EAGER/Collaborative Research: An Autonomous Modular Vehicle Technology-based Multifaceted Mobility Service Paradigm – A Proof-of-Concept Study

This EArly-concept Grant for Exploratory Research (EAGER) project will support a proof-of-concept study to (1) understand the fundamental trade-offs in Autonomous Modular Vehicle Technology (AMVT) based bi-modality system, or AMVT-BM, that provides integrated public transit and last-mile logistics services with a fleet of modular autonomous vehicles, or pods, and (2) gauge potential stakeholders’ interest and reaction to the technology. In the U.S., public transit vehicles have a very low average load factor (10.1% ~ 12.4%), resulting in excessive waste of seat capacity and poor fuel economy per passenger mile served.

This problem is gravely exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which at its peak had caused nearly 80% reduction in transit ridership nationwide. On the other hand, the rapid uptake of e-commerce, also accelerated by the pandemic, has put tremendous pressure on last-mile delivery. Coupled with modularity, a co-modality system that integrates transit services with last mile logistics offers a promising solution to better utilization/sharing of vehicle capacity and supporting infrastructure.

Yet, the implementation of this idea requires not only technological breakthrough, but also a system approach that transcends the boundaries of the two highly siloed sectors in the transportation industry.

In this study, we will focus on two most fundamental questions: (1) what are the impacts of co-modality and modularity on system performance? And (2) what are synergistic potential and adoption challenges from the perspective of stakeholders such as transit agencies, urban planners, logistics companies, transportation network companies, and auto makers?

The research agenda consists of two tasks designed to seek answers to these questions. Task 1 investigates the impacts of modularity and co-modality via analysis and simulation. Task 2 recruits and surveys potential stakeholders for their views on a wide range of issues related to the adoption of AMVT-BM.

The project will create a suite of optimization tools for analyzing modularized transit and last-mile delivery service systems. It will also develop the first of its kind simulation testbed to guide the design and evaluation of an AMVT-BM system that integrates transit and last-mile delivery operations. Through a three-phase stakeholder survey, the project will document and analyze technological, institutional, and financial potentials as well as barriers to the real-world implementation of AMVT-BM systems, which will shed light on the design and operation of these systems. The project findings will help identify critical future research agenda.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.