Autonomous vehicles: Developing a public health research agenda to frame the future of transportation policy

- Autonomous vehicles (AVs) will have consequences across determinants of health.
- Consideration of the public health impacts of AVs has thus far been limited.
- Defining a research agenda to examine public health impacts of AVs is necessary.
- This agenda provides a basis for public health participation in AV policymaking.

Recent advancements in autonomous vehicle technology have led to projections that fully autonomous vehicles could define the transportation network within the coming years. In preparation for this disruptive innovation in transportation technology, transportation scholars have started to assess the potential impacts of autonomous vehicles, and transportation policymakers have started to formulate policy recommendations and regulatory guidance concerning their deployment. However, there has been little analysis of the public health implications arising from the widespread adoption of fully autonomous vehicles. We examine these prospective public health impacts-both benefits and harms to individual and population health-and analyze how they can be considered in the development of transportation policy. In this manuscript, we discuss the evolving relationship between technological innovations in transportation and public health, conceptualize automated transportation as a disruptive technology necessitating a public policy response, and define a research agenda to examine the public health implications of autonomous vehicle policy, as seen through existing evidence on road casualties, environmental health, aging populations, non-communicable disease, land use, and labor markets. We conclude that such a public health research agenda would provide a basis to frame autonomous vehicle policies that best support the public's health, realize the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to ensure healthy lives and create sustainable cities, and provide a basis for public health participation in transportation policy reforms.