AV technology ‘could reduce congestion’, says Australian minister

Congestion costs would drop by more than a quarter if automated vehicles (AVs) account for 30% of kilometres travelled, says Alan Tudge, Australia’s minister for cites urban infrastructure and population. Speaking at the Australia-New Zealand Cities Symposium in Sydney, Tudge revealed findings from the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics. “They estimate it would drop from $37 billion of avoidable congestion to $27 billion,” Tudge says. A 30km freeway journey in Melbourne has increas
February 26, 2019 Read time: 2 mins

Congestion costs would drop by more than a quarter if automated vehicles (AVs) account for 30% of kilometres travelled, says Alan Tudge, Australia’s minister for cites urban infrastructure and population.

Speaking at the Australia-New Zealand Cities Symposium in Sydney, Tudge revealed findings from the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics.

“They estimate it would drop from $37 billion of avoidable congestion to $27 billion,” Tudge says. A 30km freeway journey in Melbourne has increased from 21 to 27 minutes in the last 10 years, while average morning peak-hour journeys in Sydney now take 65% longer than off-peak trips, he added.

He claimed that AVs will reduce congestion as the cars would be able to safely travel more closely together. He referred to data from autonomous mobility developer Zoox, which showed that today’s vehicles only occupy 8% of the freeway.

“If the vehicles were automated, then they could travel far more closely together,” Tudge went on. “If they occupied, for example, 16% of the space rather than 8%, you are effectively doubling the freeway capacity.”

However, many industry experts warn that AVs will not reduce congestion unless road users are prepared to share rides.

Tudge claimed that AVs could make ride-share more affordable, reliable and widespread, therefore taking other vehicles off the road: “Combining artificial intelligence with connectivity would also allow active management of transport networks in real-time through predictive modelling, enabling congestion to be addressed before it happens.”

Tudge acknowledges that uptake for AVs will be slow but predicted that the technology will “almost certainly” be a significant feature of large cities around the world within the next decade.

But he emphasised that governments must provide the right regulatory environment. Currently, the Australian government is working with regional authorities, the National Transport Commission and 7519 Austroads - the peak organisation of Australasian road transport and traffic agencies - and the Transport and Infrastructure Council to help deploy AVs in Australia.

Last October, the government pledged $10m to advance work to prepare Australia for AVs and other transport innovations which included the establishment of the Office of Future Transport Technology within the Infrastructure Department.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Cost benefit: just $25 boosts pedestrian safety in Florida
    April 29, 2019
    A relatively straightforward change to the way that pedestrians cross the street in a Florida city has made a significant safety improvement. And what’s more, it was cheap, finds David Crawford Installing a lead pedestrian interval (LPI) system at 25 central business district signalised intersections in the Florida city of Lakeland has cut numbers of incidents involving pedestrians by some 60% - at a cost of US$25 for 30 minutes' work, according to traffic operations manager Angelo Rao.
    Read More
  • Passport roundtable examines London’s kerb space priorities
    March 19, 2019
    UK congestion is getting worse, in part due to the influx of deliveries coming into cities. At a roundtable discussion in London, software provider Passport examined new ways in which local authorities can work together to better manage the kerb. Ben Spencer listens in Competition for kerb space is one of the major conundrums of modern urban mobility. Some authorities are being creative about it, but good practice is not widespread. “There are individual pockets of good work going on with cities who a
    Read More
  • Moscow summit urges transit change
    June 11, 2019
    Moscow summit urges transit change
    Read More
  • Moscow summit urges transit change
    June 11, 2019
    International ITS experts flocked to Russia for a new conference on the challenges of urban transit. Eugene Gerden reports from Moscow The Leaders in Urban Transportation Summit is a new international conference organised by the Moscow Department of Transport and Road Infrastructure Development. Dedicated to the latest developments in the field of ITS in the city of Moscow, it took place in the Moskva-Citi Business Center in April – and the intention is to make it an annual event. Senior transport o
    Read More

Highlighted Content