Richard Browning demonstrating the jet suit at Farnborough (Steve Parsons/PA)
(Picture: PA Wire)Future generations of Londoners are set to enjoy all manner of new transport to help whisk them from A to B more efficiently, and hopefully stress-free.
There’s concept hydro jet packs to zip us along the Thames to work, and even the tempting dream of being able to teleport straight into the office. But what is the art of the possible right now that will influence travel decisions in our lifetimes?
We’ve already seen the roaring jet engines strapped to the arms of inventor Richard Browning, of Gravity Industries - Britain’s real-life Iron Man.
The Leader meets Paul Campion, chief executive of Britain’s leading transport research facility, TRL, which investigates everything from driverless cars to futuristic materials, smart sensors and people’s behaviour on the road.
It’s the place where the zebra crossing was invented, and now TRL, formerly the Transport Research Laboratory, runs projects including autonomous vehicle trials at the Olympic Park and Greenwich Peninsula as part of the Smart Mobility Living Lab.
It comes as the government unveils its driverless cars roll-out plan for UK motorways by 2025.
We discuss the challenges of blending futures transport modes together, whether car AI could end road rage, and those jet packs.
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