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In this blog series, we’ll unpack the latest smart mobility news in a little more detail. Each week we’ll focus on fresh topics, covering emerging stories and research that has caught our attention. 

We’ve already discussed the obstacles standing in the way of mass EV adoption – such as range anxiety – and the need for a reliable national EV charging network. This time, we take a look at the possibility of electric roads, including the benefits of driverless cars, and how Wejo is improving what’s currently available for consumers.

New Civil Engineer: Electric roads could help reduce the size of EV car batteries by up to 70%

Sweden’s Chalmers University of Technology has found that developing roads with the ability to charge electric vehicles while they’re driving could help reduce the size of batteries required by up to 70%. The research drew on data from over 400 passenger cars to study Swedish motorists’ real-life driving patterns on different parts of the road. It concluded that a combination of electric roads on 25% of the busiest national and European roads, plus at-home charging, is an ideal solution.

Paving the way for smart road technology

Inductive charging already exists for stationary vehicles, but a dynamic charging system could facilitate EV battery charging while vehicles are in motion – offering a distance range solution for drivers embarking on longer journeys. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will provide funding for transportation upgrades which aim to limit congestion, improve safety, and support sustainability. With Wejo’s connected vehicle data, city planners can pinpoint exactly when and when drivers are using the roads – winning more bids in the process. 

Visit the Infrastructure Bill Resource Hub

GatesNotes: Self-driving cars will be as revolutionary as computers 

Recently, tech billionaire and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates weaved through the busy streets of London in an autonomous vehicle developed by British startup, Wayve. Gates recounted the experience on his blog, predicting a future where commuters catch up on emails, read a book, or watch an episode of their favorite show from the comfort of a fully autonomous vehicle. Gates also pointed out the possibility of AVs making roads more accessible for the elderly and disabled people, plus their benefit for the environment. 

Singularity Hub: These self-driving cars are trained in a simulation packed with terrible drivers

A research team from the University of Michigan has exposed driverless cars to terrible drivers. They built an environment filled with cars, trucks, deer, cyclists, and pedestrians – using augmented reality to combine physical road infrastructure and a real autonomous test car, with the augmented reality obstacles being fed into the car’s sensors so the car would react as if they were real. The system identified hazards much faster than conventionally trained self-driving algorithms, indicating that autonomous vehicles could be on our roads sooner than we expected.

Making fully autonomous vehicles a reality

As creators of the world’s first autonomous vehicle platform to integrate both live and historic connected vehicle data, Wejo is bringing us closer to a driverless future. Our Autonomous Vehicle Operating System (AV-OS) is designed to support the development, testing, and operation of autonomous vehicles, enabling developers to make decisions based on real-time information – such as the number of vehicles on the road, pedestrians crossing the street, and dangerous weather conditions.

More on this here

Want to learn more?

For further insights into the goings-on in the mobility industry, check out our resource center, or speak to our team by filling out the form below.

As always, if you’ve come across a story that you think is worth sharing, or you want to give your input on what we’ve featured this week, send us a message.