Velomobiles and urban mobility: Opportunities and challenges

Abstract

As the transport challenges facing urban areas intensify, innovative solutions are required to address the social, economic and environmental impacts arising from overreliance on private motor vehicles. Velomobiles offer a range of advantages but do not feature on the radar screen of urban transport policy makers. This chapter explores the challenges and opportunities of increased adoption of velomobiles as an urban mobility option. A scan of existing velomobiles is used to define typical characteristics of these vehicles and place them into perspective against relevant travel options before they are assessed in the context of typical vehicle regulations and facility design guidelines. The opportunities and challenges associated with greater adoption of velomobiles in the context of urban travel are examined through the lenses of technology adoption and the sociotechnical framing of independent travel options. Shared mobility is identified as one potential way of broadening the base for velomobile adoption in urban areas.