This document discusses solutions for reducing traffic congestion in smart cities. It begins by describing the historical development of urban transportation from horse-drawn carriages to the proliferation of automobiles. This caused increased congestion, pollution, and unsafe behaviors. The document then proposes several emerging transportation technologies and mobility solutions like public transit networks, ridesharing, autonomous vehicles and drones. However, each approach has drawbacks for addressing congestion at scale. To truly solve the problem, the document argues for a new ground-up approach inspired by natural designs like centipedes and spider webs. It introduces a concept called Aerocab D2D that would provide individual passenger transport via vertical cabins traveling independently of ground traffic. The document outlines advantages and

1. SMART CITIES
TRAFFIC CONGESTION
~ DEALING WITH THE CONUNDRUM ~
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Bengaluru

2. 
If you do not know history,
you think short term.
If you know history, you think
medium and long term.

~ LKY
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3. 19th , 20th Century: Cityscape Reality
New York City
Horse Carriages
London City
Hansom Cabs
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4. Mobility Of 1885-1920
• London Mobility : 11000 Hansom Cabs
:3000 Horse-drawn Buses
:50000 Horses
:? Drays For Carts (1900s)
• New York: :100K Horses
• Horse Manure: :10 Kg Per Horse Per Day
• Flies: :Spread Of Disease
• Pollution: :Urine & Manure On Roads
• Reference: :NYT, ( tinyurl.com/y9fwtym7 )
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5. Ford Model ‘T’: Touring (Oct 1908)
Independence! Freedom Of Mobility!
Reliable, Easily maintained, Mass-market transportation
But it will be so low in price that no man making a good salary will be unable to own one –
and enjoy with his family the blessing of hours of pleasure in God's great open spaces.
~ Henry Ford
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6. Industrial Revolution: Ver 1.0, 2.0, 3.0
• First: 1712 – 1727 Steam
• Second: 1870 – 1914 Electricity
• Third: 1950-1970 Information Technology
• Growing Jobs Market > Increasing Migration
> Demands On Mobility
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7. Progressive Lifestyle USA (McKinsey & Co)
• Citizens Driving To Work : 77%
• Automobile Ownership : 2 (Av.) Per Family
• Single-Driver Cars On Roads : Majority
• Values Proposition : Safety
: Comfort
: Convenience
: Utility
: Route Choice
: Schedule Choice
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8. Cause-Effect Research
• Incremental Congestion : Causes Driver Distraction
• Unsafe Behavior : Over Speeding
: Tail-Gating
: Road Rage
: Unsafe Lane Crossing
: Blinding Headlight Glare
: Wrong Direction Driving
: Mobile Phone Use
: Drunk-Driving
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9. Interventions
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• Public Transportation Networks
• Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS)
• Bus Rapid Transit Lanes
• Driving Assistance Systems
• High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Lanes
• Advanced Driver Assist Systems (ADAS)
• Automated Driving Systems Levels 3-5 (HAV | AV)

10. 21st Century: Cityscape Reality
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11. Prognosis
• Top 10 Cities 2015 (Tokyo, Delhi, Shanghai…) : Pop: 223 Mn;
• Top 10 Cities2025 (Tokyo, Delhi, Shanghai…) : Pop: 259Mn;
• Top 10 Cities 2035 (Delhi, Tokyo, Shanghai…) : Pop: 303Mn;
• Growth (2 Decades) : 35.9 %
• Smart Transportation projects : North America -25
Europe -24
Asia-Pacific -11
• By mid-century, we could be facing global gridlock.
~ Bill Ford, Chairman, Ford Motor Corp, TED Talk, 2011
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12. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS)
• United Nations: United Smart Cities (USC)
• Institutions: UNECE and Industrial Partners
• Objectives at City Level: a) Decrease vulnerability:
Urban Migration, Demographic Changes,
Environmental Degradation, Climate Change.
b) Reduce carbon footprint
c) Enhance Quality of Life
d) Improve Environmental Quality
e) Establish public-private partnerships (PPPs)
• Key areas for “Smartening” Cities: Urban mobility
Sustainable housing
Clean energy
Waste management
ICT
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13. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS)
• UNDP Sustainable Development Goals, No.11
: tinyurl.com/yxxdzyzr
• European Commission Expert Group Report By
DG (Research & Innovation: Smart Green Integrated Transport)
: tinyurl.com/qupv8vn
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14. Economically Vibrant Cities
–> Smart Cities >>
 Time
 Convenience
 Safety
 Access To Jobs
 Housing Costs
 Quality Of Life
 Health
 Ageing
<< Smart Mobility <–
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15. Mobility Solutions
• Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)
• Ride Sharing
• Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS)
• Autonomous Vehicles (AVs)
• Drones
• Rope-Ways
• Overhead Rail
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16. Solutions & Drawbacks
• BRT: Diminished Asphalted Areas; Arterial Roads Insertion
• Ride Sharing: Social Acceptance ; Step-Down Option
• MaaS: Adding To Traffic; Existing Vehicles Continue Plying
• AVs: Unable To Ply On Congested Roads
• Drones: Not For Mass Mobility; Not Fail-Safe
• Rope-ways: Slow; Single Point Failure ; Emergency Extraction
• Overhead Rail: Sag Prevention; Heavy Infra.; Maintenance
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17. Assessment Of AVs
• Operating On Same Congested Roads
• AV Congestion Is Also Congestion
• Inability To Coexist With Non-AVs
• Non-AVs Continuing Into Foreseeable Future
• Require Geo-fenced Operational Area
• Technology Intensive: Cost Benefit; Life Cycle Costs
• Sensor Dependencies for Safe Operations
• Concerns On Liability: Moral, Ethical & Insurance
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18. Windscreen View From An ‘AV’
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19. Perspective:
• Definitions:
– Capacity : Maximum Unhindered Vehicle Flow Per Hour
(Ideal Conditions: Passenger Car Units)
– Volume : Actual Vehicle Flow Per Hour
– Congestion : When Volume Exceeds Capacity (Volume /Capacity > 1)
• A 50% Congestion Drop Needs 100% Capacity Increase
Tunnel For Roadway
Overhead Deck Costs !
Parallel Road
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20. Industrial Revolutions: Ver. 4.0
• Fourth Ind. Revolution > Emerging Technologies > Smart Cities & Mobility
• 21st Century Urban Life> 19th, 20th Century Infrastructure
• Elements > Data Analytics
> Internet of Things
> Artificial Intelligence
> Blockchain
> Robotics
> Quantum computing
> 3D-printing
• Conclusion > Entails Ground-Up Thinking
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21. Possible Solution
• Road Independent System
• Uses Vertical Spaces, Above Existing Rights-Of-Way
• Origin-Door To Destination-Door (Door To Door)
• Fail Safe All weather System
• Intuitive Unassisted Emergency Escape Capability
• Plug And Play Design
• Rapid Erection, With No Disruption
• Extendible Into Narrow Alleys
• Driver Less, Instant Cargo-Convertible
• ‘Ride’, Distinct From ‘Route’, Public Transit Design
• Platoon Braking, IoT Switching, Digital Token Priority
• Blockchain For Control & Accounting
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22. Engineering In The Natural World
Chilopoda , Diplopoda (Class):
– Centipedes (Image-C) & Millipedes (Image-D)
– Inflexible Outer Cover
– Articulated Segments
– Limb Pairs: Each Segment
– Capable Of 180Degree Turns (Image-C & D)
Image-C Image-D
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23. Engineering In The Natural World
Araneae (Order):
– Web-weaving Spiders
– Engineer Silk Webs (Image-A)
– Prey Many Times Heavier, Larger, Stronger
– Drag Lines: Allow Drifting, Descent & Ascent (Image-B)
Image (A) Image (B)
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24. AEROCAB D2D: A Biomimetic Design
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25. “
If at first the idea is not absurd,
then there is no hope for it.
”
~Albert Einstein
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26. Advantages
• Best Of Drones, Helicopters, Cable Cars
• Economical Congestion Mitigation
• Ground-Up Design
• Mobility For Ageing Citizens In Smart Cities
• Independent Of: Pedestrians, Non- Compatible Vehicles
• Alternate Service For Road | Rail Transportation
• Existing Road-Furniture Fusible
• ‘Ride’ based Flexibility Than ‘Route’ based
• Quicker Change-over To EVs - Economies-of-scale
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27. Advantages
• Dis-aggregation Of Public Transit
• Reduced Commuter Congregation
• Enhanced Safety Of Distributed Commuters
• Reduced Infrastructure – Stations| Depots| Hubs
• Deflated Parking Issues
• Reduced Traffic Offenses And Litigation
• Flood Resilience For A Coastal City
• Savings To Insurance Servicing
• New Jobs From Regulated Battery-Pack Handling
• Leverage For Robust ‘Mobility Regulations’ Mechanism
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28. Applications
• Last Mile Connectivity | Mutually Exclusive Installation
– Residential: Ageing , Physically Challenged Mobility
– Campus: Green Technology Smart Mobility Demonstrator
– Commercial : Parcel | Cargo
– Tourism: ‘No Touch’ Environmentally Sensitive Areas
• Smart Mobility | LMC Systems Interconnected
• Semi-Automatic | Land Coastal Border Patrol
• Semi-Automatic | Reserves Parks Hills Patrol
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29. “
The secret of change is to focus all of your energy,
not on fighting the old,
but on building the new.
”
~ Socrates
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30. Joint Development & Collaboration
• Discussions
– Joint Development (JD): Academic Institution | TDCO, Bengaluru
– Co-Partners: Government | Industry
• Legal Documentation
– Memorandum Of Understanding (MoU): (Collaboration)
– Contract Agreement (Contract): (Commercial Terms)
• Statement Of Work (SOW)
– Roles & Responsibilities: (Deliverables; Timelines)
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31. Sequential Approach (Months)
• Stakeholders Buy-in D
• Digital Simulation (Done Once; Repeat To Build Confidence) D+4
• White-Paper Report D+6
• Prototype: One KM ( Intersections | Forks ) D+18
• Pilot Last Mile Connectivity(LMC): Mixed Terrain D+24
• Assess Impact Pilot Area Public Transit Ridership D+36
• Roll Out Individual LMC For Middle Class Areas D+48
• Test Priority System Overlay >Inter-connect LMCs D+52
• Operationalize LMC Interconnections D+60
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32. Windscreen View To A Future
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33. References: AV Assessment
• SAE International Technical Paper:
– EPR2019004 of 20/12/2019 ( tinyurl.com/wnbg93g )
– EPR2019005 of 5/11/2019 ( tinyurl.com/rb5hg4u )
• McKinsey & Co Insights: ( tinyurl.com/yba9jtkd )
• Forbes Article ( tinyurl.com/vy3aq7w )
• Department of Homeland Security: ( tinyurl.com/ybn3bwb4 )
• The Atlantic ( tinyurl.com/y7wotq83 )
• Thompson Reuters ( tinyurl.com/vs2py9e )
• Scientific American ( tinyurl.com/yaf4qz59 )
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34. Thank You!
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