IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/pal/palcom/v8y2021i1d10.1057_s41599-021-01006-2.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Pilot project purgatory? Assessing automated vehicle pilot projects in U.S. cities

Author

Listed:
  • Devon McAslan

    (Chalmers University of Technology)

  • Farah Najar Arevalo

    (Arizona State University)

  • David A. King

    (Arizona State University)

  • Thaddeus R. Miller

    (University of Massachusetts Amherst)

Abstract

Pilot projects have emerged in cities globally as a way to experiment with the utilization of a suite of smart mobility and emerging transportation technologies. Automated vehicles (AVs) have become central tools for such projects as city governments and industry explore the use and impact of this emerging technology. This paper presents a large-scale assessment of AV pilot projects in U.S. cities to understand how pilot projects are being used to examine the risks and benefits of AVs, how cities integrate these potentially transformative technologies into conventional policy and planning, and how and what they are learning about this technology and its future opportunities and risks. Through interviews with planning practitioners and document analysis, we demonstrate that the approaches cities take for AVs differ significantly, and often lack coherent policy goals. Key findings from this research include: (1) a disconnect between the goals of the pilot projects and a city’s transportation goals; (2) cities generally lack a long-term vision for how AVs fit into future mobility systems and how they might help address transportation goals; (3) an overemphasis of non-transportation benefits of AV pilots projects; (4) AV pilot projects exhibit a lack of policy learning and iteration; and (5) cities are not leveraging pilot projects for public benefits. Overall, urban and transportation planners and decision makers show a clear interest to discover how AVs can be used to address transportation challenges in their communities, but our research shows that while AV pilot projects purport to do this, while having numerous outcomes, they have limited value for informing transportation policy and planning questions around AVs. We also find that AV pilot projects, as presently structured, may constrain planners’ ability to re-think transportation systems within the context of rapid technological change.

Suggested Citation

  • Devon McAslan & Farah Najar Arevalo & David A. King & Thaddeus R. Miller, 2021. "Pilot project purgatory? Assessing automated vehicle pilot projects in U.S. cities," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 8(1), pages 1-16, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:palcom:v:8:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1057_s41599-021-01006-2
    DOI: 10.1057/s41599-021-01006-2
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1057/s41599-021-01006-2
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1057/s41599-021-01006-2?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rob Kitchin, 2015. "Making sense of smart cities: addressing present shortcomings," Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 8(1), pages 131-136.
    2. Lea Fuenfschilling & Niki Frantzeskaki & Lars Coenen, 2019. "Urban experimentation & sustainability transitions," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(2), pages 219-228, February.
    3. Eva Kassens-Noor & Mark Wilson & Meng Cai & Noah Durst & Travis Decaminada, 2021. "Autonomous vs. Self-Driving Vehicles: The Power of Language to Shape Public Perceptions," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(3-4), pages 5-24, October.
    4. Millard-Ball, Adam, 2019. "The autonomous vehicle parking problem," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 99-108.
    5. Federico Savini & Luca Bertolini, 2019. "Urban experimentation as a politics of niches," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 51(4), pages 831-848, June.
    6. Jason Hawkins & Khandker Nurul Habib, 2019. "Integrated models of land use and transportation for the autonomous vehicle revolution," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(1), pages 66-83, January.
    7. Devon McAslan & Max Gabriele & Thaddeus R. Miller, 2021. "Planning and Policy Directions for Autonomous Vehicles in Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) in the United States," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(3-4), pages 175-201, October.
    8. Jingya Gao & Andisheh Ranjbari & Don MacKenzie, 2019. "Would being driven by others affect the value of travel time? Ridehailing as an analogy for automated vehicles," Transportation, Springer, vol. 46(6), pages 2103-2116, December.
    9. Tom Cohen & Clémence Cavoli, 2019. "Automated vehicles: exploring possible consequences of government (non)intervention for congestion and accessibility," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(1), pages 129-151, January.
    10. Daniel van den Buuse & Willem van Winden & Wieke Schrama, 2021. "Balancing Exploration and Exploitation in Sustainable Urban Innovation: An Ambidexterity Perspective toward Smart Cities," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(1-2), pages 175-197, April.
    11. David Webb, 2018. "Tactical Urbanism: Delineating a Critical Praxis," Planning Theory & Practice, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(1), pages 58-73, January.
    12. Mustapha Harb & Yu Xiao & Giovanni Circella & Patricia L. Mokhtarian & Joan L. Walker, 2018. "Projecting travelers into a world of self-driving vehicles: estimating travel behavior implications via a naturalistic experiment," Transportation, Springer, vol. 45(6), pages 1671-1685, November.
    13. Bansal, Prateek & Kockelman, Kara M., 2017. "Forecasting Americans’ long-term adoption of connected and autonomous vehicle technologies," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 49-63.
    14. Huguenin, Ariane & Jeannerat, Hugues, 2017. "Creating change through pilot and demonstration projects: Towards a valuation policy approach," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 624-635.
    15. Fraedrich, Eva & Heinrichs, Dirk & Bahamonde-Birke, Francisco J. & Cyganski, Rita, 2019. "Autonomous driving, the built environment and policy implications," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 162-172.
    16. Sarah Dennis & Alexander Paz & Tan Yigitcanlar, 2021. "Perceptions and Attitudes Towards the Deployment of Autonomous and Connected Vehicles: Insights from Las Vegas, Nevada," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(3-4), pages 75-95, October.
    17. Yonah Freemark & Anne Hudson & Jinhua Zhao, 2019. "Are Cities Prepared for Autonomous Vehicles?," Journal of the American Planning Association, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 85(2), pages 133-151, April.
    18. Willem van Winden & Daniel van den Buuse, 2017. "Smart City Pilot Projects: Exploring the Dimensions and Conditions of Scaling Up," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(4), pages 51-72, October.
    19. Jack Stilgoe & Tom Cohen, 2021. "Rejecting acceptance: learning from public dialogue on self-driving vehicles [Crowdsourcing Moral Machines]," Science and Public Policy, Oxford University Press, vol. 48(6), pages 849-859.
    20. Timo von Wirth & Lea Fuenfschilling & Niki Frantzeskaki & Lars Coenen, 2019. "Impacts of urban living labs on sustainability transitions: mechanisms and strategies for systemic change through experimentation," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(2), pages 229-257, February.
    21. Igor Calzada & Cristobal Cobo, 2015. "Unplugging: Deconstructing the Smart City," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(1), pages 23-43, January.
    22. Fábio Duarte & Carlo Ratti, 2018. "The Impact of Autonomous Vehicles on Cities: A Review," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(4), pages 3-18, October.
    23. Docherty, Iain & Marsden, Greg & Anable, Jillian, 2018. "The governance of smart mobility," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 114-125.
    24. Aggelos Soteropoulos & Martin Berger & Francesco Ciari, 2019. "Impacts of automated vehicles on travel behaviour and land use: an international review of modelling studies," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(1), pages 29-49, January.
    25. Crystal Legacy & David Ashmore & Jan Scheurer & John Stone & Carey Curtis, 2019. "Planning the driverless city," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(1), pages 84-102, January.
    26. Elizabeth Shove & Gordon Walker, 2007. "Caution! Transitions Ahead: Politics, Practice, and Sustainable Transition Management," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 39(4), pages 763-770, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Olin, Janne J. & Mladenović, Miloš N., 2024. "Unpacking the cultural aspects of transport automation governance in Finland: An interview study," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    2. Acheampong, Ransford A. & Legacy, Crystal & Kingston, Richard & Stone, John, 2023. "Imagining urban mobility futures in the era of autonomous vehicles—insights from participatory visioning and multi-criteria appraisal in the UK and Australia," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 193-208.
    3. Jack Stilgoe & Miloš Mladenović, 2022. "The politics of autonomous vehicles," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-6, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Kassens-Noor, Eva & Dake, Dana & Decaminada, Travis & Kotval-K, Zeenat & Qu, Teresa & Wilson, Mark & Pentland, Brian, 2020. "Sociomobility of the 21st century: Autonomous vehicles, planning, and the future city," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C), pages 329-335.
    2. Ferreira, António & Oliveira, Fernanda Paula & von Schönfeld, Kim Carlotta, 2022. "Planning cities beyond digital colonization? Insights from the periphery," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    3. Asmussen, Katherine E. & Mondal, Aupal & Bhat, Chandra R., 2022. "Adoption of partially automated vehicle technology features and impacts on vehicle miles of travel (VMT)," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 158(C), pages 156-179.
    4. Li, Dun & Huang, Youlin & Qian, Lixian, 2022. "Potential adoption of robotaxi service: The roles of perceived benefits to multiple stakeholders and environmental awareness," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 126(C), pages 120-135.
    5. Olin, Janne J. & Mladenović, Miloš N., 2024. "Unpacking the cultural aspects of transport automation governance in Finland: An interview study," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    6. Bundgaard, Lasse & Borrás, Susana, 2021. "City-wide scale-up of smart city pilot projects: Governance conditions," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    7. Mao, Wei & Shepherd, Simon & Harrison, Gillian & Xu, Meng, 2024. "Autonomous vehicle market development in Beijing: A system dynamics approach," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 179(C).
    8. Shelly Etzioni & Jamil Hamadneh & Arnór B. Elvarsson & Domokos Esztergár-Kiss & Milena Djukanovic & Stelios N. Neophytou & Jaka Sodnik & Amalia Polydoropoulou & Ioannis Tsouros & Cristina Pronello & N, 2020. "Modeling Cross-National Differences in Automated Vehicle Acceptance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-22, November.
    9. Inés Aquilué & Angélica Caicedo & Joan Moreno & Miquel Estrada & Laia Pagès, 2021. "A Methodology for Assessing the Impact of Living Labs on Urban Design: The Case of the Furnish Project," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-29, April.
    10. Guo, Yuntao & Souders, Dustin & Labi, Samuel & Peeta, Srinivas & Benedyk, Irina & Li, Yujie, 2021. "Paving the way for autonomous Vehicles: Understanding autonomous vehicle adoption and vehicle fuel choice under user heterogeneity," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 154(C), pages 364-398.
    11. Nadafianshahamabadi, Razieh & Tayarani, Mohammad & Rowangould, Gregory, 2021. "A closer look at urban development under the emergence of autonomous vehicles: Traffic, land use and air quality impacts," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    12. Jiang, Like & Chen, Haibo & Paschalidis, Evangelos, 2023. "Diffusion of connected and autonomous vehicles concerning mode choice, policy interventions and sustainability impacts: A system dynamics modelling study," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 274-290.
    13. Luca Staricco & Valentina Rappazzo & Jacopo Scudellari & Elisabetta Vitale Brovarone, 2019. "Toward Policies to Manage the Impacts of Autonomous Vehicles on the City: A Visioning Exercise," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1-21, September.
    14. Pudāne, Baiba & van Cranenburgh, Sander & Chorus, Caspar G., 2021. "A day in the life with an automated vehicle: Empirical analysis of data from an interactive stated activity-travel survey," Journal of choice modelling, Elsevier, vol. 39(C).
    15. Almlöf, Erik & Nybacka, Mikael & Pernestål, Anna & Jenelius, Erik, 2022. "Will leisure trips be more affected than work trips by autonomous technology? Modelling self-driving public transport and cars in Stockholm, Sweden," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 165(C), pages 1-19.
    16. Dannemiller, Katherine A. & Mondal, Aupal & Asmussen, Katherine E. & Bhat, Chandra R., 2021. "Investigating autonomous vehicle impacts on individual activity-travel behavior," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 402-422.
    17. Shatanawi, Mohamad & Alatawneh, Anas & Mészáros, Ferenc, 2022. "Implications of static and dynamic road pricing strategies in the era of autonomous and shared autonomous vehicles using simulation-based dynamic traffic assignment: The case of Budapest," Research in Transportation Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    18. Schepis, Daniel & Purchase, Sharon & Olaru, Doina & Smith, Brett & Ellis, Nick, 2023. "How governments influence autonomous vehicle (AV) innovation," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 178(C).
    19. Robert Martin, 2021. "AV futures or futures with AVs? Bridging sociotechnical imaginaries and a multi-level perspective of autonomous vehicle visualisations in praxis," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 8(1), pages 1-15, December.
    20. Eric Williams & Vivekananda Das & Andrew Fisher, 2020. "Assessing the Sustainability Implications of Autonomous Vehicles: Recommendations for Research Community Practice," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-13, March.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pal:palcom:v:8:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1057_s41599-021-01006-2. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.nature.com/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.