Skip to main content

New digital technology puts London transport at a tipping point, says think tank

In a new report, UK policy think tank The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) argues that London is at a crossroads between two futures. One where the transport network is increasingly gridlocked, the air grows ever dirtier and the cost of accessing good transport increases. Or one where all can harness the best of digital technology, reducing journeys and air pollution, and opening up new opportunities to make London a more attractive place to live. The report investigates how new technology co
March 24, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
In a new report, UK policy think tank The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) argues that London is at a crossroads between two futures. One where the transport network is increasingly gridlocked, the air grows ever dirtier and the cost of accessing good transport increases. Or one where all can harness the best of digital technology, reducing journeys and air pollution, and opening up new opportunities to make London a more attractive place to live.

The report investigates how new technology could help or hinder efforts to effect more sustainable forms of travel behaviour and are already having a tangible impact on the way that Londoner’s move around the city. New private hire technology like 8336 Uber and new delivery patterns driven by companies like Amazon are just a first glimpse of the size of the revolution that digital technologies will unleash on London’s transport system. Future technologies, like autonomous vehicles and Mobility as Service platforms, promise even bigger and more rapid change.

There are potentially many positive effects of including these services into London’s integrated transport network; IPPR argues that Mayor of London Sadiq Khan needs to seize the opportunity, saying that car clubs such as 6452 DriveNow and 3874 ZipCar should be a key part of his vision for London’s transport system. It also recommends developing a framework for new travel markets, setting out a set of positive outcomes for the transport system and appointing a chief digital officer for the capital, as well as making 1466 Transport for London the central hub for travel data.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Whim launch in Birmingham: new day dawning
    June 4, 2018
    MaaS Global’s Whim mobility service is expanding with its first launch outside Finland – and has chosen the UK’s second city as its base. Adam Hill reports from Birmingham
  • Two initiatives announced to cut road works disruption in London
    May 17, 2012
    A joint US$1.6 million fund to research and develop new technology to reduce the disruption caused by road works was announced yesterday by UK Transport Secretary, Philip Hammond and the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson. Confirmation of a lane rental scheme for roadworks was also announced at the same time.
  • Rapid progress with pure electric buses
    July 29, 2015
    China is where most of the hybrid and pure electric buses will be made and sold over the coming decade, as discussed in the report by IDTechEx Research, Electric Buses 2015-2025. Given the concentration of government support on long pure electric range from hybrids and the far simpler pure electric buses, the latter are proving very popular. Indeed articulated and double decker buses are available in pure electric form in China. According to the latest statistics from the Chinese bus industry, the total
  • Road user charging – change the name to change public perceptions
    February 2, 2012
    Jack Opiola explores the oft-underestimated effect that a charging scheme's name can have on public acceptability and ultimate success. The Bard of Avon wrote: "What's in a name?" For transport, especially Road User Charging, that is an especially relevant question.