestrian interaction with CAVs, I would argue that the way we need to think

about ‘smart’ has changed

significantly in the last hundred plus years. Rather than waiting for a great, momentous invention, we should learn to recognise progress through numerous small and frequent improvements, which we can think of as cities in a state of ‘permanent beta’.

Ian- Engineers in the fast moving space of technology, we are aspiring to shape the future of the individuals experience in the mobility arena. This requires us to always have an eye on the future, but to also be grounded with the present. But we have to talk and think about the future, because it is our future. We have steps along the journey we take to the future, but with those steps we take, we deliver in the here and now.

Mobility is how we view a transportation experience, we call it an experience because it effects the individual in different

ways. By capturing the pains and needs of the individual enables us to understand and improve the mobility offering, whatever that may be, to benefit the individual. We have enhanced mobility across the globe with multiple clients on different transport mediums.

Andy- We need to not surrender to the perfect future of self driving cars as the only destination to aim for– better connectivity and new services in today’s vehicles still driven by humans will enhance mobility. It’s not impossible to see benefits on emissions, congestion and assets from services the customer wants like smart parking, driver monitoring or vehicle recovery (to return to sender).

Jim- Clearly, iM has the potential to enable people who struggle with finding safe, convenient, affordable travel options across all modes of transportation. We’re working with state and local governments across the country, facilitating innovative visioning and roadmap development sessions to address the rapidly evolving needs around iM.

Stephen- Bristol SMEs such as Esoterix have long since operated in this way with their Buxi (half bus and half taxi) pioneering the way in mobility on demand. The City Council and the SME Urban Things launched the Bristol Transport API

ANDY GRAHAMLeading British ITS expert and owner of White Willow Consulting

STEPHEN HILTONA Director at Bristol Futures Global Ltd and Fellow of the University of Bristol Cabot Institute

IAN MACHENDirector, Intelligent Mobility, Atkins

JIM HANSONDirector, Intelligent Mobility, Atkins

“ What city really wants that type of highly automated human free future – and more importantly what politician will propose this change or even the first steps on the path to it? ”

would argue that the way we need to think about ‘smart’ has changed

The future won’t necessarily arrive with the whizz and bang of flying-car proportions

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So one size automated vehicles will not fit all users but data about how drivers behave will allow vehicle makers to tailor global solutions to local customers needs. We need to make solutions that work well, yet don’t be cruel to human drivers and cause new forms of trouble on the road.

Jim- I think it’s about sharing best practice from global solutions tailored to local requirements. The GO-NV Summit brought to life the four principles of our iM approach. The industry executives who spoke at the event provided attendees with an understanding of what technology and transportation companies, and their partners, are doing to advance mobility, the best practices for building smart and connected communities, and what is still needed for connected and autonomous vehicles, or CAVs, to become a viable mode of transportation for the general public. The speakers focused on how mobility will be achieved, building things locally in Nevada, using drone technology, and using Nevada as a testbed for CAV and other technologies.

Q You mention the event in Nevada. Now the British have, rightly in my

view, been proud of their global contribution to ITS and intelligent mobility, but we should always be learning from elsewhere. What did we learn from what they’re up to in Las Vegas as a city and Nevada as a state?

as a city open data platform to support urban innovation; and through the ground breaking work of Knowle West Media Centre, Bristol has long since positioned itself as a Living Laboratory - a safe place for user-focused city experimentation.

This is not to say that things can’t be better, in Bristol and in the wider world. None of the buses, trains or taxis that I travelled in in the journey I mentioned earlier ran on renewables. That’s something I think needs to change rapidly if we are to stand even the faintest chance of minimising the global impacts of climate change. And for every journey that goes as smoothly as the one I described, there is another that is full of friction. We must also remember that access to the benefits of mobile connectivity, apps and an IoT enabled future is not equally distributed. Poverty, disability, lack of knowledge and skills are serious impediments that need to be tackled through long-term strategic interventions and much greater investment in inclusive co-design.

Finally, as residents of cities in a state of permanent beta, we must learn to celebrate this iterative change. This means being flexible, adaptable and resilient. I believe that these are key attributes that we will need if we are to flourish. So come on, stop grumbling – the future is here now, so let’s enjoy being part of the experiment!

Q Do we face different challenges in different places?

Ian- Mobility and its challenges are resonated across the globe, there are locally specific problems that do change by region, but the basic issue is the same. This can depend on a number of items, the complexity of the current transport network, the ownership of the mobility services, the

availability of the mobility services, the appetite for change, cultural differences, financial obstacles, and the list goes on… But to reiterate we can take a delivered solution in one area and re-use this in other locations, some changes are required to meet the local market, but this can also be an advantage. The client can learn from other mobility enhancements and this can generate thoughts and idea’s previously not on their radar and by seeing a deployed service and the benefits it has given can confirm the project validity.

Andy- I have noticed in my travels that drivers behave very differently not just between countries. In the UK, flashing your headlights means many things such as “Hi Lee” or “watch out”, “come through” or “I am coming through, it’s my way” but has no similar meaning in France or to a US male. I’ve never been to Spain but the driving there is very different again I am told. And driver behaviour changes between the country and city, and also in the Ghetto say.

“ There are locally specific problems that do change by region, but the basic issue is the same ”

The GO-NV Summit in Nevada

Flashing one’s headlights means different things in different localities

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Jim- Intelligent mobility has created collaboration among data specialists, software developers, federal and state and local agencies, entrepreneurs, vehicle manufacturers, and technology and engineering companies like ours. Interoperability of systems, getting systems to “talk” to each other and work seamlessly, has mandated collaboration. Nevada Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada’s Freeway & Arterial System of Transportation, or FAST, is a perfect example of this—a truly integrated intelligent transportation system (ITS) organization, one of the first in the country.

Las Vegas’ Economic Development Group is positioning for this change as a way to grow and advance. As one of the US’s most popular tourist destinations, it’s in Las Vegas’s best interest to assure visitors their trip will be hassle-free and safe. The developments around iM will do just that—they will make visitors much more mobile (more transportation options and end-to-end journey planning), less stressed (removing cars from roadways), and safer (CAVs, intelligent systems to manage traffic).

Ian- Nevada is a hot bed of innovation and mobility driven trials. This includes a number of current and planned activities. Nevada is proud to announce all its generated electricity is from clean sources. The availability of space and the environmental conditions coupled with the governing view on being the state for innovation has led to a number of high profile organisations focusing on Nevada. Tesla have built their ‘Giga factory’ in Nevada, this factory is now producing the much needed battery cells not only to power the ever increasing vehicle sales, but to Tesla’s new demand supplementing power stations. Hyperloop’s first test was carried out in the deserts of Nevada and a new manufacturing plant has been built. This brings yet another focus to Neveda as a leading location for innovation and technical enhancements.

During CES a number of innovative technology was launched, this included the

autonomous PRT and GRT vehicles, this included live running of the Navya Arma PRT along Freemont Street in Downtown Las Vegas.

Andy- Learning from the developments in Nevada that were discussed during CES, we can see some far off ideas that aren’t deployable yet. But the real key “golden coin” for me was the first steps of green light notification in the Audi. This solution would be tricky to deploy in places with adaptive traffic signalling like London, as the green times aren’t so predicable there. But it’s a great start that has raised awareness and grabbed media attention – tell my why that’s wrong. Any day now it will expand, and so the team deploying it should be congratulated. As Elvis once said, viva Las Vegas!

Lee says...- Firstly, thank you to the four experts for their perspectives, I thought the input was excellent and I am sure Andy deserves a special note of thanks for his knowledge of Elvis lyrics and manage to weave some in his response!

The event in Las Vegas in January for me was an important session, not only because of the experts giving their views and the importance of the underlying theme of ‘a little less conversation, a little more action please’ but that for me it reinforces the need to act quickly.

This investigation is less about the event per se but more about having a time to reflect on what people learnt from the event and what it means for us in our associated Intelligent Mobility sectors, and for me, this means we need to push much harder across the public and private sector to unlock economic value and provide a seamless positive customer experience through new business models enabled by technology and data.

It is clear that as we look globally that, yes, such things as policy change and new regulation will help, but fundamental to this harder push is leadership. So, ‘It’s now or never... tomorrow will be too late’. ■

ABOUT THE ATKINS INVESTIGATION

Atkins is a company which will always work for its clients to understand the issues involved and provides expertise, answers and ideas in ITS, and now more recently in Smart Cities and Intelligent Mobility. Delivering an appropriate and sustainable transportation network for the 21st century is an exciting challenge. Atkins is committed to planning, designing and enabling our clients’ transportation programmes. Atkins has a proven track record of successfully planning, design-ing and enabling urban transport and environmental improvements across all scales of developments. Successful trans-port strategies examine the journeys that people need to make in all aspects of their lives and provide realistic travel options. The services provided to clients range from strategic policy advice and performance management, through all aspects of demand forecasting, behavioural analysis, to accessibility, transport for land develop-ment, streetscapes and traffic engineering design. Atkins supports the Atkins Investi-gation in Smart Highways because the in-vestigation, like Atkins, gets to the heart of an issue in order to understand it, and then utilise the knowledge and understanding to help its clients translate and navigate difficult issues in order for them make the right decisions safe in the knowledge they have the facts.

Faraday Future FF91 passenger vehicle. The new vehicle is aimed at individuals who want the latest in autonomous battery powered transport. It is claimed to be the next generation of transport, featuring conventional car characteristics such as a ‘steering wheel’ but can run in full autonomous mode when the legislation allows it.

There were also a number of organisations running tests of the latest

“ It’s difficult to think of another area with the same level of enthusiasm and excitement as Intelligent Mobility ”

The Faraday Future FF91 vehicle