Ford seeking mobility solutions to ease congestion

As part of its global “future mobility challenge” Ford Australia is offering $15,000 in prize-money for the best transport solution ideas over the next two months.

While Ford engineers have already come up with the idea of an electric bicycle that folds neatly into the back of a car, it wants Australians to solve the challenge of long distance travel.

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Ford wants Australians to solve the challenge of long distance travel.

“We want to know how people would use (technology) to enhance the experience of being mobile in rugged outback Australia,” said Ken Washington, a former aerospace engineer who is now the head of research and advanced engineering for Ford globally.

“We’re not prescribing the answer, we’re just posing the problem,” said Mr Washington during his first visit from the US to Ford Australia engineering headquarters in Melbourne today.

The winner will be awarded a $15,000 cash award to use to advance their idea into a prototype.

“We are driving innovation in every part of our business ... to change the way the world moves just as our founder Henry Ford did 111 years ago,” said Mr Washington.

Ford is in a race with technology giants such as Apple and Google to find mobility solutions for what it calls “mega cities” of the future.

“The future of transportation is going to be more congested, and we talk often about global gridlock,” said Mr Washington.

“Today there are 2 billion people globally in the middle class, by 2030 we expect that figure to double to 4 billion.”

Ford believes bicycles and autonomous cars will likely play a role in future mobility; more than 16 million electrically-powered bicycles are sold in China every year.

"In some circumstances it may be too difficult to be mobile in an efficient way (or) it may not be best for the environment for everyone to be on the road at the same time,” said Mr Washington, who added that Ford is now “a technology company, a mobility company as well as a car company.”

Ford says the driver may eventually become redundant and that it is experimenting with driverless golf carts, although Swedish car maker Volvo and Germany’s Volkswagen already have experimental full size cars that can park without a driver at the tap of a touchscreen on a mobile phone.

“We’re actually doing (driverless) experiments with golf carts right now,” said Mr Washington. “We’re going to see if it makes sense (to take the driver out of the car).”

Ford says driverless car systems will be ready by 2020 but the world may not be ready for the technology.

“The future as we see it is going to be informed by the pace and depth by the evolution of a broad set of technologies … and legislation,” he said.

“As we bring more autonomy into the vehicle you get to the point where you can bring the driver out of the loop.”