Team Reconfigure Mobility: A network that makes traffic sustainable

Team Reconfigure Mobility wants to create a network of experts who will solve the challenges of sustainable mobility. The aim is to facilitate cross-disciplinary research and link it with business and society, says team leader Mikko Särelä.

“In our modern urban world, the transportation of people and goods is indispensable. However, the increasing use of cars, ships, planes and public transport creates enormous threats to our environment, health and safety. We need to figure out more sustainable ways of moving.

We want to establish a joint nexus of excellence, where experts from different disciplines can get together: a network that connects researchers, companies and organizations interested in sustainable transport, such as robot cars and autopilot ships. We also want to develop a mobility-as-a-service concept that helps individuals to choose the best and most sustainable ways of transportation, for example.

Instead of one or two projects that will solve mobility issues, we want to develop something permanent: A Nexus of Excellence for Sustainable Mobility (NoE). The network is based in the Helsinki region but we aim to disseminate the lessons learned from our experiments and pilots globally. We are versatile, future-oriented and human-centered. Our team consists of experts in the fields of mobility-as-a-service, service engineering and management, urban transport systems, and humanitarian logistics.

The idea of participating in Helsinki Challenge came from the realization that there are already a number of different teams working on a sustainable mobility challenge – why not bring them all together? Moreover, since Finland is already a forerunner in the mobility-as-a-service concept, we would like to develop it further both in scientific and practical discourses.”

1. Why can your team make the world a better and more sustainable place?

Traffic and transport are significant causes of greenhouse gases. Our team has all the know-how to change these into sustainable mobility services.

2. If you could work with anyone in the world, who would it be?

Elon Musk has the drive to create change. He also understands how to run a mobility business.

3. What is the best thing science and research has achieved so far?

Our Western society. Without science and research, the democratic constitutional state would not exist.

 

 

Team members:

Dr. Mikko Särelä, team leader, project manager, Living+ Platform, Aalto University

Lauri Saviranta, doctoral candidate, Mobility-as-a-Service, Aalto University

Risto Rajala, professor, Aalto University

Tuuli Mattelmäki, professor, Service Design, Aalto University

Milos Mladenovic, professor, Urban Transport Systems, Aalto University

Gyöngyi Kovacs, Erkko Professor in Humanitarian Logistics, Hanken School of Economics

Toni Männistö, post-doc researcher, Supply Chain Security and Safety, Aalto University

Helena Sustar, post-doc researcher, Service Design, (Aalto ARTS), Aalto University

Minchul Sohn, doctoral candidate, Humanitarian Logistics, Hanken School of Economics

Oskari Nokso-Koivisto, project manager, Economics, Aalto University