seattle.gov logoSeattle

  • Services & Information
  • Elected Officials
  • Departments
  • Visiting Seattle
  • News
  • Back toSeattle.gov
  • Seattle.gov
    • Elected Officials
    • Services & Information
      • Animals and Pets
        • Animals and Pets 2
          • Animals and Pets3
      • Arts and Culture
      • Building and Construction
      • Business and Economic Development
      • City Administration
      • City Jobs
      • City Planning and Development
      • Court Services
      • Education, Schools and Learning
      • Environment and Sustainability
      • Grants and Funding
      • Housing, Health and Human Services
      • Neighborhood Services
      • Parks, Recreation and Attractions
      • Police, Fire and Public Safety
      • Streets, Parking and Transportation
      • Technology
      • Utilities
      • Volunteering and Participating
    • Departments
    • Boards & Commissions
    • Visiting Seattle
      • Points of Interest
    • Business in Seattle
    • Skip to main content

    News.seattle.gov

    News from the City of Seattle

    Categories

    Seattle Seeks to Shape the Future of Transportation with New Mobility Playbook

    09/06/2017

    Tech companies, social entrepreneurs, and community advocates invited to co-create policy and pilot transportation services that put people first

    SEATTLE – In an effort to guide the surge of new technology that is rapidly transforming transportation systems in cities across the world, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) launched the New Mobility Playbook on Wednesday.

    As transportation becomes increasingly shared, active, self-driving, electric, and data-driven, Seattle is planning ahead to ensure that innovation contributes to a safe, equitable, sustainable city with a transportation system that serves everyone. The New Mobility Playbook includes a set of strategies that will position Seattle to encourage and guide innovation in transportation technology, enabling our streets to grow healthy communities and vibrant public spaces.

    “Our city’s future hinges on our ability to align innovation with our values,” said SDOT Director Scott Kubly. “We want to encourage innovation, but it’s got to put people first. Self-driving cars and other technologies aren’t worth much if they’re clogging the roads or too expensive for most people. It is our hope that entrepreneurs, policy experts, and community advocates from Seattle and across the country will join in the conversation and partner with us to make cities safer, more equitable, and more sustainable places to live.”

    At the Playbook’s core are five “plays” to structure SDOT’s approach to new technologies and spur inventive and effective solutions.

    • Play 1: Ensure new mobility delivers a fair and just transportation system for all
    • Play 2: Enable safer, more active, and people-first uses of the public right-of-way
    • Play 3: Reorganize and retool SDOT to manage innovation and data
    • Play 4: Build new information and data infrastructure so new services can “plug and play”
    • Play 5: Anticipate, adapt to, and leverage innovative and disruptive transportation technologies

    In addition to specific strategies for shaping the future of transportation, the New Mobility Playbook includes a set of guiding principles, an assessment of current conditions, a preview of new mobility trends, and an evaluation of the potential upsides and downsides of new mobility.

    “Seattle shares all-too-common transportation challenges, but innovators will benefit from reading this report and understanding the city’s unique priorities and vision for the future of mobility,” said Stonly Baptiste, partner at Urban Us Ventures, a venture fund for startups that are making cities better.

    The New Mobility Playbook is online at newmobilityseattle.info. A PDF version of the playbook, along with appendices and a one-page summary, is available for download: http://bit.ly/newmobilityPDFs

    “The New Mobility Playbook is the clearest sign yet that cities finally understand they must control their connected mobility destinies,” said Greg Lindsay, Senior Fellow, Mobility at the New Cities Foundation. “Left to their own devices, new technologies, companies and services will never create a more responsive and equitable transportation system — cities play an invaluable role in guiding their development. It’s great to see Seattle DOT embracing the future and inviting entrepreneurs to work with it, on its own terms, rather than at cross-purposes.”

    SDOT is seeking to partner with entrepreneurs, advocates, and creative thinkers to plan and implement programs, pilot projects, and services that support innovation and equity in Seattle. Anyone interested in working with the city to shape the future of transportation can sign up to receive updates at www.newmobilityseattle.info/join-us. To offer feedback on the New Mobility Playbook, visitors can publish comments on specific plays and strategies, or send an email to newmobility@seattle.gov.

    Filed Under: News Release, Transportation

    Copyright © 2025 · News Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

    News.seattle.gov
    Entries (RSS)
    About Our Digital Properties
    Log in
    Title II: Americans with Disabilities Act
    Title VI: Civil Rights Act
    Privacy
    © 1995- 2025 City of Seattle