As civilization reels from the shock and awe of the COVID-19 pandemic, attention should start to focus on the implications for mobility across multiple paradigms. There is a need to better understand the pressures our society will be putting on assuring the health and well-being on our populations, the safeguards that are demanded to limit the spread of the virus and the extent to which privacy and personal freedoms will be scrutinized to limit contagion.
Society’s belief system on mobility will be challenged. Until a vaccine is fully deployed, the degree to which social distancing will be institutionalized will change how we design mobility facilities, be they urban, intercity or global systems. The extent to which we continue to work remotely, the interactions needed to complete transactions, the delivery of learning, all will have strong influences on the mobility revolution ahead. We need to start thinking about alternative mobility scenarios that will foster debate and dialogue.