BMW engineers in China have come up with a concept design for mobility in the future – dedicated roadways for electric bikes to ease congestion in cities.
Called the Vision E3 Way, the routes consist of an elevated road that means users won’t ever be at risk from other traffic.
The flow of traffic on the road will be constantly optimised by automated video surveillance and artificial intelligence.
The concept, which has been created with experts from Shanghai’s Tongji University, will also feature an automatic speed limit to enhance safety, and allow those who don’t own an e-bike to rent one in order to use the route.
Dr Markus Seidel from the BMW Group’s technology office in China said: “The BMW Vision E3 Way opens up a whole new dimension of mobility in overcrowded conurbations – efficient, convenient and safe. It works by simply creating space for two-wheel zero-emissions traffic.
“In China, more than a billion people will be living in cities by 2050. The country will become the global incubator for numerous mobility innovations such as the BMW Vision E3 Way. After all, nowhere else is there such an urgent need for action.”
The concept design team say a system of ramps and sluices would be used to connect the E3 Way to regular roads, as well as train stations and other transport hubs and shopping malls.
The route would also be predominately covered, BMW said, offering protection from rain and sun, with captured purified rainwater then used for the cooling system and to clean the road surface at night.
The concept forms part of what BMW calls its Number One > Next strategy, which is creating various concept designs around the future of mobility, with the German car giant said to be keen to explore new technology in the process.
