Connected mobility is a new concept, born out of the encounter of three revolutions.

First and foremost is the transport revolution. Mankind has never before moved about as much as today, neither have we ever transported freight and services on such vast scales. This inclination satisfies a deep-rooted natural need and a fundamental right: freedom of movement and goods transportation.

Next is the information technology revolution. The advent of the computer age has opened up horizons that were unimaginable thirty years ago, making data collection, processing and storage ever easier, faster and more economical. For the first time in the history of humanity, we have access to data on almost every subject, almost immediately and almost free of charge.

Finally wireless communication represents the third revolution. Mobile phones, wifi internet connections, infra-red, satellite liaisons are all spectacular technological innovations that are now part of our daily lives. Separately, each of these revolutions has modified our way of life.

Taken together, they herald a potential new revolution, which concerns our means of individual and collective transport.

A “connected vehicle” should not be thought of as just a vehicle equipped with extra electronic devices. Of course over the last few years, technological progress has focused primarily on the vehicle and its features. Automobile manufacturers have launched cars that are increasingly equipped with devices that make them safer, more economical and more comfortable. To make cars easier to use, they have harnessed part of the IT revolution by way of onboard navigation systems (GPS). Yet, the vehicle’s occupants continue to evolve, for the most part, within a selfcontained world.

The “connected vehicle” (or should we call it the “cooperative vehicle”?) has opened up a new dimension of mobility. This “open” vehicle enables the occupants (driver and passengers) to communicate in real-time with the outside world. Thanks to “intelligent transport systems” (ITS), the vehicle is no longer the final objective fueled by technology and infrastructure, but rather a cog of a much greater wheel, that of a global, multimodal transportation system whose goal is to optimize available resources for the benefit of the greatest number.

The notion of connected vehicle is not restricted to the automobile but encompasses all means of transport from two-wheeled vehicles, trucks, buses and trains to pedestrians, particularly when the latter have a mobile phone in hand.

Category: Connected mobility