Alaa Khamis - Smart Mobility: Exploring Foundational Technologies and Wider Impacts

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Nowadays, we are witnessing several paradigm shifts in mobility systems and services. Cities are decarbonizing the transportation sector and are moving from car-centric mobility to multimodal mobility, from restricted mobility in two-dimensional streets to 3D mobility, from rigid-schedule mobility to mobility on demand and on an as-needed basis, and from fragmented unconnected mobility to seamless integrated mobility. Mobility companies move from the manufacturing and trade economy to the service economy or servitization such as Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) as the neo-liberalization of people and freight transportation and from the unsustainable number of cars sold-based revenue model to vehicle miles traveled (VMT)-based, infonomics-based data and customer experience monetization and passenger economy-based revenue models. Delivery service providers move from conventional slow, rigid, and nontransparent last-mile delivery to fast, elastic, and transparent last-mile delivery services. People move from ownership to usership and from passive mobility to active and zero-impact mobility. Different foundational technologies, technology enablers, and mobility disruptors are behind these paradigm shifts.

This book gives a holistic view of smart mobility systems and services and describes their foundational technologies, technology enablers, and disruptors. The market size of these technologies, their potential growth, and their eco-socioeconomic implications are highlighted in this book. Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on consumer behaviors and preferences and the expected short-term disruptions and longer-term structural changes in different aspects of mobility systems especially in micromobility, shared mobility, public transit, and contactless last-mile delivery services are also discussed.

I do believe that the future mobility is people-centric, software-defined, connected, and electric. In spite of recent rapid development, smart mobility is still in its infancy. There is a growing need to use different mentioned foundational technologies, technology enablers, and disruptors to enhance the relationship between customers and mobility providers and to achieve affordable, inclusive, and seamless integration between different mobility services. The legal and regulatory environment around several smart mobility technologies needs to be well developed taking into consideration opinions and concerns of different stakeholders. Moreover, evolutionary and revolutionary changes in the city planning should be considered to accommodate the emerging services of smart mobility.

This book is intended for working professionals, training centers, and academic institutions. The book serves a wide range of audience including university students, researchers, mobility engineers, technologists, and city planners looking for a holistic vision and new ideas about future mobility technologies and services. The book gives the reader a comprehensive and easy-to-digest introduction to the current and emerging smart mobility systems focusing on foundational technologies, technology enablers, and disruptors that will shape the future of mobility.

While the book describes many future possibilities, some surprising achievements are already made and publicly used. We all enjoy and rely every day on shared mobility services, connected mobility, e-mobility, active mobility, micromobility, and same-day and instant last-mile delivery services. Moreover, in the not too distant future, we will enjoy safe and entertaining self-driving vehicles (SDVs) as a third living space with consumer-centric products and services; we will be able to use self-driving vehicles as a mobile motel, beauty salon, mobile store, and mobile clinic; we will have our online orders shipped to our doorstep by delivery droids; we will travel safely and conveniently in zero-emission hyperloops, autonomous air taxis, air metro, or autonomous boats; seamless integration between different mobility modes will be the norm; and finally affordable inclusive and sustainable mobility will be achieved. I hope you will enjoy this exciting journey into the future of people and goods mobility.