This project specifically seeks to study the secondary effects of AVs (not the innovation themselves but how innovations impact our lives), with a specific focus on local government fiscal impacts. The breadth of impacts are wide ranging and were outlined in a white paper (Clark, Larco, and Mann 2017) earlier this year. The proposed project will take a deeper and more detailed dive than was seen in the white paper so that the magnitude in a few categories of government service: 1) solid waste collection, 2) how to charge and manage drop-off/pick-up zones, and 3) impact on parking revenue and demand.

The outcomes of this project will provide evidence of the impact that AVs will have on these specific service areas, and will provide a foundation for future investigation across a wider-range of government services that will take place after this proposed project. The larger goal of this project, which the Small Starts grant supports, aims to provide a guide to local governments on how they will need to plan for AV adaptation. The Small Starts grant will provide the foundation for this highly demanded guide for local governments. These two initial case studies will provide a blueprint for how to proceed in other government services, giving us an opportunity to refine our technique and better understand the types of impacts to look for prior to expanding to a government-wide investigation. The case studies will initially be written up as white papers to give governments quick access to this information, and we will late produce a number of academically oriented articles to further the discussion within academia on AVs’ secondary impacts.

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