Urban mobility defines the urban form – defined by roads and transport systems – of cities. Each day in cities, approximately 7.5 billion trips take place; that number is projected to triple by 2050.
Based on a comprehensive literature review and scenario analysis, this article presents possible transition pathways towards sustainable and smart urban mobility. These could involve changes to sharing, automation and electromobility practices.
Suburbanization
Suburbanization of urban landscape is an integral element of urban mobility. Characterized by residential neighborhoods featuring detached single-family homes with spacious lawns, its spread was driven by increased household wealth postwar, automobile ownership, and federal housing policies as well as marketers using themes related to American Dream ideals to market it further.
Suburbanization led to an expansion and remodelling of highway networks, significantly decreasing friction distances. Unfortunately, however, this process often resulted in public transportation services being reduced as they struggled to serve this new landscape.
Urban mobility is also affected by freight transportation trends, which includes urban logistics and last-mile delivery using trucks or vans of various sizes and forms. This trend is often called counterurbanization; its meaning depends on social context; for example it could include areas beyond traditional city borders but which function well within them, or could represent areas transitioning from urbanization to counterurbanization.
Automobiles
Since their introduction during the second half of the 20th century, automobiles have had significant repercussions for urban mobility. Not only have they provided unprecedented freedom of movement but have also led to suburbanisation and urban sprawl development. Furthermore, automobiles are one of the major causes of air, noise and traffic pollution while being an economic factor within cities requiring extensive roads infrastructure such as refuelling stations and parking spaces for their use.
On the other hand, they remain an essential means of transportation for many urban residents and must therefore provide effective alternatives in terms of mobility.
BMW Group solutions go beyond environmental sustainability; they also promote social equity and accessibility. To this end, the group participates in numerous pilot projects and urban labs globally aimed at making city traffic safer while creating digital networks to make its operation more eco-friendly and sustainable.
Multimodal transport
Offering multiple forms of transportation is crucial to creating healthy neighborhoods. Multimodal transport allows individuals to select how they’d like to get around – be it walking, riding transit or driving their own cars – which encourages an active lifestyle and improves air quality while benefiting both residents and businesses alike. This policy may even prove financially advantageous for a city itself!
Expanded multi-modal access can help connect people to economic opportunity in areas with dispersed jobs, while also improving access to high-wage positions that require drivers licenses and increasing societal equity.
Multimodal transportation systems are essential components of a sustainable economy, from relieving traffic congestion and emissions reductions, to increasing flexibility for freight transport services and meeting surges and lulls in demand throughout the year with lower transit costs and delivery lead times.
Mobility as a service
Effective urban mobility planning enables citizens to navigate their cities easily without incurring additional costs or spending more time in traffic. Furthermore, such planning helps reduce air pollution levels, improving health for residents as well as helping businesses thrive in their respective markets.
Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) is one of the key elements of this approach, providing various transportation options on a single platform accessible from a smartphone app and paying through one unified payment system; including public transit, ridesharing services such as Lyft/Uber and peer-to-peer rental services as well as electric bikes/scooters / electric scooters.
MaaS can be used to support a sustainable shift away from personal vehicle ownership, reduce congestion and air pollutants, and enhance goods flow in urban areas. Its implementation can have profound ramifications on individuals, communities and global economies alike – therefore its development by the Ross Center’s Sustainable Cities program is essential.