Arlington to Host Forum on Autonomous Vehicles 11/14

Written by

Amanda Linehan
Communications Manager
Metropolitan Area Planning Council
617-933-0705
[email protected]

For Immediate Release: Wednesday, November 1, 2017

Arlington to Host Forum on Autonomous Vehicles 11/14

ARLINGTON – Join the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) and the Town of Arlington for a special forum on autonomous vehicles and the future of this technology in the region.

The educational forum will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 14 from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the Arlington Town Hall auditorium, 730 Massachusetts Ave. in Arlington. It is free and open to the public.

The Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) is the regional planning agency serving 101 cities and towns in Greater Boston. MAPC is helping municipalities around the region to plan for the effects of autonomous vehicle technology and the opportunities and challenges it presents to infrastructure, land use, and public funding.

Presenters include:

  • Scott Smith from the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, who will offer an overview of what autonomous vehicles are and the expected timing and availability of this technology, as well as the role of the federal government in rolling them out;
  • Eric Bourassa from the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, who will outline the potential impacts of autonomous vehicles on public infrastructure and land use;
  • Rafael Mares from the Conservation Law Foundation, who will present on the ways autonomous vehicles may influence public revenue sources, including impacts to the state budget, municipal finances, the future of the gas tax, and roadway usage fees.
  • And Arlington town officials, who will be present to provide a welcome and introduction.

There will be time for Q&A following the presentations.

For more information, visit www.mapc.org or contact MAPC Senior Transportation Planner and Emerging Technologies Specialist Alison Felix at [email protected] or 617-933-0742.