We talk a lot about our infrastructure, potholed roads and crumbling bridges. Of course we have to rehabilitate what is no longer functional, but it is not enough to just maintain infrastructure. Digitization can make large parts of our infrastructure look very old in 20 years.
The first autonomous vehicles are already being tested today. According to estimates, by 2040 two-thirds of all newly sold cars will be fully autonomous. These cars will drive themselves from A to B while the occupants play cards, read or sleep.
The vehicles will be networked with each other and with the infrastructure and will constantly exchange data. Mobility will become cheaper - and even if there are fewer vehicles, traffic will increase significantly.
The year 2040 is still a good 20 years away, but the roads we will then be driving on are already being planned today. And they must be able to do more than the roads we currently use.
The road becomes the interface between the vehicle, its occupants and the road operator. It will continuously exchange data with vehicles driving on it and thus control the flow of traffic. All the information can be brought together at the road operator, evaluated while maintaining data protection and fed back into the traffic in the form of instructions. High volume of traffic in the urban area?
Traffic is distributed across the road network based on the destination, and alternative routes are used. Risk of accidents on the way to school? Traffic on these roads will be reduced and slowed down at the start and end of school.
This requires data networks, i.e. a powerful and secure telecommunications infrastructure with fiber optic and 5G networks along the road network. It will be a challenge to bring the existing infrastructure to this new level - so digitization will demand a lot from the road authorities.
On the other hand, it also offers the (long-distance) road administration new opportunities. Road construction is a highly complex activity involving many different actors from different sectors. A large number of different interests have to be articulated and balanced in order to find a compromise that meets as many needs as possible.
Digitization can help here by standardizing documents and processes and by allowing authorities to exchange information about the project with each other and with citizens on new communication platforms - with more transparency for everyone involved and therefore with less time delay.
Road administrations play a key role in this development. They are the ones who maintain and further develop the existing transport infrastructure, and they are also the ones who plan and build new roads.
They shape the standard of tomorrow and have the opportunity to use the opportunities presented by the volume of data in the interest of the general public while protecting the rights of the individual. How the administration positions itself today will determine whether Germany will remain a pioneer in mobility over the next few decades.
The new tasks required for this can be outlined as follows:
A functioning infrastructure is not only an issue for the new building. On the contrary, the need for maintenance is great. Extensive investments are necessary just to keep the existing infrastructure functional.
As resources are limited, they should be used as efficiently as possible. Digitization can also make a contribution here. Sensors built into the streets can provide an up-to-date picture of their condition, and pictures from drone flights can supplement this picture. This information can be combined with empirical values from other conservation measures.
From this overall view, modern analysis instruments can evaluate the condition of the infrastructure and predict future changes in the condition (predictive maintenance). This look into the future then forms the basis for the correct control of the maintenance or renewal of roads and bridges.
In the coming years, the amount of data in road traffic will increase significantly. This data will enable improved forecasting of traffic flows and traffic densities, allowing road authorities to use artificial intelligence to manage traffic better than before.
Compared to today's traffic control system, this means fewer traffic jams, fewer exhaust fumes, less noise - and at the same time greater safety.
The time is ideal to set the course for the future. The newly founded federally owned Autobahn GmbH will take over the planning, construction and maintenance of the federal trunk roads from the federal states on January 1, 2021. The management of this road network from a single source enables a holistic approach that not only includes the requirements of the present but also those of the future and paves the way for new forms of mobility.
The author is Managing Director of KPMG Law and a BILANZ columnist.
