METRO Magazine and BusCon announced that Scott Shogan, connected/automated vehicle (C/AV) market leader for WSP USA, will deliver the Keynote Address, “How Connected/Automated Vehicle Technology Will Impact Transportation,” at this year’s BusCon 2017, which will take place Sept. 11 to 13 at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis.

Shogan has more than two decades of experience in transportation planning, traffic operations, and advanced transportation technology, including over 10 years focused on the C/AV market. In addition to his long-standing work on the connected vehicle pilot efforts in Ann Arbor, Mich., Shogan currently leads the company’s efforts on the Mcity and American Center for Mobility, two C/AV test tracks in Southeastern Michigan.

C/AV technologies are together one of the hottest topics impacting cities around the world, with automakers, tech companies, ride-hailing services, universities, and various transportation providers all part of the current development and testing.

“In the U.S., connected vehicle deployments are spreading quickly throughout the country with an increasing number of use cases, including a number for transit and bus operators. However, there continues to be debate around the best technology to use, as well as the potential regulatory action that most feel is needed to make this happen,” said Shogan. “On the AV side, laws have now been passed in 19 states aimed at easing restrictions for testing AVs on public roadways, and notably Uber continues testing their vehicles with customers, one of the first applications involving the public.”

As C/AV technologies continue to evolve and mature, it is only a matter of time before it has an impact on the overall transportation picture, as well as your business. In what is sure to be an interesting discussion, Shogan will discuss its potential effects on public and private bus and shuttle operators, as well the creation of new opportunities in a shared economy.

“These technologies are already impacting transportation systems, and particularly bus and transit operators,” explains Shogan. “One of the first commercially available AVs are small, low-speed shuttles, that are being put in operation today. These are envisioned to help with ‘first/last mile’ linkages in transit systems, as shuttles on closed campuses, and other applications. A little further out on the horizon, most automakers and technology firms developing this technology are talking about high levels of automation being available in consumer vehicles in the early 2020s.”

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