IF articles

Summary - In the human history there have been numerous and significant changes in the methods and technologies used to transport people and things. In the article “The six transport revolutions and their evolutions. A brief history from the beginnings to the present day”, a reading of the transport innovations that took place in history based on the concepts of revolution and evolution was proposed. Following this approach, in this article we analysed the main ongoing innovations in the sector that are unprecedented in history in terms of scope and possible impacts. The previous revolutions, in fact, drew inspiration from a “guiding element”, often a technological innovation, which concerned the energy source of traction (animal traction, sailing, steam traction, internal combustion traction), in other cases technology of motion (the wheel) or of transfer (the logistics of the container). Today, potentially “disruptive” innovations are taking place simultaneously in various transport sectors: the driving and connection systems of vehicles of all types, the sources and vectors of traction energy, the production models of mobility and transportation and new vehicles and transportation systems. This article briefly analyses the main lines of innovation currently underway in the various sectors and their level of maturity, as well as some possible interactions between them that are currently in an embryonic phase and that may give rise to the seventh transport revolution within the middle of this century, which will require considerable adaptability to the disciplines that deal with the planning, design and management of transport systems.