Innovation Opportunities of Compact Vehicles for Urban Transportation

The rapid motorization of China has led to widespread traffic issues. While solutions exist, transport providers can often create new problems while solving another. Currently two choices dominate the public debate; firstly the automobile as a comfortable transport mode that offers the idea of good mobility for the individual, an offering degraded by traffic congestion; and secondly the alternative of high-efficiency public transport which offers the consumer less door to door comfort but moves more people. This chapter investigates opportunities in the third choice of smaller vehicles. Such vehicles take into account efficiencies, comfort, and door to door access, but require both design innovation and regulatory innovation to be a more attractive option for urban commuters in China. We conceive of a traffic system which can balance the high efficiency of public transport with the mobility and comfort of personal vehicles.