Colorado Smart Cities Alliance launches CityForward to share lessons learned from nation’s largest self-driving electric shuttle fleet, AvCo
CityForward will inform future rollouts and accelerate global AV deployment.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The Colorado Smart Cities Alliance, Stantec GenerationAV™, and EasyMile are working together to accelerate the autonomous vehicle industry with a deployment-based playbook called CityForward based on three separate projects. The first project was launched in August of 2021 in Golden, CO, AvCo will use the nation’s largest fleet of low-speed, autonomous electric shuttles to share data and knowledge with the global industry through CityForward. The first CityForward Playbook course is now available and new content will be released each quarter over the next year.
In addition to lessons learned, CityForward will also provide actionable tools to use in planning and implementation, document pitfalls to avoid, and share best practices across the Stantec GenerationAV playbook that are applicable to the global connected and autonomous industry. To safely and effectively introduce connectivity, automation and electrification into transit operations, AvCo’s goal is to use real-world experience to maximize benefits and mitigate the risks associated with these technologies. CityForward will reduce the need to spend resources repeating similar pilots, enabling the industry to move forward faster.
“The automation of the transportation sector is coming sooner than many people think, and CityForward will accelerate the transition by reducing many of the non-technical barriers preventing more projects like AvCo,” said Tyler Svitak, Executive Director of the Colorado Smart Cities Alliance, the nonprofit at the center of the AvCo program. “Replicating success and learning from each other is essential, but until now there has been limited experiential data and resources available for the industry to learn from together.”
“CityForward offers the most extensive learning experience from an AV deployment program to date, including lessons learned, pitfalls to avoid, and key accomplishments,” said Corey Clothier, Founder and Director of Stantec GenerationAV. “Our experts have been documenting and synthesizing the process from the early stages of pre-deployment to offer an unparalleled learning experience for communities ready to follow the AvCo project path.”
The CityForward Playbook is composed of six tested and vetted phases, each thoughtfully outlined to guide practitioners: Getting Started, Feasibility, Acquisition, Implementation, Operations, and Monitor & Evaluate. It offers all of the information and methodologies to guide planning, assessment, deployment and oversight of automated transit projects. Industry leaders called “CityForward Champions” were engaged during the development of the content to provide pragmatic feedback.
In addition to the Playbook itself, CityForward also offers CityForward Workshops for organizations that are customized to apply to their desired project or idea. These workshops are offered virtually or in-person at the customer’s location, and will provide the opportunity for a project team to collaborate in developing or evolving their individual project
Also available will be CityForward University, which is an in-person immersive learning experience in Golden at the site of the first deployment to touch, feel and see the project first-hand with the experts behind AvCo.
CityForward offers multiple pricing options depending on the organization’s needs. Designed to evolve the industry, CityForward has opportunities for every transportation stakeholder to engage.
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The Colorado Smart Cities Alliance is a statewide organization that brings together government, businesses and allied organizations to improve life for all Coloradans through creation of innovative technology partnerships. The organization accelerates civic innovation in Colorado through Partnership Building, Research, Education and Consulting. Learn more about the Alliance, its partners, research and current projects at https://coloradosmart.city.
Stantec GenerationAV™ is a full consulting program from Stantec, a global leader in sustainable design and engineering. The program draws from the experience on dozens of deployment projects, using a data-driven process to remove barriers to AV programs most commonly identified by clients: selecting technology suppliers, addressing regulatory requirements, and building an efficient roadmap to safe deployment. Stantec GenerationAV supports Stantec’s Smart Mobility and was launched through Stantec’s Innovation Office, which was designed to identify, incubate, accelerate, and operationalize client-focused research into scalable infrastructure solutions. Learn more at stantecgenerationav.com.
EasyMile is a leader in software and complete solutions for driverless goods and passenger transport, and the number one provider of autonomous shuttles in the world. They partner with blue-chip manufacturers to automate their vehicles with award-winning technology built on safety-by-design, ready for deployment today, with clear client benefits.
Contact
Chelsea Barrett
Colorado Smart Cities Alliance
chelsea@coloradosmart.city
720.213.8238
