Robotaxis and the most contested real estate in cities: the curb
Thu, Oct 01
|Open Forum Discussion on Zoom + Menti
URF is hosting this interactive panel discussion to explore the challenges and opportunities inherent in managing the infrastructure to support mobility innovations like Robotaxis and Public-area Mobile Robots.
Time & Location
Oct 01, 2026, 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. EDT
Open Forum Discussion on Zoom + Menti
About the event
Register on Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/rxt7SbNXQFu-4JllxCA4Ag
As autonomous passenger vehicles transition from pilot projects to everyday urban transportation in multiple U.S. cities, the primary challenge is shifting from driving competence to curb governance. When a driverless vehicle stops to pick up and drop off passengers or to stage for its next fare, it ceases to behave as a mere road vehicle and becomes a public-area mobile robot interacting with first-responders, public transportation vehicles, pedestrians, and cyclists.
Following from Chapter 5 of the Urban Robotics Foundation's whitepaper, Robots in Public: Building the Governance Framework for Shared Human-Robot Spaces (https://www.urbanroboticsfoundation.org/2026-whitepaper-robots-in-public), this panel explores the complexities when robotaxis stop at the curb.
Join our expert panel as we explore the physical, regulatory, and technical complications cities face at the curb. We'll discuss how municipalities, robotaxi operators, and standards bodies can build a cohesive governance framework and collaborate to mitigate risks and maximize the benefits of these…