Transport Management Consulting has been engaged by Austroads to deliver project CAV6382 – Local Government and potential preparations for Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAVs) from now till March 2024. The TMC project team is seeking IPWEA and local government input.
This project is focused on Australian and New Zealand local governments (LGs) within the emerging data ecosystem for CAVs, including what data LGs may need to collect and provide to support CAVs. The project aims to assist LGs improve their readiness for CAVs through the provision of priority resources and the identification of low-cost supporting or coordinating actions that may further assist. The project will perform research and then develop resources and tools for LGs (e.g. capability models, readiness assessment, target state, toolkits and case studies) to assist with CAV support preparations.
This is an important project for Austroads. To-date, Austroads’ main focus has been on supporting state and territory jurisdictional agencies in supporting CAVs. However, given that the majority of the road network (73% in Australia and 88% in New Zealand) is controlled by local and regional governments/councils, there is a significant need to address local government CAV readiness needs. The emergence of CAVs and related technologies have implications for LGs as road authorities, infrastructure providers, fleet managers and representatives of their local communities. This project is focused on addressing LG needs, along with identifying supporting and coordinating actions required to improve LG CAV readiness.
Critical to the success of this project is the establishment of a reference group of LG representatives across Australia and New Zealand. Thus, the team at TMC are seeking your input on relevant LGAs that might want to participate in this project. This will involve the sharing LGA input knowledge and experience to the project, providing direction for the project, reviewing and providing feedback on project outputs. Input will be needed by email, surveys/questionnaires and online meetings/workshops throughout 2023.
This is a great opportunity to be involved in shaping what LGAs need to support CAVs. There is no cost to be involved. This project is fully funded by Austroads.
If your organisation and constituent LGs are interested in participating in this project, please contact david.yee@tmconsult.com.au, with contact details of a suitable staff member that we can include in our project communications.