6. Artificial Intelligence Applications for Climate Friendly Mobility

This chapter investigates the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) as an emerging and powerful tool in addressing the complex challenges imposed by adaptation of the transport sector to climate change. There is also a discussion on the potential of AI to help optimise the operation of the transport system in terms of traffic management, traffic safety, public transport operation, and the like, as well as in terms of aspects like social equity and accessibility, reducing mobility disparities, reducing carbon footprints and other. It comes as an additional examination of the issues of climate change adaptation discussed in Chap. 4 focused in more detail on the AI applications that can be used. As climate impacts intensify, the transportation system infrastructure as well as the operational elements of it will need to be protected against increasing risks from the impacts of extreme weather events. This chapter follows a holistic approach in presenting the need for a proactive climate adaptation while maintaining operational efficiency across the transport sector. It is based on the imperative to adapt transportation systems to increase resilience to climate change since failure to adapt and make those systems more resilient will result in large economic losses, grave safety risks, and disruptions to vital supply chains and mobility services. The chapter proposes an integrated framework for Artificial Intelligence applications for adaptation in the transport sector and discusses applications in predictive infrastructure maintenance, real-time monitoring and risk assessment, adaptive traffic management, optimised and inclusive transportation planning and design. It also makes detailed reference to the need for reducing mobility disparities, ensuring social equity and accessibility, establishing a viable workforce planning process, and to life-cycle analysis of mobility options.