Mobility is a basic human need, since it provides access to education, healthcare, jobs and other basic services. This session featured four inspiring presentations from leading thinkers and entrepreneurs highlighting examples of products and services that can help achieve more inclusive transport systems and improve the mobility needs of people historically excluded from transport planning and policy design. This include women, people with disabilities, the elderly and other vulnerable groups.

Presentations in this session demonstrated how innovation can help create safer and more inclusive cities in various ways. For example, data from developing international standards to assess the quality of roads for all transport users (vehicle drivers, pedestrians, etc.) can be used to understand the inequities in the current state of roads, and this data can be used to better manage our transport systems.

Psychological barriers are sometimes the reason why people do not move freely. The perception of lack of safety is enough to restrict certain user groups’ (women, elderly, people with disabilities) travel, thus limiting their independence.

Inclusiveness should also mean reaching out to the next generation and including their thoughts and ideas into our future transport systems. To engage youth, it is important to also work with their communities to ensure they are supported in this engagement.

Some of the solutions provided by the speakers included quantifying walking and cycling, and converting these into tokens to be used for city services; advocating for better access to opportunities and safer use of public spaces; tracking safest routes and nearby safe places; among others.

In conclusion, presenters agreed that accounting for everyone’s needs translates into building more resilient and sustainable transport systems for all. The benefits of these are reaped not only by those that are with different needs, but also their support systems and people (family etc) that accompany them on their day-to-day travels.

The session included presentations from Rob McInerney (CEO at the International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP), Satoshi Sugie, CEO & Co-Founder at WHILL Inc, Satoshi Sugie, CEO & Co-Founder at WHILL Inc., and Paulo Humanes , Director of Mobility, Automotive and Cities at CEiiA (Centre for Engineering and Product Development). The session was moderated by Sharon Masterson, Manager, Corporate Partnership Board at the International Transport Forum.