How Will the Technological Shift in Transportation Impact Cities? A Review of Quantitative Studies on the Impacts of New Transportation Technologies

This study examines the impact of emerging transport trends on the Western Balkans and their potential to improve the sustainability and efficiency of the transport sector in the region. In the context of global efforts to reduce environmental impacts and improve transport safety, the study aims to better understand the perspective of the business sector in order to align strategic planning for the introduction of new transport technologies and practices with the expectations of the business sector. Using a questionnaire-based survey on the Mentimeter platform, the study gathers insights from 49 transport and logistics experts. The analysis uses violin plots and heat maps to visualise the expected impact of the identified trends. The results show a consensus among the experts that the emerging trends are likely to lead to a reduction in accidents, congestion, and emissions, while at the same time increasing operating costs and investment in infrastructure. In particular, trends such as alternative fuels, electrification, and smart city initiatives are highlighted as important drivers for reducing emissions. The study concludes that while these trends are likely to lead to the achievement of environmental and safety goals, they also lead to economic challenges as operating costs increase and significant infrastructure investment is required. The study emphasises the need for strategic investment, policy adjustments, and capacity building to lead the Western Balkans towards a sustainable transport future.

“…[ 75,[81][82][83][84][85] Table 2. Assessment of trends and their influence on various transport aspects.…”

Section: Transport Techniques and Technologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Transport Techniques and Technologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of Transport Trends on Sustainability in the Western Balkans: A Future-Oriented Business Sector Perspective

Letnik,

Hanžič,

Mencinger

et al. 2023

“…[52][53][54]. In general, the higher the automation and connectivity level, as well as the market penetration rate of CAV (connected and automated vehicles), the more possible it is to have positive impacts on traffic flow, with vehicle heterogeneity being the most crucial factor for problems relating to traffic flow at entrance and exit points of motorways [47,49,55,56].…”

Section: Electric and Autonomous Vehicle Characteristics And Expected...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Concerning natural resource consumption, air pollution and the greenhouse effect, the consequences may be either positive or negative, depending on factors such as the impact that autonomous vehicles will have on the total number of traveled passengerkm, on whether autonomous vehicles will at the same time be electric (especially in the case of BEV with renewable energy sources) and shared or pooled, on vehicle energy efficiency, on road safety improvement (lighter vehicles, thus reduction in fuel consumption and less transport waste), on whether the demand for parking places in cities will decrease (given that searching for a parking place causes additional pollutant emissions), etc. [27,49,52,55,61,[63][64][65].…”

Section: Electric and Autonomous Vehicle Characteristics And Expected...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainable Mobility Driven Prioritization of New Vehicle Technologies, Based on a New Decision-Aiding Methodology

Anastasiadou

2021

In an era of environmental and socio-economic crisis, sustainable transport planning is vital as ever, especially given that the transport sector is responsible for the greatest part of total air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. New vehicle technologies, such as autonomous and electric vehicles, emerge as promising alternatives, creating, however, both opportunities and challenges and raising questions relating to their performance. Can these new vehicle technologies really perform better than conventional ones in terms of sustainable mobility? Which one of them constitutes the optimum solution? How does each alternative perform with regard to different evaluation criteria, such as air pollution or road safety? In order to answer such questions, and to select the optimum solution, a comparison between autonomous, electric, autonomous electric and conventional vehicles is executed, based on a set of social, economic and environmental criteria. For this purpose, a new decision-aiding methodology, allowing for a holistic evaluation of the alternatives through a comprehensive literature review and experts’ participation, is applied. It is mainly based on the combined application of two hybrid multi-criteria analysis models, creating a more solid background towards optimum decision-making, thus constituting an important decision support tool for project appraisal and funding within the framework of sustainability in any sector.

“…However, the vision of sustainable urban (air) mobility will not materialise by itself [6]. Initially, a contingency on sustainability effects regarding the use of drones for passenger transportation must be expected.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social Sustainable Urban Air Mobility in Europe

Biehle

2022

The first step to steer passenger Urban Air Mobility (pUAM) towards the necessity of sustainability is to understand its impact on our urban transportation systems. This research emphasises the social footprint of passenger drones in scheduled operation as an early business model in European Functional Urban Areas. The literature review is guided by the corresponding Sustainable Urban Mobility Indicators (SUMI). The prospective impact which the introduction of pUAM has on the evaluation of European transportation systems regarding their affordability for the public, their inclusivity for mobility-impaired groups, their accessibility to commuters and the level of customer satisfaction is analysed. Furthermore, the impact of pUAM on the perceived quality of public urban space is examined. Results indicate the overall social footprint of passenger drones in European transport systems to be negative. Early market pUAM may lead to an unbalanced distribution of potential benefits, with services tailored to address only a limited number of citizens. Highlighting pathways for a societal benefiting technology, recommendations are provided for urban planning and city development.