How might we turn commuting
into a positive experience?
into a positive experience?
THE CONTEXT
Ethnographic research shows that the well-being of workers is constantly put to the test by stressing and tiring commuting routines: the shorter, the better. Among the options available, driving has proven to be the one with the most experiential advantages allowing for flexibility and comfort, more freedom and privacy, and finally some extra social distance during the pandemic. But owning a car is perceived by many as a luxury and driving commuters still have to face exasperating issues like parking and traffic. On top of that, emerging trends highlight the tendency of some big companies to move away from cities as well as the will of workers to also do so since the rise of smart working practices for the typical office employee: can workers really stand a longer bad commute?
THE PROBLEM
A productive and fulfilling working day has to start with the good commute that the current unreliable infrastructure is not providing: different means of transportation are getting workers from A to B without considering the overall experience and its negative and long-lasting side effects.
THE BIG IDEA
In the close-future autonomous vehicles will reach the market and workers will be able to choose them as the go-to means of transportation and to integrate AV-related services in their morning routine to finally get to work in the best conditions possible.
Case-study video
CONCLUSION
Concept cars are just scratching the surface of what it will really mean to have autonomous vehicles around. MIGO stands as an example of the possible future of transportation: not just a sophisticated machine to move around but a fully integrated system that prioritizes its users’ physical, emotional and mental well-being. Given its flexibility and adaptability to the users’ preferences and needs it can be scaled from a limited group of early adopters, like big companies and the upper working class, to potentially include everyone.
REFERENCES
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Spary, S., 2020. Busy Day Ahead? Eat Breakfast Before You Open Those Emails. [online] Adweek.com. Available here
Wei, M., 2015. Commuting: "The Stress That Doesn't Pay". [online] Psychology Today. Available here