This project explores the relationship between socio-economics, infrastructure, and travel behavior to better understand the travel needs of rural communities, the cost of current unmet needs, and potential applications of emerging modes and technologies to improve rural mobility and safety. Given new transportation options such as shared mobility and the emergence of connected and automated vehicles, particularly in urban/suburban settings, it is critical that research is conducted to understand their potential application to rural environments.

The research team includes the Cadmus Group (project lead), WTI, and EBP-US (formerly the EDR Group). WTI’s role will encompass tasks to describe the rural landscape, define unmet transportation needs, identify potential strategies to address the unmet needs, and develop case studies.