Companies 'must invest more in intelligent mobility or miss £1.4tn opportunity'

The UK transport sector must invest more in ‘intelligent mobility’ or other countries will take the lead in a market that could be worth £1.4tn by 2030, an industry body has claimed.

The sector needs a fresh approach to connected and autonomous transport, new ‘mobility services’ and open data, according to the Transport Systems Catapult (TSC). Research from the TSC and analysts Deloitte shows that the intelligent mobility industry, which encompasses all these technologies, could be worth £550bn by 2020, £900bn by 2025 and much more in the following decade.

Only 24% of UK transport R&D investment goes into new services, TSC said, the vast majority going towards traditional products and infrastructure. The organisation, established by non-departmental public body Innovate UK, recommends a shift in investment models to allow innovation focused on road, rail and private hire alongside traditional infrastructure expenditure. 

The largest global opportunity lies in connected and autonomous transport, while TSC said the fastest growth is in new mobility services such as ride hailing and smart ticketing. The UK is reportedly strongest in using open data to improve transport.

“Innovation in the transport sector is driving growth, encouraging a new breed of start-ups and changing the business model for large, established multinationals,” said TSC chief executive Paul Campion.

“Autonomous vehicles might be the poster child for this revolution, but it is data that is driving many of these developments, allowing rapid progress across the sector and new methods of delivering transport services. The UK is well placed to capitalise on the huge market potential this brings. But we must invest now in the right areas, to ensure we can compete in this market before other countries take the lead.”

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