Urban Air Mobility

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Artist rendering of unmanned drone taxi
According to aerospace company Honeywell, "the Age of Urban Air Mobility (UAM) is upon us." Proponents of UAM taut the potential of clean energy technology in air travel. Denso and Honeywell have recently partnered to create hybrid and electric propulsion systems, believing that UAM is the solution for growing cities. Director of Honeywell's electric propulsion systems, Bryan Wood, claims, "The pressure to mitigate the environmental and economic impact of aviation will only grow in the years ahead as air passenger traffic increases and urbanisation continues." 

Artist rendering of future mobility


 In the future, UAM enthusiasts believe that it will serve as an alternative to automobiles, including taxis and TNCs. Kenichiro Ito, Executive Officer of Denso Corporation, says, “Our long-term vision is to contribute to the greater society, and we see urban air mobility as one of the main transportation methods in the future of advanced mobility.” 

But is this vision of a future full of what essentially amounts to flying cars realistic? After all, people have been envisioning this future for nearly 100 years, but it hasn't happened yet. Technologically, we are closer than ever to realizing this vision. These systems are cheaper to develop now, and we have existing data gathering models.

Developer Dan Kodsi believes that this future will be realized in the next 10-15 years. He says, "The flying vehicles will use airspace to alleviate transportation congestion and traffic on the ground for quicker daily commutes, and cleaner air around the world. These vehicles are more like a helicopter but much quieter, run electronically and are environmentally friendly.”
Frank Lloyd Wright's rendering of Broadacre City (1932)

I think it is safe to say we probably will have flying cars in the future. But should we? Promises that UAM will alleviate congestion echo earlier promises around building freeways and widening roadways. We know that adding more space for vehicles does not actually decrease traffic. Also, we need to think about who this technology will actually serve. Likely, it will only be accessible to those who already have multiple mobility options. UAM may be part of the future of mobility, but I am not convinced it will have the promised effects.

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