The sky's the limit: Exploring the next dimension in mobility

"ROADS? Where we're going, we do not... need... roads!"

Cue Marty McFly and Doc Brown taking to the skies in their modified DeLorean sports car in the 80s classic Back to the Future. It would seem celluloid has been our modern-day Nostradamus in predicting the future: One only needs to watch an episode of The Jetsons or Luc Besson's The Fifth Element to realise that mankind's desire to take to the sky via mechanised means has been a source of fascination since time immemorial.

Fiction is increasingly becoming the reality when it comes to exploring disruptive modes of transportation. And none conjures childlike excitement like the thought of taking to the skies.

Advanced air mobility is a fast-developing industry that will transport people and cargo by using revolutionary new electric aircraft with vertical take-off and landing capability - effectively connecting locations currently not served or underserved by aviation. It provides a new sustainable alternative to travel which will revolutionise short journey transfers across congested cities, city hubs and enable a connection between different modes of transport. Ultimately, it ushers a new spirit of aviation not seen since the bygone era of biplanes or the first jet aircraft - and a more environmentally friendly one at that.

Every era has provided advances in mobility that have sought to provide an ease of movement for mankind to get from A to B and in turn have left an indelible mark on cities.

Our streets and squares were once the arteries of movement for our horse-drawn carriages. As cities grew and populations increased, we widened streets to create boulevards for trams and buses; or we disappeared underground into public mass rapid transport systems for the masses. And with the advent of the internal combustion engine, mankind adapted the city further to ensure that automobiles could be a more direct and rapid mode of personal transportation.

Just think: in the space of less than half a century, the traditional city of spaces and the horse-drawn carriage was superseded by the modern city of objects and the automobile. If such disruptive technologies had such a profound impact on the ground, what will happen when we augment our mobility with capabilities that reach to the sky?

ALLEVIATING THE STRAIN ON THE STREETS

The notion of vertical air mobility may be happening sooner than you think and we have already seen such futuristic visions grace these shores. Singapore is at the forefront of this exciting transport revolution, having been the "living laboratory" for electrical urban air mobility pioneer, Volocopter, and vertiport infrastructure company, Skyports, to test the world's first passenger "vertiport" in 2019. More vertiports will inevitably be planned to allow for a greater ease of movement across Singapore and beyond - tapping into its existing technology and advanced transport infrastructure with a new means of vertical transportation. This will eventually become a vital source of mobility that should enhance people's first and last mile journeys.

Arguably, the notion of vertical air mobility aligns with Singapore's future-ready drive to being a Smart Nation and a "living laboratory" for startups - especially given the government's drive for zero-energy strategies, low carbon transportation, and accelerated circular thinking for the good of the planet. It heralds a new culture in mobility and positions advanced air mobility as part of a transportation vocabulary for the 21st century. For this to take place, it requires consultants from the fields of global engineering management and development, and sustainable design, et cetera, to combine the traditional with the future-forward: that is, aviation and electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) expertise with a rigorous understanding of how cities are moving towards a "vertical urbanism".

Such aspirations may prove timely. By 2050, 75 per cent of the global population will be living in cities - putting an inextricable strain on the streets that would have once accommodated one-tenth of the population.

Inner city migration has seen our cities become increasingly reliant on the mobility infrastructure that hasn't really changed for 200 years. Compounded by climate change and the pandemic, a revolution in mobility is required to transform cities and ensure that they do not become casualties of mobility suffocation. A JP Morgan research report of May 2021 states that, by 2050, the global eVTOL market value could be worth US$9 trillion.

It could be only a couple of years before eVTOL air-taxis will be as ubiquitous as their ground-bearing cousin and as such this will undoubtedly mean revisiting our spaces within the city as alternative landing zones. Disused docks, ports and the rooftops of forgotten buildings could have a new lease of life breathed into them which in turn offers prospects for urban regeneration.

Naturally, with any new disruptive technology, there are legislative hurdles that need to be overcome. But if the past is anything to go by, mankind is tenacious enough to be able to find a path to both create and regulate for the good of civil society. Never has there been such an opportunity to apply technological ingenuity for positive urban disruption and for such benefit until now. As our team of experts with childlike curiosity and passion look to the future today, we are delighted to see Singapore as the launching pad for such innovation.

• The writer is the founder of Singapore-based Pomeroy Studio, Jason Pomeroy Architects and Pomeroy Academy.