Page 12 - July- August 2018
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STATEWIDE By Susan Marlow
Preparing for the Future of Mobility
Technology and Resiliency North America had firmly established Resilience incorporates so many different
policies and infrastructure that focused issues as we deal with the shocks and
As communities strive to become more on moving drivers faster and further, stressors our cities face.”
resilient, they would be wise to anticipate leading to the rise of urban sprawl.
and adapt to the stressors that new, Now, communities are experiencing While the 100RC program was well
technology-driven transportation will the unintended consequences of received by participants, Nashville
bring. That means looking at the impacts those policies: suburban isolation, officials recognized the importance of
of transportation decisions with a broader disproportionate infrastructure spending, extending the discussion beyond a single
lens, one that considers the full slate of and harmful environmental impacts.2 city. And because the other metropolitan
environmental, economic and social cities in Tennessee didn’t get a chance to
resilience. Traditional transportation Tennessee has recognized its participate in 100RC’s Global Summit,
project goals and metrics must be transportation systems must evolve global consulting firm Stantec stepped in
revisited and updated to address equity in: from an “automobile focus” to a “people to help Nashville facilitate a larger, state-
focus” if they are to effectively serve their wide discussion.
• Spending by mode of transportation communities – and officials have started
• Access to transportation looking for answers and a process to The Stantec team drew inspiration
prepare their communities for a broader from the original Design Spark workshop
infrastructure view of resiliency, and success. to create a similar process to address
• Access to new, technology-related the transportation challenges U.S.
How Tennessee is setting the stage communities face today, starting with the
transportation employment for resilience in their transportation Southeast. It is called a “Design Spark”
opportunities systems – a workshop led by industry experts
• Diversity of transportation options to address new mobility technologies
• Safety performance of the Nearly two years ago, Nashville was and to embrace their potential to help
transportation system overall 1 named one of the 100 Resilient Cities communities become more resilient.
With enlightened foresight, community (RC) pioneered by the Rockefeller
leaders and planners can take advantage Foundation. As a member of the 100RC In February 2018, Stantec hosted the
of the benefits in safety, mobility, Network, cities are given access to tools, first Design Spark in Nashville titled,
accessibility, and equity that advanced funding, technical expertise, and other “What does emerging technology in
transportation systems bring. In other resources to build resilience and fight the transportation mean for resilience?” The
words, it’s possible to embrace enhanced complex challenges of the 21st Century. half-day event included representatives
technologies now to create resiliency in from across Tennessee – the Tennessee
the future. In July 2017, 100RC held their Global Department of Transportation, Tennessee
Summit in New York City. There, Buro Economic and Community Development,
But first, how does the world Happold and Stantec introduced a Oak Ridge National Laboratories, City of
currently connect with transportation “Design Sprint” workshop, bringing Cookeville, Chattanooga, Memphis, and
technologies? together connected and automated vehicle the City of Nashville. Stantec also brought
experts and many 100RC participants – in some of the firm’s global transportation
Before looking to the future, it’s including representatives from Nashville – and mobility experts.
important to understand how people like Erik Cole, Nashville’s Chief Resilience
currently engage with mobility. For Officer. He said, “The intersection During the session, the participating
decades, city planners have been between resilience and infrastructure cities discussed emerging transportation
designing communities around cars – not and transportation is absolutely critical. technologies and the social, economic,
people. Following the transportation and physical impacts these technologies
revolution from the 1940s until the 1960s,
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