Recent Advances and Emerging Technologies in Transportation and Urban Planning

Dear Colleagues,

The emergence of novel technologies applicable in vehicles, transport, and urban infrastructures promises a new era of urban living, significantly enhancing the quality of life in our cities. These innovations bring forth a myriad of benefits, notably, in reducing pollution, promoting shared mobility, bolstering public transportation, optimizing urban road space, and leveraging truly intelligent infrastructures. All of these elements play pivotal roles in realizing Smart Cities, in which the well-being of residents takes center stage.

For instance, Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) communication systems enable seamless interactions between vehicles and the surrounding infrastructure, including traffic lights and road sensors; meanwhile, simultaneously, Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) communication facilitates real-time data exchange among vehicles (including two-wheelers). These technologies empower cities to streamline traffic flow, reduce congestion, and enhance road safety, consequently contributing to cleaner air and improved overall well-being. In addition, the rise of shared mobility represents another pivotal aspect of urban life enhancement, by potentially diminishing the number of privately owned vehicles on streets and alleviating traffic congestion. Finally, the variable allocation of urban road space (whether intermittent or dynamic) is an intelligent approach that could potentially optimize the utilization of urban space. By leveraging real-time data from pedestrian and road traffic, potentially complemented by V2I and V2V systems, cities can dynamically adjust traffic signals and lane functions to accommodate demand that varies over time. Adaptive road use strategies can maximize the utilization of existing urban space via more sustainable modes, leading to an overall improvement in urban well-being.

At the heart of these advancements, there are truly intelligent infrastructures equipped with sensors and data analytics capabilities. They empower cities to make informed decisions regarding resource allocation, traffic management, and environmental sustainability. Smart Cities can leverage these infrastructures to enhance residents' quality of life by optimizing public services, reducing energy consumption, and providing safer and more convenient urban experiences.

This Special Issue aims to delve into the transformative potential of emerging technologies in vehicles, transportation, and urban infrastructures, and analyze how urban space can be reallocated for non-motorised uses. Authors are invited to submit original manuscripts on topics including (but not limited to) the following:

• Smart cities and smart logistics;
• Urban technologies, active modes and the urban environment;
• Vehicle sharing and the urban environment;
• Automated vehicles and the urban environment;
• V2I and V2V in urban environments;
• Dynamic allocation of urban road space;
• Intermittent bus lanes;
• Sensing urban mobility and other uses;
• Artificial intelligence, machine learning and urban mobility analytics.

Dr. Filipe Moura
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• emerging technologies
• urban mobility
• urban space
• connectivity
• automation
• sensors
• smart cities