Designing Integrated UAV and Road Transportation Systems for Enhanced Logistics, Safety, and Disaster Resilience

Dear Colleagues,

The convergence of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) technology with traditional road-based transportation systems is revolutionizing mobility and logistics. This integration presents a transformative opportunity to design next-generation networks that are not only efficient but also inherently resilient to disruptions, from natural disasters to urban congestion. UAVs offer unparalleled capabilities for rapid response, bypassing ground-level obstacles and reaching remote areas, thereby directly addressing critical challenges in last-mile logistics, emergency supply delivery, and infrastructure monitoring. However, the seamless and safe integration of these aerial platforms into existing transportation ecosystems requires innovative design solutions at the intersection of vehicle engineering, road safety, traffic management, and intelligent systems.

This Special Issue will collate high-quality research on the design, modeling, and implementation of integrated UAV-road transportation systems. We welcome contributions that tackle the complex interplay between aerial and ground vehicles, focusing on creating synergistic systems that enhance overall network performance, safety, and resilience. We are particularly interested in research that employs advanced computational methods such as Digital Twins, hybrid simulation (agent-based, discrete-event), AI-driven optimization, and multi-objective decision-making to model, analyze, and optimize these integrated systems under uncertainty.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• System Design and Integration: Co-design of UAV and road vehicle operations for hybrid logistics (e.g., truck-drone delivery), traffic management, and emergency response protocols;
• Safety and Human Factors: Geometric design of vertiports and landing zones, air–ground traffic conflict detection and resolution, human–drone interaction, and public acceptance;
• Resilience and Disaster Management: Design of UAV-enabled resilient supply chains for disaster relief, post-disaster infrastructure assessment, and sustaining mobility in disrupted environments;
• Modeling and Simulation: Advanced modeling of UAV dynamics within transportation networks, Digital Twin frameworks for system-of-systems testing, and hybrid simulation for performance prediction;
• Optimization and AI: AI-driven algorithms for route planning, fleet management, energy consumption optimization, and risk-aware decision-making in integrated networks;
• Policy and Implementation: Case studies, regulatory frameworks, cost–benefit analyses, and practical guidelines for the deployment of integrated transportation systems;
• Sensing and Perception: Advanced sensor fusion techniques for UAV navigation in GNSS-denied environments, and computer vision for automated infrastructure inspection and road safety monitoring;
• Emerging Technologies: Application of Urban Air Mobility (UAM) concepts, integration with Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) communication, and the use of blockchain for secure and transparent logistics operations.

We invite original research articles, comprehensive reviews, and insightful case studies that offer both theoretical advancements and practical design implications. Manuscripts featuring robust computational experiments, simulation validations, or real-world pilot studies are highly encouraged.

Prof. Dr. Said M. Easa
Dr. Armin Mahmoodi
Guest Editors

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. Designs 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 1600 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.

• integrated UAV–road transportation systems
• resilient logistics and supply chains
• road safety and geometric design
• digital twin and hybrid simulation
• AI-driven optimization for mobility
• disaster-resilient infrastructure