Smart Transportation in Small Urban and Rural Communities in California’s Central Valley

New mobility technologies and innovations, such as autonomous vehicles, electric cars, and shared mobilities, are revolutionizing the transportation industry and transforming American cities. To date, both the research and the implementation of smart transportation technologies have primarily focused on large urban and metropolitan areas. We have a limited understanding of the application and development of smart transportation technologies in small cities and rural areas. The objective of this study is to evaluate the development of smart transportation and smart city technologies in small urban and rural communities in California’s Central Valley, particularly those in the Fresno County.

Specifically, this study attempts to achieve three goals. First, we survey the state-of-the-art practices of smart transportation technologies in both large and small cities as well as in rural communities in the United States. Second, we evaluate the development of smart transportation and smart city technologies in small urban and rural communities in California’s Central Valley by conducting surveys and interviews with local experts, transportation engineers, urban planners, and policy makers. Lastly, we propose policy suggestions based on the successful experiences outside of the Central Valley and our careful evaluation of the development of smart transportation in small urban and rural communities in the Central Valley.