Good day my good friend.

I am writing this on a hot, sunny day in the UK, taking it as easy as the Manchester United defence seemed to be taking things at Brentford on Saturday. I honestly saw better organisation of the crowd heading towards Arsenal tube station after the match at the Emirates on Saturday than I did in the Manchester United back line.

Anyway, enough football. Onto transport.

If you have any suggestions for interesting news items or bits of research to include in this newsletter, you can email me.

You should also join a lot of like-minded people at Mobility Camp in Bristol in September. Get your tickets now. Sponsorship slots are also available.

James

ADRs are here, but where to next?

Autonomous delivery robots (ADRs) are here to stay. As someone who has lived close to a fleet of them for several years, it is interesting to see how they have moved from something seen as a gimmick to something that is rapidly expanding, although despite being confident about the future, its still somewhat peripheral as a delivery method. This new research article gives a good summary of the current state of play of the market and of the research.

Much like any other new technologies, there are distinct segments of the population who have different degrees of acceptance of it. In some scenarios, ADRs could reduce delivery times and costs depending on the type of technology used and different local parking restrictions. They face many of the same regulatory challenges in relation to collisions, privacy, and security that many cyber-physical systems have. They could also reduce carbon emissions. They are one of the few autonomous technologies that I have some hope for, and feel they could really play a role in the future.

Adapting to droughts is one of the many challenges we transport planners must face up to

As I mentioned last week, Europe is going through an unprecedented drought, and is predicted to be the worst in 500 years. Yet amongst all of this, it appears that the humble beaver is showing us the way to help manage the effects of such instances in the future. That is more effective management of river catchments.

We know how to do this: Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDs). This is not new practice, and its been a legal requirement for some time. Constructed wetlands and infiltration trenches are two examples of how we as infrastructure builders can help. But we don’t apply it enough to our project management and project appraisal. When was the last time a monitoring and evaluation report actually reported on the estimated impacts of the Environmental Impact Assessment, for example? Not often, if at all. That needs to change.

Random things

These links are meant to make you think about the things that affect our world in transport, and not just think about transport itself. I hope that you enjoy them.

• Drought sows doubts over future of traditional English gardens (AFP)

• ‘The Sacrifice Zone’: Myanmar bears cost of green energy (ABC)

• Germany is facing dramatic change in many dimensions all at once (The Economist)

• How effective altruism went from a niche movement to a billion-dollar force (Vox)

• Is the future of the microchip industry going to be Made in America? (TechCrunch)

Something interesting

Jim Gleeson’s posts on the UK housing market are always interesting. This shows some early signs that the demand for room shares in London is far out-stripping supply.

If you do nothing else today, then do this

Sign up for SRITC’s Gathering on rural transport in September. A few days with some excellent speakers and company, talking about the real issues that face rural transport. All brought to you by the excellent SRITC (specifically Jenny and Alex who have done most of the running on this!!).