DriveOhio is getting Ohio ready for smart mobility.
"There are four revolutions happening right now in the transportation space," says DriveOhio Executive Director Howard Wood. "Automated vehicle technology, connected public infrastructure, electric propulsion of our vehicles and shared mobility. And that's interestingly both on the ground with cars and we're seeing it on the air side as well with drones of course, but there's other advanced air mobility that's really changing the face of transportation today, so that's why we exist." Ohio is home to dozens of public and private entities all involved in the design, development, testing, use and regulation of autonomous and connected technologies. DriveOhio, the state’s new center for smart mobility, brings all of these organizations together under one umbrella, serving as the hub for all things autonomous and connected in Ohio. Howard told us that Route 33 is being developed as a Smart Mobility Corridor between East Liberty and Dublin to test autonomous and connected vehicles. The Ohio Department of Transportation and local governments are equipping the road with high-capacity fiber-optic cable and roadside sensors that will instantaneously link researchers and traffic monitors with data generated from communication units installed in vehicles and wireless sensors along the roadway. This testing could lead to driverless vehicles in the future. DriveOhio Communications Director Luke Stedke told us that smart mobility has everyday uses that could make it easier to get around Lima by telling us when trains will be coming through the area and if they will be blocking roads. Howard told us that many other projects are in development around the state ranging from workforce mobility, healthcare and education access, and mobility access for underserved, elderly and disabled populations. Project plans are being developed utilizing potential technology-enabled solutions ranging from autonomous shuttles, autonomous and connected vehicle testing, connected infrastructure and other smart mobility endeavors.