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Drones, droids and driverless cars - London is in the
midst of a major transport upheaval.
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Transport for London (TfL) needs to predict and prepare
for changes in technology.
The London Assembly Transport
Committee report ‘Future Transport: How is
London responding to technological innovation?’ is
published today.
It reveals some interesting findings:
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· Connected
and autonomous vehicles (CAVs) or driverless cars won't be on the
road until the 2030s at least and could add to congestion
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· Dockless
cycle schemes need to be able to operate across London to be
effective
- · There
is no control system in place for drones and droids
- · TfL is
monitoring technological developments but this needs to be
embedded across the whole organisation
There have been recent failures in London’s preparations for
innovative transport services, notably the rapid growth of
private hire operator Uber and the disruptive launch of dockless
cycle hire service oBike.
The Transport Committee report
recommends the Mayor, TfL and government should:
- Consider
the potential development and impact of autonomous bus technology
- Examine
whether to introduce a London-wide licensing regime for dockless
cycle hire
- Develop the
principles of a new regulatory regime for demand-responsive bus
services
- Ensure data
produced by apps powered by underlying TfL data is shared with
TfL
- Consider an
integrated control system for ground-based autonomous vehicles
and airborne drones
AM, Chairman of
the London Assembly Transport Committee said;
“Autonomous vehicles could make roads safer. Dockless bikes
could spread the benefits of cycling to the whole city and
demand-responsive buses could give people a public transport
service tailored to their needs. The opportunity to improve
mobility for millions of Londoners is here but it will
require proper planning, transparency and
accountability, as well as cooperation with government, boroughs
and development companies.
TfL have been caught napping on the technology front and it’s
time to wake up. Uber, then oBike are two examples of a
poorly prepared regulator which seems to be making it up as they
go along.
Go back to 2014 - in its ‘Future Proof’ report, this
committee warned that ‘TfL needs to be prepared for the
inevitable consequences of a transport environment in which
technology is evolving faster than the legislation that is needed
to govern its use.’ It’s clear that warning was ignored – let’s
hope this warning won’t be.”
