Autonomous cars: Science, technology, and policy
An event from the Brookings Institution, the Mays Innovation Research Center at Texas A&M, and the Transportation Institute at the University of Florida
Past Event
Welcome & Introductions
Download the event agenda here.
Hardly a day passes without some news about autonomous transportation. Apple, Uber, Waymo, Tesla, Ford, GM, Toyota – it seems as if every automotive and tech company has its horse in the race to bring driverless cars to the United States. And for good reason: driver error is a major cause of automotive deaths in America. But, safety is only one potential upside to autonomous vehicles. Traffic efficiencies, environmental benefits, and the potential for shorter commute times have all been touted as benefits.
On July 25 at the Brookings Institution hosted a full-day conference on how connecting vehicles to smart infrastructure will transform the future of transportation. Panelists at “Autonomous cars: Science, technology, and policy” discussed a specific type of autonomy: infrastructure-enabled autonomous vehicles. Engineers, researchers, economists, and government officials provided a realistic outlook on the current state of driverless cars.
Agenda
Welcome
Adam Looney
Nonresident Senior Fellow - Economic Studies
Executive Director, Marriner S. Eccles Institute, University of Utah
Introductions
Lily Elefteriadou
Director - UF Transportation Institute (UFTI)
Korok Ray
Director - Mays Innovation Research Center, Texas A&M University
Opening Keynote Speaker: Kenneth M. Leonard
Director, USDOT Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office
Kenneth M. Leonard
Director - USDOT Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office
Engineering presentation 1: Autonomous vehicles, traffic, and humans
Carl D. Crane, III
Director - Center for Intelligent Machines and Robotics (CIMAR), University of Florida
Sherrilene Classen
Professor and Chair - Department of Occupational Therapy, University of Florida
Sanjay Ranka
Professor - Computer and Information Science and Engineering, University of Florida
Engineering Presentation 2: Smart Infrastructure
Swaminathan Gopalswamy
Director - Connected Autonomous Safe Transportation Program, Texas A&M University
Sivakumar Rathinam
Associate Professor - Department of Mechanical Engineering, Texas A&M University
Swaroop Darbha
Technical Director - Connected Autonomous Safe Transportation Program, Texas A&M University
Keynote Address: Derek Kan
Executive Associate Director, White House Office of Management and Budget; Former Under Secretary of Transportation for Policy
Derek Kan
Under Secretary for Policy - U.S. Department of Transportation
Panel 1: Policy issues
Rick Geddes
Founding Director - Cornell University Program in Infrastructure Policy
Clifford Winston
Senior Fellow - Economic Studies
Marjory Blumenthal
Senior Policy Researcher - The RAND Corporation
Panel 2: Public and private sector collaboration
Tom Madrecki
Vice President, Supply Chain and Logistics - Grocery Manufacturers Association
Baruch Feigenbaum
Assistant Director of Transportation Policy - Reason Foundation
Beth Kigel
Vice President, HNTB, Director of Smart and Connected Solutions
Jyot Chadha
Senior Manager - NUMO Alliance at the WRI Ross Center
Reception
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