Podcast: Stay Safe; Stay Connected: Transportation During The COVID-19 Crisis

By Ed Bernardon

It’s probably safe to say that one feeling we can all relate to as we navigate through this pandemic is one of uncertainty. In addition to thinking about our own individual lives, we’re also wondering what our governments are doing to adjust, and what changes they’re making to prepare for the future. Join Ed Bernardon, host of The Future Car Podcast as we navigate this “new normal” and how it is permanently restructuring our cities, and transportation is at the very center of those changes. We’re increasingly aware of our personal health and safety when we venture out into this brave new world, so what does that mean for how we get from A to B?

In today’s episode, we’re talking about how critical transportation will prove to be in a more safety-centric world, and how that requires a multi-organizational approach to planning for the future. Everything is connected, and this pandemic has brought the relationship between transportation, safety and hygiene to the forefront.

Our guest today is Finch Fulton, the U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy. Before joining the DOT, Mr. Fulton worked on Capitol Hill under Jim McCreary (R-La), John Flemming (R-La), and former Senator Jeff Sessions (R-Al). He graduated with an MBA from Johns Hopkins University.

Discussion Outline:
• How do we use roads in a crisis? (2:06)
• Why transportation is critical to our supply chain and who the real heroes are (4:38)
• What are companies doing in response to the pandemic? (8:12)
• How the DOT gets involved to make it easier to deploy new technologies (11:44)
• How can we reach a level of hygiene on public transportation to make people feel safe? (12:49)
• How government mandates can delay progress. (14:54)
• How to best describe new technologies to regulators in the federal government. (17:22)
• Why it’s important to communicate across sectors when introducing new technology. (19:34)
• How is design taken into consideration for those with disabilities? (21:49)

Connect with Finch Fulton:

Connect with Eddie Bernardon your Host on Linkedin

The Future Car Podcast

Transportation plays a big part in our everyday life and with autonomous and electric cars, micro-mobility and air taxis to name a few, mobility is changing at a rate never before seen. On the Siemens Future Car Podcast we interview industry leaders creating our transportation future to inform our listeners in an entertaining way about the evolving mobility landscape and the people that are helping us realize it. Guests range from C-Level OEM executives, mobility startup founders/CEO’s, pioneers in AI law, Formula 1 drivers and engineers, Smart Cities architects, government regulators and many more. Tune in to learn what will be in your mobility future.

With Ed Bernardon

With Conor Peick

See more of the The Future Car Podcast.