Moonshots and Mobility Nerds

Welcome to December! This month typically has a lot going on - from trying to wrap up year-end projects, spending time with friends and family, hustling around trying to find those perfect gifts for loved ones (we have some ideas for you in this newsletter!), and everything else that needs to be crammed into the finite number of hours our planet’s rotation allows us. No wonder December has 31 days! As this final month of the year winds down, many of us start reflecting on the past year and set goals for the upcoming year. While we definitely do that here at Cityfi, we are always looking further into the future. As you will read in this newsletter, we delve into the future of urban living by aiding governments in exploring cutting-edge approaches which harness technology to tackle transportation challenges, championing the power of city-focused cohorts to foster growth and collaborative learning, and helping governments achieve innovative solutions though non-traditional resources. Our team is constantly working to help improve the future through our work with innovative governments and organizations. Want to learn more about our work or discuss how we may be able to collaborate? Look no further than sending an email to info@cityfi.co or one of our team members.

A Date for the Nerd Prom

By Karina Ricks

In just over a month, tens of thousands of transportation deep thinkers will descend on Washington, DC for the National Academy of Sciences Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting (TRB). Often affectionately referred to as the transportation nerd prom, TRB is an opportunity to delve deep into data to understand the present condition of transportation assets and services and to look to and beyond the horizon to see what might be coming.

We would love to see you there as we join clients and partners at a number of events adjacent to the conference itself. We will be showcasing the real world, community transportation testbed that is the Southwest Mobility Innovation District (MID) and looking for partners who want to support purpose-driven demonstrations in the shadow of the US Capitol Building. We support ITS America in facilitating a unique opportunity for public agency staff to convene with leading technology product developers to delve into the problems that need solving and co-create, through agile design-thinking, potential applications to address them.

We would love to see you there.

Mobility Moonshot

By Karina Ricks

Almost a decade ago, Harvard University researchers reported something many folks in the transportation industry already knew - that economic mobility is nearly impossible to achieve without timely and reliable transportation mobility. More recently, researchers at the University of Michigan found that roughly 1 in 4 adults in America struggle with “transportation insecurity” - lacking reliable, affordable transportation to get to the necessary destinations of daily life.

The slightest disruption in planned travel - a flat tire, a missed bus, a twisted ankle - very likely could lead to a missed shift, a docked paycheck, and/or a late rent payment (or worse). For transportation insecure Americans, their transportation existence is fixed and rigid, lacking resiliency or elasticity to adapt to the inevitable irregularities of real life. Even if they can navigate a fragmented and siloed system to pivot to an alternative mode, the cost is dear - often requiring the trade off of some other essential expense.

We need a full transformation of public transportation. We need the kind of radical reimagining whereby Henry Ford didn’t just give us a “faster horse” or Steve Jobs a mobile telephone.

Today’s mobility ecosystem (conventional transit, on-demand transit, bike share, scooter share, car share, ride hail, etc) is not a system. It is a jumble of parts - Tinker Toys or Legos spilled out on the floor that have yet to be assembled into a “thing.” It is not a system. It does not offer transportation security.

But it could.

Cityfi is pleased to support a number of entities and efforts working to reduce friction and make siloed services work better together as a flexible and resilient system. We were in Oregon this week to meet with the Board and stakeholders of Lane Transit District to ideate on a mobility management strategy nimble enough to serve both urban Eugene and rural Lane County. NextCity recently revisited the transformative ambitions of Pittsburgh’s MovePGH and the lessons learned there. And we are working to expand the success of LA Metro, LADOT and Cal-ITP’s Mobility Wallet and contactless open loop payment approach.

These are incremental steps in what might be the metamorphosis of mobility.

AFA i3: The Importance of Cohorts and Impact Storytelling For Funding

By Camron Bridgford

In Atlanta on November 15, I had the pleasure of presenting to and running a workshop session for the Accelerator for America’s (AFA) Innovative Infrastructure Initiative (i3). The i3 is a cohort of cities - large and small, with diverse geographies and populations - devised in partnership with Sidewalk Infrastructure Partners (SIP). i3 was organized to help its member cities accelerate transformative infrastructure projects in their communities by providing a space for technical assistance and peer learning.

At Cityfi, we’ve had the privilege of working with many city-focused cohorts over the past five years, and I find it to be one of the most effective and impactful partnerships that can be formed in the urban space. Cities have been, and will continue to, find themselves in the midst of change, whether it be the climate, the need for improved infrastructure, the integration of technology into the built environment, greater housing options, or the growing recognition that equitable solutions must play a central role in how we manage cities. These rapid changes with no clear roadmap demand that cities need a way to learn in a “testing environment” -- and they need peer support to do so. As such, I have program managed, facilitated and provided technical expertise for cohorts such as the Knight Foundation’s Autonomous Vehicle Initiative; the Knight Foundation’s Budget Resiliency Cohort of Budget Directors; Transportation for America’s Smart Cities Collaborative; and the Open Mobility Foundation’s SMART Grant Collective. In each of these spaces - which has included cities from San Jose to Pittsburgh to St. Paul to Philadelphia to Miami and many others - cities grow and learn together. Sometimes the growth comes through failure; other times through successful projects. But in the end, they develop a peer network that helps them capitalize on opportunities and solve pressing challenges. I’ve watched these cohorts contribute to a growing and scalable body of work that provides lessons learned for others muddling their way through complex urban issues.

The i3 cohort held its inaugural meeting, with cities from San Diego to Chattanooga to Albuquerque to Lansing. Each is undertaking an infrastructure project unique to their needs and local environments. The dissimilarities among their projects and cities are just as powerful and useful for peer learning as what is common among them. During this meeting, I presented on the importance of identifying and pursuing diverse funding mechanisms, especially with the influx of funding coming out of the federal government, and the critical need to ensure cities are “telling their story” in a way that speaks to the need, the desired outcomes, and how it aligns with their City’s broader goals and values. By developing a unique theory of change for their project, these cities can competitively pursue financing that will help to actualize these projects and positively impact their communities.

Cityfi is in the business of urban change management, which in part encompasses grants strategy, research and management. Whether you are an individual city, or part of a cohort, we would love to work with you to tell the story of your project, program, policy or initiative in a way that supports its long-term resource and funding sustainability. For more information on these services, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at camron@cityfi.co.

Road to Tomorrow: Knight Foundation’s AV Initiative at National League of Cities

By Camron Bridgford

The week of November 13 was the annual convening of the National League of Cities, an influential organization comprised of city, town, and village leaders focused on improving the quality of life for their current and future constituents. I attended on behalf of Cityfi, both to hear about new trends and case studies in urbanism, but also to present the culmination of a five-year Knight Foundation Autonomous Vehicle Initiative, of which Cityfi served as the program manager, cohort facilitator, and technical advisor. The AV Initiative began in 2018 with four cities - San Jose, Pittsburgh, Detroit, and Miami-Dade County - at a time when autonomous vehicles seemed imminent and pressing, and residents and communities needed to be better engaged in decision-making around these new technologies.

While the AV industry has gone through many ups and downs in these five years - market stalls, COVID-19, market consolidation, and operational suspensions - this cohort learned a tremendous amount through pilots and extensive community engagement with their residents.

The Initiative is culminating with the publication of the AV Guidebook, a resource for cities to use when determining how to best manage autonomous technology development, testing and deployment on their roads. It is an action-oriented and informative publication of the many lessons learned from the Initiative.

As part of the Guidebook’s official launch at the National League of Cities, Cityfi and Urbanism Next led the final cohort meeting of the participating cities. They talked about their community engagement efforts over the last five years, their greatest lessons learned, and what they see as their next steps in testing new technologies. The Knight Foundation also sponsored a public-facing session facilitated by myself and Nico Larco, director of Urbanism Next, to ask the cities (as well as other cities/states managing AV testing, such as Washington, D.C. and Massachusetts) what, in light of recent events and past lessons learned, they see as the future of AVs. Cityfi and the participating cities are grateful to the Knight Foundation for providing the original seed funding to boldly explore this ever-changing topic, and lay groundwork upon which to build new advancements for both cities and private sector companies in testing, managing, and deploying AV technologies on our streets.

Flight Plans for the Future: Time to Prepare for Advanced Air Mobility Takeoff

By Karina Ricks

Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) elicits a range of responses from nearly audible eyerolls to extreme exuberance. As the Federal Aviation Administration, states and industry advance technology and authorizations for operation, there is a very real question as to where - quite literally - this technology will land.

As relayed in a recent Bloomberg TV interview, very few places in North America are even beginning to contemplate how, where or whether aerial transport belongs in their urban mobility ecosystems. Unlike ride hail, e-scooters, autonomous vehicles or other similar “disruptors” who travel on, board, and alight on public rights of way; eVTOLs (electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing vehicles) will board and alight on private rooftops or public terminals. This means local governments will have unique local control through their zoning ordinance.

While mass deployment of eVTOLs is still a ways off, it is not too early for local governments to begin to contemplate this new technology that may soon be hovering nearby.

Youth Internships for the Win-Win

By Chelsea Lawson

Back in 2021, when we were helping the City of Elk Grove, CA develop a smart city plan, we looked across the country for examples of creative solutions to the many issues and opportunities that cities face. Now we are inspired by the clever ideas their Strategic Planning and Innovation (SPI) team has come up with to engage residents and build technological skills in their organization.

Of recent note, Elk Grove partnered with Franklin High School to create an augmented reality application for residents to explore the new zoo coming to the city. The application was developed over the course of a semester-long internship, where the SPI team/City Manager’s office, IT department, and Zoo all contributed time and resources. While the application is ultimately for the residents, some of the greatest benefits of the internship are to the city and academic partners themselves. The more talented students are exposed to public sector job opportunities, the better. And of course it is more fun to practice and learn coding skills for a real purpose. On the flipside, it is good for IT staff to be exposed to new technologies, especially when there is an open-source template to build upon, as the students have created. When this sort of partnership is successful, it paves the way for an ongoing relationship to do more projects in the future.

We recognize that it takes a lot of work on all sides to make an academic internship a success. We hope all participants feel proud of the accomplishment and that other cities take note!

A Gift Giving Guide for the City Dweller

By Ryan Parzick

Thanksgiving is in our rearview mirror and the focus for many tends to shift towards the other major holidays in December. Since a number of these holidays are festive celebrations and gifts may be exchanged, I have been thinking of what my colleagues and urbanist friends really need (or want!) in their lives. Since sharing is a form of gift giving, I have decided to gift the readers of the Cityfi Newsletter a list of ideas I have concocted for this year’s Holiday Season. I leave it to you, the reader, to do your own investigations into the specific gift items since I would hate to take the joy of researching away from you.

Gifts to Get Around. People who live in cities are often looking for ways to live more affordably, simply, and/or sustainably. A great gift for the practical urbanist in your life is one that will help them get around town. Bikes are a great way to get around the city without the hassle of finding parking or the costs of owning a car, plus they're good for the environment! Raising things up another level, how about an e-bike? The pandemic brought e-bikes to the forefront of many people’s shopping lists in 2020, but sales are still soaring. Many states and cities are offering rebates to purchase e-bikes to offset their higher costs compared to traditional bikes, so take a look at what incentives may be available here. Cheaper options to facilitate getting around could be accessories for bikes that improve safety, cargo capacity, or even the ability to transport pets.

Gifts to Get to Know the City. Maybe your gift recipient is new to a city or has been there for decades. Either way, cities have interesting histories to them. There are a plethora of good books out there digging into all facets of a city’s past, which help to understand the challenges and opportunities facing their city, possibly inspiring them to get involved in making a difference.

If the present is of more interest than the past, maps could be a great gift. There are many different types of maps available, from traditional paper maps to interactive online maps to wall decor. A map will help them discover new neighborhoods, businesses, and hidden gems.

Gifts to Support Old Favorites or Create New Ones. Some of the things I love most about cities are their individual cultures, traditions, and businesses. Gifting an experience or food unique to the city is not only a great motivation to get out of the home and do something fun, but also a wonderful way to support a local establishment. Tickets to an event or gift cards to local businesses can usually be purchased with just a click of a button.

Gifts to Help. Sometimes the best gift is not directly given to an individual, but rather to a group of people. All cities have unique challenges that need attention, which likely have a group(s) focused towards making things better. Providing a donation in the name of your friend or relative to the cause of their choice can make a big difference. An alternative to gifting money could be spending time and energy together volunteering.

Hopefully, this quick guide sparks some useful gift ideas for the Holiday Season. If you have thoughts to make this list better, I would love to hear about them. You can reach me at ryan@cityfi.co.