Although autonomous vehicles (AVs) could transform urban mobility, enthusiasm toward them has cooled—in part because they won’t be available at scale soon, and in part because they could exacerbate urban sprawl or traffic volume if they appear independently of suitable regulations and policies. Despite critical skepti-cism, however, AV pilot programs continue to attract significant investment.
Unique Approach
In a one-year study, BCG and the University of St. Gallen examined how AVs could affect different cities in the future. Using data from 40 cities worldwide, researchers defined five common urban archetypes. Then they created a complex simulation tool and modeled how AVs, interacting with other forms of mobility in each arche-type, altered the cities’ KPIs. Finally, they interviewed leading experts on the topic.
Differentiated View
By simulating different policy-based scenarios, the team found that AVs improved KPIs in many archetypes. Some cities would benefit most from AVs; others would be better off promoting other mobility options. Leveraging these findings, the team has developed recommendations for cities and mobility players to enable them to derive maximum benefits from emerging urban mobility trends and technologies.