New Modes Still Need Answers To Old Questions
Innovation gets a free pass too often.
The newer the technology, the less scrutiny we give to the basics: load factors, costs, capacity, carbon. All the questions we’d hammer a train operator with go missing when it’s a drone.
But if a flying taxi carries one person using the same power as a 60-seat electric bus, is it really progress?
Autonomous vehicle promoters often claim that they can solve traffic congestion. But AV technology doesn’t eliminate the laws of physics: only one object can be in one space at a time. Is a queue of empty cars better than a queue of single-occupancy cars?
New transport modes still need to make our society better.
Take Action
If you’re a leader:
Don’t judge a new technology by whether it does something exciting or different: judge it by whether it solves a real problem. That applies to big tech (e.g. drones) and small ones (e.g. computer systems).
If you’re a team member:
When looking at a piece of innovation, assess it (both in words and numbers) as if you’re justifying a new bus route. Don’t give new technology a free pass but, equally, don’t give it unecessary hurdles. Just treat it as part of the toolkit.