Is Universal Basic Mobility the Key to Future Sustainable Cities?

What if we could rethink mobility to be not about the car, but about people? What if we thought less about technological innovation and more about connection and community, equity and access? Might it be possible to imagine a move away from petrol? From drivers? From cars?

Transportation + Urban InfrastructureIs there a way to build better, cleaner cities?Is there a way to build cheaper, affordable and comfortable homes and offices for all?Can we build new transportation methods that enable us to take someone from point A -> B faster?Can we allow people to be productive while they are being transported?Can we find... See more

We need to decide, for example, when we talk about autonomous cars: whose autonomy are we talking about? What are the broader implications of gaining freedom while losing control? Evolving from a society of private automobile ownership to privatized fleets of self-driving cars will give us back time, won’t it? Or will it? And yes , it will mean lif... See more

It feels nearly impossible to imagine what that might look like, but what we shouldn’t do is feel paralysed by FOBO (fear of better options). An emphasis on the local, on smaller, walkable neighbourhoods and more central job and amenity centres is a good place to start. It’s not just tiny villages that can reap the benefits of this spatial reconsid... See more

With this sort of amenity-rich cocoon, there is a relentless focus on the object, absent of any context or community. The future of mobility is assumed to be car-dependent, while a vision based more on public transportation is thought to be old-fashioned. But isn’t planning for the car the thing that is most out of date?

The narrative and hype cycle around shared micromobility has caused many to take their eye off the ball on the opportunity at hand. Huge scooter-centric funding rounds, blowups, and controversies distract from the fact that micromobility more generally is a classically disruptive technology platform and has the potential to transform cities in both... See more