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The Future of Mobility: Remaking Buffalo for the 21st Century Report is Now Available:
Autonomous vehicles (AVs) are likely to have a profound impact on the form of cities and towns. While much of the discussion of AVs focuses on their potential effect on traffic and mobility, CNU is exploring just how these new applications could affect placemaking, walkability, and the overall planning and development patterns of cities, town, and regions.
In 2017, the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) released its Blueprint for Autonomous Urbanism, which lays out a design vision for incorporating AVs into the urban fabric in a way that encourages and accommodates walking, bicycling, and mixed-use development. NACTO’s manual marks an important turning point in the AV debate, in which we stop asking whether and instead ask how we can integrate AVs into communities in ways that preserve the public realm.
Recent articles in CNU’s journal, Public Square, highlight the potential benefits and unintended consequences, potential rules for engagement, and opportunity to create new development patterns as a result of AVs, as well as the precautions needed to make sure that AV implementation is aligned with other community goals.
Contact Ben Crowther at bcrowther@cnu.org with ideas, resources, or articles on the potential benefits and concerns about AVs.