Welcome to the Shared-Use Mobility Center’s weekly guide to the most impactful news, thought-provoking articles and innovative technologies that are shaping our transportation future. We believe in sharing information, just like sharing cars, bikes, and scooters, so if there’s anything additional you’d like to see, just drop us a line.
SUMC News and Announcements
Mark your calendars for the 2021 Virtual Summit
The 2021 Shared Mobility Summit is taking place on April 14-16, 2021. Leading up to this seminal event we are holding a series of can’t-miss virtual webinars and workshops. The first one is on October 27, 2020. Read about it below.
Mobility Hubs to Connect Communities Webinar and Workshop
October 27, 2020
Noon – 1:30pm EST | 11:00am – 12:30pm CST | 10:00am – 11:30am MST | 9:00 am – 10:30am PST
Join the Shared-Use Mobility Center (SUMC) for this two-part event to learn about planning and implementing mobility hubs. This will be followed by interactive discussions about strategies for developing mobility hubs to expand mobility options and provide community services in different contexts. Attendees will hear speakers from the United States and Europe, as well as participate in breakout room sessions. Free and open to the public.
Read Strategies for Equity in West Dallas on the SUMC Blog
We share our research process, strategy, and recommendations for providing sustainable, equitable transportation options in a low-income, underserved area of West Dallas. Visit the blog.
New on the Learning Center: Move Nona AV Shuttle Pilot, Lake Nona, FL
Read about how Lake Nona, FL is using autonomous vehicle shuttles to decrease the use of personal vehicles in this growing area. Check it out.
The Mobility Project Voucher Application Window Opens October 20!
California agencies and organizations, submit your Mobility Project Voucher Application for up to $1 million of project funding. Learn more and apply here:
cleanmobilityoptions.org/application-materials
Fill up your calendar with Federal Transit Administration events
Stay in the know and connect with colleagues at roundtables, webinars, workshops, and more. View the calendar.
Mobility Justice
“Bikes and transportation are the baseline for which we have to see other social justice issues.” Read about transportation equity advocate Tamika Butler’s speech at the Virtual Bicycle Leadership Conference, where she talks about her personal biking experiences and transportation’s role in the larger fight for racial equity.
Latino-focused health and equity organization Salud America! released two reports focusing on what transportation policies and practices can address the disparities that hit racially-segregated and lower-income areas the most.
How unequal is public transportation access between US cities and across multiple socioeconomic divides? The Urban Institute analyzes four key metros—Baltimore, MD; Lansing, MI; Nashville, TN; and Seattle, WA—and where they differ in job and transportation access for workers and how that is affected by race, ethnicity, and day-vs-night shift.
On Wednesday, people who participated in National Walk to School Day in DC went on a “Good Trouble Walk” around Lincoln Park in Capitol Hill to honor the memory of Representative and civil rights icon John Lewis to advocate for safer walking and biking routes for kids. A partial return to in-person schooling begins early next month. See how the #GoodTroubleWalk went on Twitter.
Ridehailing/Carsharing/Carpooling
Indian ridehailing giant Ola has lost its license to operate in London after city agency Transport for London found the company allowed “unlicensed drivers and vehicles to undertake more than 1,000 passenger trips” and did not immediately flag the incidents.
99, Brazil’s ridehailing offering that is operated by China’s major player Didi Chuxing, has teamed up with Whatsapp to let users hail a trip within the messaging app in four cities in São Paulo state with broader availability in Brazil slated by the end of the year.
VIDEO: As Colombia slowly regains normalcy and opens up, people in the South American country are turning to ridehailing options like China’s Didi to get around as public transportation systems are still only operating at around half-capacity and many are still fearful of riding transit.
Bikesharing and Micromobility
Chicago will allow delivery companies to use cargo e-bikes and trikes on city streets, creating a major step forward to reducing carbon emissions, congestion, and bike-lane blocking issues with electric micromobility solutions.
Also in the Windy City, the Young Men’s Educational Network set up a bike-lending library and repair shop (with youth training opportunities) in a shipping container to offer more active mobility options and local jobs in the city’s North Lawndale neighborhood.
Two-wheels are spinning in Europe too, as the BBC reports unprecedented growth in cycling and biking, with over €1 billion spent on cycling-related infrastructure & around 2,300 km of bike lanes created since the start of the pandemic.
Bringing more sustainable mobility options to residents and visitors, the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments expanded the GoSGV pedal-assist bikeshare service to the City of Baldwin Park with 45 new e-bikes at nine stations.
Transit
An analysis from TransitCenter and Center for Neighborhood Technology studied how service cuts to public transit in ten urban areas in the US would affect transit-dependent riders and found that metros like New York and Philadelphia would see the largest number of riders affected, but cities areas like Atlanta, Cincinnati, Denver, Los Angeles, and Miami would have higher percentages of riders left waiting for the bus.
AUDIO: Listen to the latest episode of AASHTO’s ETAP podcast which features Caltrans Director Toks Omishakin discussing the key role that active transportation like walking and biking has on the way we build citywide mobility networks in various types of communities, places, and environments.
The Federal Transit Administration has made $10 million in grant funding available for the new Public Transportation COVID-19 Research Demonstration Grant Program to help foster projects in transit vehicle/facility sanitation, contactless fare payment systems, and measures to boost public confidence in mass transportation use.
Montgomery County in Maryland will launch its first-ever bus rapid transit service next week between downtown Silver Spring and the Burtonsville area that aims to save riders “20 to 30 percent of the travel time” compared to normal bus routes.
Technology
Ridehailing company Via has acquired “Smart Mobility” platform Fleetonomy to expand its digitally powered logistics solutions and perhaps pave the way for autonomous delivery fleets of the future.
The Verge details the stories and working conditions of seven backup drivers for autonomous vehicle companies Waymo and Cruise, recounting working conditions when they couldn’t socially distance in driverless trips or during unsafe air quality conditions due to the wildfires ravaging California.
Bloomberg sits down with self-driving tech startup Voyage to chat about the short-and-long-term future of autonomous vehicles in US cities and how small retirement communities help create the best first impression for driverless mobility options.
The UK’s Geospatial Commission has announced a new £2 million competition which will fund 30 projects that create innovative solutions to transportation location data with a major focus on four keys areas: mobility-as-a-service, active travel, supply chains, and increasing the efficiency of transport networks.
Sustainability
Founder and president of Strong Towns Charles Marohn believes that America can’t build its way out of the current financial crisis (especially with new highway expansions) and needs to invest in effective maintenance for aging infrastructure while relying on flexible, quick-build street adjustments to spur local economic vitality.
Seattle officials opened up Lake Washington Boulevard to pedestrians and cyclists for ten weeks to help create safer spaces for people to social distance and stay active but the city is now turning the boulevard back to a car-oriented road despite the open street’s success. Local advocates want the three-mile stretch to open back up to the people.
San Francisco is looking for community input on a new congestion pricing plan for people driving into the downtown core during rush hour but this is just a preliminary step to a less congested and polluted Bay Area for residents.
Streetsblog cartoonist Bill Roundy poignantly depicts the callous messaging behind the US government’s “Pedestrian Safety Month” with a new comic and Streetsblog calls out five useful solutions to improving roadway safety for those who walk and roll.
Requests for Proposals, Inquiries, and Information
RFP: Services for the Chestnut Street Multimodal Station, Shared Services Facility & City of Oxford Passenger Rail Platform
Butler County Regional Transit Authority
Oxford, Ohio
Deadline: October 19, 2020
RFP: Three Health Care Shuttles for Salem County Senior Residents and Limited Disabled Residents, and General Population in a Rural Area
Salem County
Salem, New Jersey
Deadline: November 5, 2020
NEW RFP: $200 Million For Renewable Energy Supplier for All City-Owned Buildings
City of Chicago
Chicago, IL
Deadline: November 6, 2020
RFI: RideShare Software
Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority
Des Moines, Iowa
Deadline: November 9, 2020
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