Smarter, Safer and Traffic-Free – Is This the New Face of the Transportation Industry?

Since the invention of vehicles, trains, and aircraft in the last century, the way people navigate between various destinations has changed at a greater rate than at any other time. Experts predict that the global transportation services market will hit US$7.8 trillion by 2027.

The need to respond to shifts in human behavior and the desire for better sustainability are the two key drivers of today’s main mobility and transportation technology trends.

Here are the trends we believe are worth following in the near future.

Trend #1: Self-driving cars

To create safer roadways, this mobility trend strives to reduce human irresponsibility and errors. Using advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms can replace human drivers, propelling the industry toward level-5 driverless vehicles that do not require human attention and won’t even feature a steering wheel or acceleration/braking pedals.

On May 18, 2022, Wayve, a London-based company that pioneered deep learning for autonomous vehicles, revealed that it would collaborate with Microsoft to use its supercomputing infrastructure for the global development of AI-based models for autonomous vehicles.

An AI model represents a system designed to recognize specific type of patterns using a collection of information (dubbed the training set).

This collaboration will combine the ability to leverage huge amounts of data to train AI models for the British company and the software giant’s engineering skills in running large-scale AI systems.

The capacity of the software giant’s supercomputing infrastructure, when structured around Wayve’s unique methodology, will allow the self-driving tech to reach more locations and people more quickly.

Trend #2: Internet of Things (IoT)

As the usage of computers in automobiles has grown in recent decades, so has the ability of cars to observe and capture what is happening both within the vehicle and externally by employing mobile, Wi-Fi, and satellite connections to interact with each other and with a central hub.

They are an increasingly important part of the greater Internet of Things ecosystem. By 2025, it is expected that over 400 million connected automobiles will be in use, up from 237 million in 2021.

IoT connectivity makes it simple to track vehicle data for a variety of applications, including driver safety, and the management of automobiles, vans, trucks, specialty vehicles, forklifts, and trailers (aka fleet management). Here’s how IoT can benefit fleet management:

IoT will improve the use of GPS, onboard diagnostics (OBD), and other fleet management tech. Thus, companies will be able to more easily collect data on routes, maintenance requirements, and driving conditions from their fleet in real-time.
Companies can obtain valuable insight by making use of IoT data, including engine diagnostics and fuel consumption. This will improve fleet efficiency and driver behavior.
IoT can improve fleet managers’ decisions on the fly by allowing them to access real-time resources.

Trend #3: Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS)

MaaS represents a user-oriented approach to mobility that gathers together diverse means of transportation on a common platform. The technology aims to bring together demand information, transportation, and payment in one place.

Urban residents will benefit from access to real-time data, which will allow them to carry out carefully weighed decisions regarding their mode of transport on any given journey and pay for it – all on a single platform.

In 2021, the global MaaS market was worth US$128.5 billion and, by 2030, it is predicted it will be worth US$519 billion.

The demand for ride-hailing services is being driven by:

The rise of the travel and tourist industry
The shift from offline to online services
Transportation congestion.

Trend #4: Micromobility

Micromobility is a term that describes a group of small, light vehicles that travel at speeds of less than 25 km/h and which are driven by individuals.

The popularity of this technology is increasing around the world as a result of its accessibility and environmental advantages since it contributes to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

Bicycles can also aid with the First Mile/Last Mile Problem – the distance a passenger must go from one transit station to another, or vice versa.

However, because the speed of e-bikes is higher than that of bicycles, many city dwellers are switching to this mode of transport for everyday commuting.

Trend #5: 3D Printing

3D printing solutions for numerous vehicle parts are already being offered by start-ups and developing firms. Additive manufacturing with various materials also empowers the creation of a wide range of components and replacement parts. This technology will make it possible to create flexible and heat-resistant materials which all have uses in the automotive industry.

The process of creating prototypes using 3D printing is considered very cost-efficient. It opens up novel ways to carry out trials of new material combinations with more cost-effective multiple repetitions, allowing for faster prototyping.

It is worth mentioning that in 2020, the global 3D printing industry was valued at US$17.54 billion and by 2028, it is expected to be worth US$79.4 billion.

Divergent is a great example of a company specializing in the 3D printing of car parts. In 2022 the company raised US$160 million to continue making car parts via additive manufacturing.

Additive manufacturing is the process that employs 3D object scanners to command machines to lay material in perfect geometric designs, layer upon layer.

Creating the first 3D printed hypercar

Final word:

Car-crammed cities, environmental issues, accidents and high costs are pushing the transportation industry towards creating smarter, safer, and more energy-efficient vehicles. This means that we should keep an eye on the developments in this industry.

By carrying out in-depth industry research, companies can obtain insights to help deploy solutions to increase their business and maintain competitiveness. RightAngle, as a continuously growing expert network, has proved to be successful in finding subject matter experts with valuable insights in the transportation sector for big players.

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