Road-based transport is undergoing a transition: a series of rapid transformations in technology, business models, regulation and user practices. These processes are studied by scholars from many different disciplines, including transport engineers and social scientists.

Automated vehicles (AVs) could represent the most profound technological change in road transport since the rise of mass production, with reductions in energy demand being one of the many anticipated benefits. Expectations about the effects of AVs on transport systems, including their impacts on energy demand and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, are currently soaring. However, there is considerable uncertainty because 1) AV technology is developing rapidly and needs to be embedded in existing mobility systems, 2) automobility is also in flux for factors beyond automation, and 3) AV adoption is in its infancy.

The energy storage capacity of electric vehicles (EVs) presents new opportunities and value propositions for vehicle-to-grid (V2G) power system services. Potential benefits could include the alleviation of the need for generation and transmission investments and increases in network efficiency and energy security. These benefits arise as V2G technologies enable EVs to deliver electricity from their batteries back into the smart grid which can then be used to power homes and businesses.

Dockless bicycle hire is a distinctive disruptive innovation that is spreading with great speed and intensity, triggering various questions about the need for regulation of this new mobility service in UK cities. The project will examine whether a regulatory framework should be applied; at what spatial scale regulation should operate, and what specific regulations are most appropriate for dockless bike sharing schemes. It will also explore the wider issues and challenges in reconciling innovation and regulation, and act as a forum for stakeholders in discussing how dockless bicycle hire can be regulated in an efficient, fair, and open manner. The project will employ three case studies, which have been chosen specifically for their contrasting methods of regulation. These are a restrictive regime in Manchester/Salford; a prohibiting authority in Transport for the West Midlands; and a facilitator in Oxfordshire County Council. This will enable us to make a comparative study that can provide vital insights into the strengths and weaknesses of different regulatory frameworks.

PEAK Urban is a 51-month, international, multidisciplinary programme (PI Michael Keith, University of Oxford) funded by the Research Councils UK Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) of UK Research and Innovation and involving researchers at the University of Oxford, Peking University, University of Cape Town, the Indian Institute for Human Settlements and EAFIT University.