Transport, Trust & Technology: Transport AI Action Plan
by Kavita Mittal, University of Southampton
Earlier this month, the UK Department for Transport (DfT) launched its Transport AI Action Plan, a bold roadmap to harness the power of artificial intelligence to enhance mobility, accelerate innovation, and boost safety across the country’s transport systems. The plan aligns with national priorities and aims to fast-track developments like autonomous vehicle pilots, while responsibly managing emerging risks. Read the plan here.
At Responsible AI UK, we’re at the heart of this transformation, our research projects like are helping shape how AI and robotics are integrated into everyday transport systems. With a cross-border approach, RAi UK project ‘AI Regulation Assurance in Safety-Critical Systems’, led by Dr Jennifer Williams, explores AI safety risks for technologies within the aerospace, maritime, and communication sectors and propose solutions to mitigate potential safety risks. Dr Williams highlights how DfT’s actions, such as fostering AI Communities of Practice and skills-sharing programmes, can help surface public concerns and align technological progress with social needs. “Public trust is paramount,” she notes, “and efforts to engage across the sector will be key to developing safe, transparent, and effective systems.” The plan also opens doors for SME innovation through UKRI and DfT investment mechanisms, something Dr Williams calls “crucial to unlocking scalable and impactful AI solutions, especially when linked with academic expertise.”
Meanwhile, RAi UK project ‘Understanding Robot Autonomy in Public’, led by Dr Stuart Reeves, explores real-world human interactions with autonomous delivery robots and shuttles, research vital to shaping socially aware and inclusive AI-driven transport. Dr Reeves raises important questions: “The plan could go further in recognising how public spaces are shared, lived-in environments. A sole emphasis on safety misses the complex, real-world dynamics autonomous systems must navigate to function effectively and responsibly.” Together, these insights reinforce that the future of AI in transport must be as much about people as it is about technology.
Congratulations to Dr Reeves and his team for securing new funding from Sweden’s innovation agency Vinnova through Drive Sweden. This support enables the continuation of their longitudinal research on autonomous delivery robots in public spaces, extending their impact beyond the UK. Learn more: When delivery robots enter public spaces: A longitudinal study of Starship robots in Stockholm | Drive Sweden.
Authors notes: Contributing views from Dr. Jennifer Williams and Dr. Stuart Reeves