Autonomous Vehicles and Empty Roads - an Interchat With Paul Campion
What is lost when the government sells its own brain?
In today's Interchat with TRL CEO Paul Campion, we discuss the privatisation of Britain's transport research laboratory and what is about to happen when autonomous vehicles arrive on London's streets.
We also discuss his real worry about autonomy, which is not that the vehicles will crash but the risks of zero-occupancy vehicles
What is lost when the government sells its own brain?
In today's Interchat with TRL CEO Paul Campion, we discuss the privatisation of Britain's transport research laboratory and what is about to happen when autonomous vehicles arrive on London's streets.
Paul is generous about the gains from privatisation: agility, commercial discipline and the freedom to change. What went was the peer relationship with the DfT, because public sector procurement is a search for a predefined answer rather than a search for a better question.
We also discuss his real worry about autonomy, which is not that the vehicles will crash but the risks of zero-occupancy vehicles.
Interchats are a series of short conversations recorded on the conference floor at Interchange 26 in Manchester.
You can subscribe to The Freewheeling Podcast at Apple or Spotify Podcasts.
You can subscribe to The Freewheeling Podcast at Apple or Spotify Podcasts.
Transport as an Enabler - An Interchat With David Skaith
David Skaith. the Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, joins me to discuss the transformative impact of devolution on local governance.
He emphasises the critical role of transport in enabling economic growth, health, and skills of a region with distinct challenges.
I always enjoy talking to this generation of Mayors, as - far more than central Government - they understand that transport is an essential part of a healthy, prosperous region.
This Interchat is a great example.
David Skaith, the Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, joins me to discuss the transformative impact of devolution on local governance.
He emphasises the critical role of transport in enabling economic growth, health, and skills of a region with distinct challenges.
In our conversation, Skaith highlights the need for significant investment in bus services and active travel, noting a 50% decline in bus miles over 10 years.
I always enjoy talking to this generation of Mayors, as - far more than central Government - they understand that transport is not a ‘thing’ on its own: it is an essential enabler of a healthy, prosperous society.
This Interchat is a great example.
Interchats are a series of short conversations recorded on the conference floor at Interchange 26 in Manchester.
You can subscribe to The Freewheeling Podcast at Apple or Spotify Podcasts.
You can subscribe to The Freewheeling Podcast at Apple or Spotify Podcasts.
Innovation in Transport - an Interchat with Erika Lewis
Transport finds innovation hard. It is fiendishly complex, but the. Connected Places Catapult is trying to help people navigate their way through it. In this Interchat, Erika Lewis, the Catapult’s CEO, tells me how they try to connect an incredibly challenging sector - and how her career history in complex sectors has helped her do that.
Oh, and she tells me precisely what a Catapult is as well!
Interchats are a series of short conversations recorded on the conference floor at Interchange 26 in Manchester.
Transport finds innovation hard. It is fiendishly complex, but the. Connected Places Catapult is trying to help people navigate their way through it. In this Interchat, Erika Lewis, the Catapult’s CEO, tells me how they try to connect an incredibly challenging sector - and how her career history in complex sectors has helped her do that.
Oh, and she tells me precisely what a Catapult is as well!
Interchats are a series of short conversations recorded on the conference floor at Interchange 26 in Manchester.
You can subscribe to The Freewheeling Podcast at Apple or Spotify Podcasts.
You can subscribe to The Freewheeling Podcast at Apple or Spotify Podcasts.
Suburbs with Jonathan Bray
Jonathan Bray was Director of the Urban Transport Group and has spent the last year visiting suburbs all round Europe. He’s just published his findings, and it makes for a fascinating discussion.
He’s clear that there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to making sustainable transport work in suburbs. Instead, it’s all about the questions cities ask and the people they invite into the room when the decisions are taken.
In today’s episode, he takes me on a tour of different examples of best practice in Europe but focuses primarily on getting the questions right.
Jonathan Bray was Director of the Urban Transport Group and has spent the last year visiting suburbs all round Europe. He’s just published his findings, and it makes for a fascinating discussion.
He’s clear that there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to making sustainable transport work in suburbs. Instead, it’s all about the questions cities ask and the people they invite into the room when the decisions are taken.
In today’s episode, he takes me on a tour of different examples of best practice in Europe but focuses primarily on getting the questions right.
You can subscribe to The Freewheeling Podcast at Apple or Spotify Podcasts.
You can subscribe to The Freewheeling Podcast at Apple or Spotify Podcasts.