Sustainable Urban Air Mobility and Intelligent Transport Systems
A special issue of Urban Science (ISSN 2413-8851). This special issue belongs to the section "Urban Mobility and Transportation".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2026 | Viewed by 25
Special Issue Editors
Interests: sustainability; urban air mobility; innovation; electric mobility-as-a-service; future intelligent transportation; artificial intelligence; machine learning; transition theory; product service system
Interests: cybersecurity; responsible AI; AI/ML use cases; wireless communications; Internet of Things/CPS
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Cities are entering a new era of mobility, where emerging technologies and digital intelligence are reshaping how people and goods move. Consequently, this Special Issue explores the role of urban intelligent transport systems (ITSs) in guiding this shift towards cleaner, safer, and more resilient future transport. A particular focus is placed on how ITSs enable the integration of eVTOL aircraft into existing urban transport networks, ensuring that future aerial services complement ground mobility rather than competing against it.
Beyond UAM, this Special Issue welcomes research on autonomous and connected vehicles, electric mobility as a service (eMaaS), and new product–service system (PSS) mobility models. We are especially interested in work that shows how AI-driven traffic management, digital twin technologies, real-time analytics, and V2X/V2A communication can deliver more reliable, efficient, and user-centred mobility systems. To support a holistic understanding of sustainability, studies that apply life cycle assessment (LCA), resource circularity, or carbon impact modelling to these emerging mobility systems are also encouraged.
We invite interdisciplinary contributions that bridge transport engineering, urban planning, behavioural science, management, data science, and sustainability studies. Of particular value are studies that show how ITSs can support innovation ecosystems, guide socio-technical transitions, and ensure that the rise of future transportation innovations, especially eVTOL and autonomous systems, occurs in a socially inclusive and environmentally responsible way.
Key themes may include, but are not limited to, the following topics:
- ITS architectures for eVTOL and autonomous vehicles, including air–ground multimodal coordination;
- AI, digital twins, data analytics, and LCA in future mobility planning and operations;
- Innovation and the PSS and eMaaS business models within ITS-enabled ecosystems;
- User and stakeholder acceptance, behavioural insights, and equity issues;
- Governance, standards, interoperability, and ecosystem collaboration;
- Decarbonisation, renewable energy integration, and climate-resilient transport infrastructures;
- ITS as a driver of sustainable urban development and long-term mobility transitions;
We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Dr. Tiansheng Yang
Dr. Rajkumar Singh Rathore
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Urban Science is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- urban intelligent transport systems
- eVTOL and autonomous vehicles
- smart cities and urban innovation
- Mobility as a Service (MaaS) and e-MaaS
- LCA
- sustainability transitions
- innovation ecosystems
- green transportation and decarbonisation
- public acceptance and behavioural insights
- artificial intelligence and digital twins
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