Alumna Emory, Professor Cao and Douma Author Paper on Making Autonomous Vehicles More Equitable
March 25, 2022
Humphrey School alumna Katie Emory (MURP '21), Professor Jason Cao, and Frank Douma published the paper, “Autonomous Vehicle Policies with Equity Implications: Patterns and Gaps,” in Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives. This work was funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
Through a review of academic and grey literature, the authors explored trends and opportunities in the policy landscape pertinent to autonomous vehicles (AVs) in the US, how these policies may influence AV deployment, and how the deployment will affect the elderly, low-income groups, people living in rural areas, and other transportation-disadvantaged populations.
They found that policies addressing shared AVs and the economic impacts of AVs were somewhat common at the local and state levels, as were policy recommendations provided by nonprofit organizations. However, few policies would support deployment of AVs in ways that address interpersonal security in the shared setting, nor the transportation needs of low-income people, people of color, or rural residents.
They recommended that governments “dream big” as they formulate equity visions for a world with AVs, and then tailor the policies to specifically meet their unique needs - consider demographics, land use, transportation infrastructure, and economy.