Mobility & Transportation
The way we move people and goods is changing - whether on foot, wheels, rails or in the air. How do we provide access to mobility in ways that are efficient, equitable, sustainable and affordable? With some of the highest capital needs of service areas, how can cities, counties, agencies and regions ensure decisions are made strategically, effectively and collaboratively? Here are some of the solutions and momentum underway throughout North Texas.
Dallas - Trail System: The LOOP is about connection. By joining 39 miles of existing trails in Dallas with 11 miles of newly built trails, The LOOP increases access to public transportation and green space ensuring Dallasites can access these resources across the city. A catalyst for mobility and economic opportunity, The LOOP will make Dallas more vibrant and pedestrian-friendly, creating a sense of community across our city and making abundant green space part of our identity. By bringing connection to more neighborhoods and creating a stronger, more united Dallas, The LOOP’s urban trail system is the single most important investment Dallas can make for our residents for generations to come. More from the LOOP at: https://theloopdallas.org
Arlington - AV On-Demand Shuttle Deployment: The City of Arlington has partnered with Via, May Mobility, and UT Arlington to launch the RAPID pilot program, the first autonomous driving shuttle initiative to integrate with an existing public transportation service. The City of Arlington recognized the need for effective, efficient, and accessible transportation for all riders. Made possible by a grant from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the city decided to combine on-demand rideshare with autonomous technology to make local transportation as safe as possible. In 2021, May Mobility began operating four autonomous Lexus shuttles, alongside one wheelchair-accessible Polaris GEM shuttle, as part of an expansion of the RAPID (Rideshare, Automation, and Payment Integration Demonstration) program. The May Lexus shuttles, like the current May GEM shuttles, will be staffed by a Fleet Attendant and will operate on Arlington roads.
North Texas - Autonomous Trucking Hub: Did you know Texas is the most popular location for autonomous freight movement pilot programs? Dallas and Houston are two of the biggest freight hubs in the U.S. Major transportation and technology companies including Aurora, TuSimple, Waymo, and Kodiak Robotics all have major operations in the region. Freight transportation is a key component in the DFW regional economy. The North Texas region is located along Interstate Highway 35, which has served as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) corridor since 1995. The region is also home to a national freight railroad crossroads and national and international air cargo hub, making it a national logistics hub. Within 48 hours, 98 percent of the U.S. population can be reached from this region by truck.
DFW Airport - Artificial Intelligence Concierge: Dallas/Fort Worth International (DFW) Airport’s Innovation Team partnered with IBM Watson and Soul Machines to develop and trial an artificial intelligence-powered digital human concierge. During the trial, the digital human concierge provided passengers at the airport on-demand, voice-based answers to their questions from her temporary location in Terminal A. DFW Airport has become the first airport to merge IBM Watson artificial intelligence with Soul Machines Digital DNA to create a digital concierge. The DFW Airport Innovation Team will use results of the test programme to evaluate the digital concierge’s future potential at DFW. As it aims to become the “airport of the future”, DFW says it is committed to staying a step ahead of its customers, who are increasingly choosing on-demand voice-based technology when seeking information on their smart phones or other devices.
Dallas - S.M. Wright Smart Corridor: S.M. Wright will serve as one of two complete streets/smart city test beds for the city of Dallas, which is developing templates for how its roads and intersections should be built and rebuilt in the future. In the process of rehabbing roads, the city will attempt to install data-driven elements as well, such as traffic-control boxes that sync traffic lights to traffic flow, high-efficiency light-emitting diode streetlights that also will be loaded with sensors. As the city puts in new roads, it’s an ideal time to embed such things as power strips for charging electric vehicles as well.
Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART): In the largest deployment of its kind by a public transit agency, DART is committed to bringing innovative technology and services to North Texas with the installation of more than 300 new interactive digital kiosks. In addition to technological advancements, the kiosks simplify the way riders utilize the DART System while providing new opportunities to engage with community partners, local merchants and local events. Working with a variety of local partners such as Ericsson and Parsec Technologies, Inc., as well as national partners such as Landmark Infrastructure Partners LP (NASDAQ: LMRK), the DART kiosks are operated under the CityPost brand by Smart City Media. The kiosks represent a rich compute environment that will enable high-speed internet access and also make it easier than ever before to take advantage of the most powerful technological capabilities available from a public transit agency in the country with the highest standards for encryption and identity protection.
Dallas - Southern Gateway Park: Recognizing the long-term impacts of a highway in dividing and exacerbating inequities in Southern Dallas, in the late 2010's, the recommendation for building a community deck park over the highway to reconnect these two neighborhoods was approved. The Southern Gateway Park is the largest capital project of its kind in the history of Southern Dallas, $47 million of which is dedicated to building the infrastructure to support the park. The design and construction costs for the overlaying deck park are estimated at $35 million. Construction is underway, with Phase 1 of the park opening set for 2023. This 2.8 acres Phase I of the park will include features including a multi-purpose pavilion, large lawn, pavilion, children's playground, and turnaround for food trucks and drop offs.
The North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) - Advanced Air Mobility and NASA: North Texas is attracting attention for its embrace of creative transportation solutions from an agency that knows something about moving people in innovative ways – NASA. NCTCOG has entered into an agreement with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to study the potential of drone technology and integrate it into future transportation plans. NASA will work with NCTCOG and a group of public- and private-sector partners to study cargo-carrying drones and automated air taxis during a series of at least four future workshops. NASA has been engaged with the Federal Aviation Administration and other regions about how to integrate Advanced Air Mobility technologies such as drones, also called unmanned aircraft systems, into metropolitan areas. Drones are becoming more common for use in business, public safety and recreational purposes. During the COVID-19 pandemic, NCTCOG has been hosting monthly virtual workshops to help professional operators and hobbyists remain up to date on the rules and regulations governing drone use, as well as best practices.
Texas Research Alliance - The North Texas Center for Mobility Technologies (NTCMT): The NTCMT brings coordinated expertise of Dallas-Fort Worth research universities to tackle mobility technology challenges across Texas, nationally, and globally. The Center handles challenges in areas such as: autonomous vehicles, 5G, EVTOL, electric motors, micro mobility, drones, Lidar, radar, machine vision, freight, drones, first mile, last mile, networking, network splicing, object avoidance, multi-modal, on-demand mobility, last mile, personal mobility, micro mobility, fuel cells, battery, electric motors, motor controllers, route planning and more. Recently funded projects have included air quality networks and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). NTCMT is a program of the Texas Research Alliance (TRA).
Automated parking at DFW Airport: Autonomous parking technology company STEER Tech is planning to use the airport as a testbed for an automated parking ecosystem as part of the North Central Texas Council of Governments’ (NCTCOG) program to use driverless tech to accommodate the region’s growing population. As part of the project, the airport will conduct tests in the coming months that could see cars that already have autonomous parking capabilities “park themselves” after dropping off passengers at the terminal.
DART - GoLink OnDemand: DART's expanded GoLink On-Demand service is officially live as of 12/6/21, making the new service the largest transit On-Demand service in North America, with over 230 Sq. Miles of coverage for this innovative new model. For scale, 230 Sq. Miles is larger than the entire city of Chicago, and one that has been facilitated by innovative mobile technology! Over 70% of GoLink Riders book their service through DART's award winning GoPass App. Expanding this service now across 30 distinct zones spanning DART"s 13 cities in a flawless activation yesterday.
Autonomous vehicles in McKinney: Feonix Mobility Rising, a nonprofit focused on health and transportation equity, asked McKinney City Council during a Feb. 1 work session for support on a program that would provide necessities to residents. The program, informally called the Wellness Wagon, would deploy two self-driving vehicles to deliver fresh food and non-narcotic medications to McKinney’s underserved population. The North Central Texas Council of Governments is collaborating with Feonix on the project. The Wellness Wagon would serve those living in poverty, people with disabilities and senior citizens. McKinney has more than 13,000 people living at or below the federal poverty level, according to the presentation. In addition to deliveries, the Wellness Wagon would be designed as a telehealth resource. Vehicles would have designated parking locations—for example, a patient’s residence or in the parking lot of a senior center—for patients to virtually visit with healthcare providers.