New Mobility Blueprint

The New Mobility Blueprint’s mission is to develop actionable recommendations for policies, programs, and regulations that will help the City ensure that new mobility options are implemented in a way that aligns with and advances existing goals and policies.

New travel options and evolving technology are rapidly changing the way we get around our city and the region. The transportation options and technology that the Blueprint will address include single-occupancy and shared ride-hail, station-based and one-way car share, single-occupancy and shared autonomous vehicles (AVs), autonomous shuttles, shared and privately-owned e-bikes and e-scooters, micro-transit, electric vehicles (EVs), Mobility as a Service (MaaS), sidewalk bots and delivery drones, Vertical take-off and landing (VTOLs), and more. 

The Blueprint is a methodical, data-driven effort to position the City to better plan for these new modes. The City is taking an active role in guiding this transition to a new mobility to ensure that our streets are safer, with less traffic, that transportation is more accessible, convenient, affordable, and equitable, with lower transportation greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and that personal data is protected.

The New Mobility Blueprint is not a visioning exercise—it will result in concrete steps to further our planning for new mobility options. The process will not create new goals; it will use the City's goals, established through Envision Cambridge and other planning efforts, related to safety, equity, transit and goods movement reliability, transportation network connectedness, traffic congestion, greenhouse GHG emissions, and climate resilience. The New Mobility Blueprint will be adapted over time as the mobility landscape changes. 


October 2019

The second New Mobility Blueprint Advisory Group meeting will be held. Details:

New Mobility Blueprint Advisory Group Meeting
Wednesday, October 16th
Citywide Senior Center, 806 Massachusetts Avenue
First Floor Ballroom
5:30 - 8:00 p.m. 

The New Mobility Blueprint launched in April 2019 and is anticipated to be complete by summer 2020.

The project tasks are:

  • Task 1: New Mobility Blueprint Advisory Group. The City Manager appointed a advisory group to provide technical expertise and community insight during the development of the Blueprint.There will be four Advisory Group meetings, through spring 2020.
  • Task 2: Policy Audit, Transportation Trend Assessment.The Policy Audit is a review of existing plans, policies, and regulations that relate to transportation, mobility, and climate in Cambridge. The goal of this review is to identify barriers and opportunities that would allow Cambridge to shape how new mobility options are implemented. The Trend Assessment provides us a thorough understanding of the current mobility ecosystem. It identifies current trends for existing modes in Cambridge and projects future shifts in the transportation system.
  • Task 3 New Mobility Blueprint. The Blueprint will clearly define strategies and actions that will allow Cambridge prepare for and support new mobility options and transportation electrification quickly and in a way that supports community goals.
  • Task 4: Residential Electric Vehicle Charging Pilot. This task will implement a residential EVSE charging network pilot in Cambridge, to explore how the City might support equitable charging access for residents who do not have access to private, off street parking in which they can install a private EVSE.
  • Task 5: Proposed Regulatory Strategy. This task will identify state or city regulations that need to be amended or adopted in order to prepare for and support the future of mobility in a way that meets our community goals.This project will outline a conceptual framework and rationale (not specific regulatory language) for amending or adopting the key regulations identified through this task.
  • Task 6: Future Public Engagement Approach. This task will be to develop outreach and engagement tools that address equity issues and can be used to engage with community members about their experience with new mobility modes and the City's approach to planning for New Mobility over time.

For a detailed project schedule, click here.

Technical Advisory Group

In May, 2019, the City of Cambridge appointed a technical advisory group to guide the development of the New Mobility Blueprint. It is a broad and varied group representing many angles of New Mobility. The AG members come from a diverse set of backgrounds, experiences, and views, from researchers of automated vehicles and senior mobility needs to micromobility companies to local business owners to electric vehicle experts to complete streets professionals.

Advisory Group members will participate in meetings and discussions, review written material, and advise the City on trend analysis and forecasting, implementation blueprint development, electric vehicle charging pilot development, policy and regulatory strategy, and plans for future public engagement.

Information for the general public and future Advisory Group meetings will be posted here.

Members of the Advisory Group: Megan Aki; Ruth Allen; David Block-Schachter; Kathryn Carlson; James Cater; Melissa Chan; Will Dickson; Yonah Freemark; Jane Gould; Raymond Hayhurst; Bruce Kaplan; David Keith; Steven Miller; Ilya Sinelnikov; Zef Vataj; Christopher Tassone; Roy Russell; Stephen Russell

Public Meetings & Events

  • New Mobility Blueprint Technical Advisory Group Meeting 2 - 10/16/2019 
    • Trends Assessment
    • Forecasting Presentation (coming soon)
    • EVSE Presentation (coming soon)
  • City Council Transportation and Public Utilities Committee - 7/15/19
  • New Mobility Blueprint Technical Advisory Group Meeting 1 - 7/10/2019 
  • Automated Vehicle Forum - 3/7/19

Contact Information 

Stephanie Groll, Parking and Transportation Demand Management Planning Officer

sgroll@cambridgema.gov

617/349-4673


Bronwyn Cooke, Sustainability Planner

bcooke@cambridgema.gov

617/349-4604