When I think of transport resilience, makeshift transportation is my first thought! flexible routing that can respond to emergencies or changes immediately, as they feel market demand most acutely. (I also wrote a little bit about this after some travels a few years back: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/resilience-transport-nerd-travels-southeast-asia-madeline-zhu/). Would love to hear your thoughts on how improvements/digitalization of information flow between passengers and operators (demand/supply) could bolster that resilience further!
"I think we often conflate innovation with newness, with replacement. I’ve been reminded of the remarkably functional systems people have already created, even without shiny new tools like AI and machine learning. The fundamentals are already there, in human connections—imagine what they could be."
I totally agree and I think it starts from perspective.
I think about the difference between background spellchecking, which is not intrusive and very helpful, vs. auto-correct, which often gets in the way (esp. for multi-lingual communications).
We need algorithms and systems that enable informal transportation, rather than control it.
We also need to rethink the way we manage makeshift mobility. Route franchising is stuck in a (very analog) model that is not responsive.
Could we get on-demand franchise/route permitting models that allow informal transportation to respond to demand -and find a way to pay for the route in real time? (Or, that government could pay the informal transit operators to run routes that are less served?)
Love that analogy (background spellcheck), @Benjie!
A demand-based, dynamic franchising model could be based largely on the existing technical infrastructure already used by companies like VIA or the erstwhile Citymapper bus service, I think - but from an equity/access perspective I would also favor government guaranteeing certain routes and service levels as a baseline.
Zach's shawarma vendor example is perfect. "The power of these vehicles [is to] get around the failings of urban planning." Makeshift transportation may be the fastest way to create mixed-use development where it didn't exist before.
Loved this drying book ref in your latest newsletter, fascinating stuff! Any thoughts on the mosquito fleet that used to float across the Puget Sound back in the day?
When I think of transport resilience, makeshift transportation is my first thought! flexible routing that can respond to emergencies or changes immediately, as they feel market demand most acutely. (I also wrote a little bit about this after some travels a few years back: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/resilience-transport-nerd-travels-southeast-asia-madeline-zhu/). Would love to hear your thoughts on how improvements/digitalization of information flow between passengers and operators (demand/supply) could bolster that resilience further!
Love your piece, @Madeline.
Particularly this graf:
"I think we often conflate innovation with newness, with replacement. I’ve been reminded of the remarkably functional systems people have already created, even without shiny new tools like AI and machine learning. The fundamentals are already there, in human connections—imagine what they could be."
I totally agree and I think it starts from perspective.
I think about the difference between background spellchecking, which is not intrusive and very helpful, vs. auto-correct, which often gets in the way (esp. for multi-lingual communications).
We need algorithms and systems that enable informal transportation, rather than control it.
We also need to rethink the way we manage makeshift mobility. Route franchising is stuck in a (very analog) model that is not responsive.
Could we get on-demand franchise/route permitting models that allow informal transportation to respond to demand -and find a way to pay for the route in real time? (Or, that government could pay the informal transit operators to run routes that are less served?)
Love that analogy (background spellcheck), @Benjie!
A demand-based, dynamic franchising model could be based largely on the existing technical infrastructure already used by companies like VIA or the erstwhile Citymapper bus service, I think - but from an equity/access perspective I would also favor government guaranteeing certain routes and service levels as a baseline.
Zach's shawarma vendor example is perfect. "The power of these vehicles [is to] get around the failings of urban planning." Makeshift transportation may be the fastest way to create mixed-use development where it didn't exist before.
OMG, I know, right?
That's what I'm saying!
Loved this drying book ref in your latest newsletter, fascinating stuff! Any thoughts on the mosquito fleet that used to float across the Puget Sound back in the day?
Being a landlubber, I actually don't know much about Puget Sound's mosquito fleet. You have links?