Open Access Journal Article

Advanced Air Mobility, Economic Impacts, and Equity Considerations

by Robert M. McNab a,* orcid
a
Department of Economics, Strome College of Business, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
JEA  2024, 61; 3(2), 61; https://doi.org/10.58567/jea03020009
Received: 27 July 2023 / Accepted: 31 August 2023 / Published Online: 15 June 2024
View Full-Text
Download PDF

Abstract

Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) may, in the coming decades, result in tens of thousands of new jobs and billions of dollars in additional economic activity. While much of the discussion surrounding AAM focuses on the technical aspects of the nascent industry, estimates of the potential economic impact vary significantly. Much less attention has been paid in the literature to potential externalities, positive and negative, and how these externalities may impact estimates of economic impact. We argue that much work remains to be done before policy advisors and decisions makers can formulate and implement strategies based on the projections of future economic impact of AAM.

Keywords: Air mobility; transport; economic impact; equity; unmanned systems;
Copyright: © 2024 by McNab. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) (Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

Share and Cite

ACS Style
McNab, R. M. Advanced Air Mobility, Economic Impacts, and Equity Considerations. Journal of Economic Analysis, 2024, 3, 61. https://doi.org/10.58567/jea03020009
AMA Style
McNab R M. Advanced Air Mobility, Economic Impacts, and Equity Considerations. Journal of Economic Analysis; 2024, 3(2):61. https://doi.org/10.58567/jea03020009
Chicago/Turabian Style
McNab, Robert M. 2024. "Advanced Air Mobility, Economic Impacts, and Equity Considerations" Journal of Economic Analysis 3, no.2:61. https://doi.org/10.58567/jea03020009
APA style
McNab, R. M. (2024). Advanced Air Mobility, Economic Impacts, and Equity Considerations. Journal of Economic Analysis, 3(2), 61. https://doi.org/10.58567/jea03020009

Article Metrics

Article Access Statistics

References

  1. Al Haddad, C., Chaniotakis, E., Straubinger, A., Plötner, K., & Antoniou, C. (2020). Factors affecting the adoption and use of urban air mobility. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 132, 696–712. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tra.2019.12.020
  2. Archibugi, D., & Filippetti, A. (2015). Knowledge as global public good. In The Handbook of Global Science, Technology, and Innovation (pp. 477–503). John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118739044.ch23
  3. Arrow, K. J. (1962). The Economic Implications of Learning by Doing. The Review of Economic Studies, 29(3), 155–173. https://doi.org/10.2307/2295952
  4. Badami, M. G. (2005). Transport and Urban Air Pollution in India. Environmental Management, 36(2), 195–204. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-004-0106-x
  5. Balać, M., Vetrella, A. R., Rothfeld, R., & Schmid, B. (2019). Demand estimation for aerial vehicles in urban settings. IEEE Intelligent Transportation Systems Magazine, 11(3), 105–116. https://doi.org/10.1109/MITS.2019.2919500
  6. Bardhan, P. (2002). Decentralization of Governance and Development. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 16(4), 185–205. https://doi.org/10.1257/089533002320951037
  7. Bardhan, P. (2006). The economist’s approach to the problem of corruption. World Development, 34(2), 341–348. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2005.03.011
  8. Bauranov, A., & Rakas, J. (2021). Designing airspace for urban air mobility: A review of concepts and approaches. Progress in Aerospace Sciences, 125, 100726. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paerosci.2021.100726
  9. Bielawski, R., Rządkowski, W., & Perz, R. (2018). Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in the protection of the elements of a country’s critical infrastructure – selected directions of development. Security and Defence Quarterly, 22(5), 3–19. https://doi.org/10.5604/01.3001.0012.6422
  10. Brown, J. R., Morris, E. A., & Taylor, B. D. (2009). Planning for Cars in Cities: Planners, Engineers, and Freeways in the 20th Century. Journal of the American Planning Association, 75(2), 161–177. https://doi.org/10.1080/01944360802640016
  11. Camporeale, R., Caggiani, L., Fonzone, A., & Ottomanelli, M. (2017). Quantifying the impacts of horizontal and vertical equity in transit route planning. Transportation Planning and Technology, 40(1), 28–44. https://doi.org/10.1080/03081060.2016.1238569
  12. Cohen, A., Guan, J., Beamer, M., Dittoe, R., & Mokhtarimousavi, S. (2020). Reimagining the Future of Transportation with Personal Flight. https://escholarship.org/content/qt9hs209r2/qt9hs209r2.pdf
  13. Crompton, J. L. (2006). Economic Impact Studies: Instruments for Political Shenanigans? Journal of Travel Research, 45(1), 67–82. https://doi.org/10.1177/0047287506288870
  14. Del Rosario, R., Davis, T., Dyment, M., Cohen, K., Crown Consulting, Inc., Nexa Capital Partners LLC, & University of Cincinnati. (2021). Infrastructure To Support Advanced Autonomous Aircraft Technologies in Ohio: Economic Impact Report for Advanced Autonomous Aircraft Technologies in Ohio (FHWA/OH-2021-18). https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/58749
  15. Deloitte Consulting. (2022). National Aerospace Research and Technology Park: New Jersey AAM Strategic Roadmap. National Aerospace Research and Technology Park. https://www.nartp.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/NARTP-Advanced-Air-Mobility-Strategy.pdf
  16. Demetillo, M. A. G., Navarro, A., Knowles, K. K., Fields, K. P., Geddes, J. A., Nowlan, C. R., Janz, S. J., Judd, L. M., Al-Saadi, J., Sun, K., McDonald, B. C., Diskin, G. S., & Pusede, S. E. (2020). Observing Nitrogen Dioxide Air Pollution Inequality Using High-Spatial-Resolution Remote Sensing Measurements in Houston, Texas. Environmental Science & Technology, 54(16), 9882–9895. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.0c01864
  17. Elmenhorst, E.-M., Griefahn, B., Rolny, V., & Basner, M. (2019). Comparing the Effects of Road, Railway, and Aircraft Noise on Sleep: Exposure–Response Relationships from Pooled Data of Three Laboratory Studies. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(6), Article 6. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16061073
  18. Feng, K., Davis, S. J., Sun, L., & Hubacek, K. (2015). Drivers of the US CO2 emissions 1997–2013. Nature Communications, 6(1), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms8714
  19. Fu, M., Rothfeld, R., & Antoniou, C. (2019). Exploring Preferences for Transportation Modes in an Urban Air Mobility Environment: Munich Case Study. Transportation Research Record, 2673(10), 427–442. https://doi.org/10.1177/0361198119843858
  20. Garrow, L. A., German, B., Schwab, N. T., Patterson, M. D., Mendonca, N., Gawdiak, Y. O., & Murphy, J. R. (2022). A Proposed Taxonomy for Advanced Air Mobility. In AIAA AVIATION 2022 Forum. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2022-3321
  21. Gatling, P. (2022, February 23). Arkansas wants to be global leader in next-generation transportation by 2030—Talk Business & Politics. Talkbusiness.Net. https://talkbusiness.net/2022/02/arkansas-wants-to-be-global-leader-in-next-generation-transportation-by-2030/
  22. Geister, D., & Korn, B. (2018, September). Density based Management Concept for Urban Air Traffic. 37th AIAA/IEEE Digital Avionics Systems Conference (DASC) 2018, London. https://elib.dlr.de/123156/
  23. Gilderbloom, J. H., Meares, W. L., & Squires, G. D. (2020). Pollution, place, and premature death: Evidence from a mid-sized city. Local Environment, 25(6), 419–432. https://doi.org/10.1080/13549839.2020.1754776
  24. Goyal, R., Reiche, C., Fernando, C., & Cohen, A. (2022). Advanced Air Mobility: Demand Analysis and Market Potential of the Airport Shuttle and Air Taxi Markets. Sustainability, 13(13), Article 13. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13137421
  25. Goyal, R., Reiche, C., Fernando, C., Serrao, J., Kimmel, S., Cohen, A., & Shaheen, S. (2018). Urban Air Mobility (UAM) Market Study (HQ-E-DAA-TN65181). https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20190001472
  26. Grineski, S., Bolin, B., & Boone, C. (2007). Criteria Air Pollution and Marginalized Populations: Environmental Inequity in Metropolitan Phoenix, Arizona*. Social Science Quarterly, 88(2), 535–554. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6237.2007.00470.x
  27. Hall, B. H., & Lerner, J. (2010). Chapter 14—The Financing of R&D and Innovation. In B. H. Hall & N. Rosenberg (Eds.), Handbook of the Economics of Innovation (Vol. 1, pp. 609–639). North-Holland. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-7218(10)01014-2
  28. Ham, Y., Han, K. K., Lin, J. J., & Golparvar-Fard, M. (2016). Visual monitoring of civil infrastructure systems via camera-equipped Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs): A review of related works. Visualization in Engineering, 4(1), 1. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40327-015-0029-z
  29. Henrickson, J. V., Rogers, C., Lu, H.-H., Valasek, J., & Shi, Y. (2016). Infrastructure assessment with small unmanned aircraft systems. 2016 International Conference on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (ICUAS), 933–942. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICUAS.2016.7502652
  30. Hill, B. P., DeCarme, D., Metcalfe, M., Griffin, C., Wiggins, S., Metts, C., Bastedo, B., Patterson, M. D., & Mendonca, N. L. (2020). UAM Vision Concept of Operations (ConOps) UAM Maturity Level (UML) 4. https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20205011091
  31. Hörcher, D., & Tirachini, A. (2021). A review of public transport economics. Economics of Transportation, 25, 100196. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecotra.2021.100196
  32. Houston, D., Wu, J., Ong, P., & Winer, A. (2004). Structural Disparities of Urban Traffic in Southern California: Implications for Vehicle-Related Air Pollution Exposure in Minority and High-Poverty Neighborhoods. Journal of Urban Affairs, 26(5), 565–592. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0735-2166.2004.00215.x
  33. Karma, S., Zorba, E., Pallis, G. C., Statheropoulos, G., Balta, I., Mikedi, K., Vamvakari, J., Pappa, A., Chalaris, M., Xanthopoulos, G., & Statheropoulos, M. (2015). Use of unmanned vehicles in search and rescue operations in forest fires: Advantages and limitations observed in a field trial. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 13, 307–312. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijdrr.2015.07.009
  34. Karner, A. (2016). Planning for transportation equity in small regions: Towards meaningful performance assessment. Transport Policy, 52, 46–54. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tranpol.2016.07.004
  35. Karner, A., London, J., Rowangould, D., & Manaugh, K. (2020). From Transportation Equity to Transportation Justice: Within, Through, and Beyond the State. Journal of Planning Literature, 35(4), 440–459. https://doi.org/10.1177/0885412220927691
  36. Larsson, J., Elofsson, A., Sterner, T., & Åkerman, J. (2019). International and national climate policies for aviation: A review. Climate Policy, 19(6), 787–799. https://doi.org/10.1080/14693062.2018.1562871
  37. Lenihan, H. (1999). An Evaluation of a Regional Development Agency’s Grants in Terms of Deadweight and Displacement. Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy, 17(3), 303–318. https://doi.org/10.1068/c170303
  38. Lewis, E. O., MacKenzie, D., & Kaminsky, J. (2021). Exploring equity: How equity norms have been applied implicitly and explicitly in transportation research and practice. Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 9, 100332. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trip.2021.100332
  39. Lin, Y., & Saripalli, S. (2017). Sampling-Based Path Planning for UAV Collision Avoidance. IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems, 18(11), 3179–3192. https://doi.org/10.1109/TITS.2017.2673778
  40. Lindsey, R., Tikoudis, I., & Hassett, K. (2023). Distributional effects of urban transport policies to discourage car use: A literature review. OECD. https://doi.org/10.1787/8bf57103-en
  41. Litman, T. (1996). Using Road Pricing Revenue: Economic Efficiency and Equity Considerations. Transportation Research Record, 1558(1), 24–28. https://doi.org/10.1177/0361198196155800104
  42. McDaniel, P. R., & Repetti, J. R. (1992). Horizontal and Vertical Equity: The Musgrave/Kaplow Exchange Commentary. Florida Tax Review, 1(10), 607–622.
  43. Mendonca, N., Murphy, J., Patterson, M. D., Alexander, R., Juarex, G., & Harper, C. (2022). Advanced Air Mobility Vertiport Considerations: A List and Overview. In AIAA AVIATION 2022 Forum. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2022-4073
  44. Millimet, D. L. (2013). Environmental Federalism: A Survey of the Empirical Literature Symposium: Property and Environment Research Center (PERC)/Law and Economics Center (LEC) Workshop on Environmental Federalism. Case Western Reserve Law Review, 64(4), 1669–1758.
  45. Monk, K., Rorie, R. C., Keeler, J., & Sadler, G. (2020). An Examination of Two Non-Cooperative Detect and Avoid Well Clear Definitions. AIAA Aviation 2020 Forum. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2020-3263
  46. Morgan Stanley Research. (2019). Flying Cars: Investment Implications of Autonomous Urban Air Mobility. https://www.morganstanley.com/ideas/autonomous-aircraft
  47. Morgan Stanley Research. (2021). eVTOL/Urban Air Mobility TAM Update: A Slow Take-Off, But Sky’s the Limit.
  48. Mouratidis, K., Peters, S., & van Wee, B. (2021). Transportation technologies, sharing economy, and teleactivities: Implications for built environment and travel. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 92, 102716. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trd.2021.102716
  49. Musgrave, R. A. (1990). Horizontal equity, once more. National Tax Journal, 43(2), 113–122. https://doi.org/10.1086/NTJ41788830
  50. Oates, W. E. (2004). An Essay on Fiscal Federalism. In Environmental Policy and Fiscal Federalism (pp. 384–414). Edward Elgar Publishing. https://www.elgaronline.com/display/book/9781035305100/book-part-9781035305100-33.xml
  51. Oklahoma Center for Advancement of Science & Technology. (2022). Governors Stitt, Hutchinson Partner to Create Super Region for Advanced Mobility in the Heartland. https://oklahoma.gov/ocast/about-ocast/news/governors-stitt--hutchinson-partner-to-create-super-region-for-a.html
  52. Orlic, E., Radicic, D., & Balavac, M. (2019). R&D and innovation policy in the Western Balkans: Are there additionality effects? Science and Public Policy, 46(6), 876–894. https://doi.org/10.1093/scipol/scz036
  53. Peeta, S., Paz, A., & DeLaurentis, D. (2008). Stated preference analysis of a new very light jet based on-demand air service. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 42(4), 629–645. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tra.2008.01.021
  54. Pepper, C. B., Nascarella, M. A., & Kendall, R. J. (2003). A Review of the Effects of Aircraft Noise on Wildlife and Humans, Current Control Mechanisms, and the Need for Further Study. Environmental Management, 32(4), 418–432. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-003-3024-4
  55. Ploetner, K. O., Al Haddad, C., Antoniou, C., Frank, F., Fu, M., Kabel, S., Llorca, C., Moeckel, R., Moreno, A. T., Pukhova, A., Rothfeld, R., Shamiyeh, M., Straubinger, A., Wagner, H., & Zhang, Q. (2020). Long-term application potential of urban air mobility complementing public transport: An upper Bavaria example. CEAS Aeronautical Journal, 11(4), 991–1007. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13272-020-00468-5
  56. Podagrosi, A., & Vojnovic, I. (2008). Tearing Down Freedmen’s Town and African American Displacement in Houston: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Urban Revival. Urban Geography, 29(4), 371–401. https://doi.org/10.2747/0272-3638.29.4.371
  57. Potoski, M. (2001). Clean Air Federalism: Do States Race to the Bottom? Public Administration Review, 61(3), 335–343. https://doi.org/10.1111/0033-3352.00034
  58. Prowse, M., & Snilstveit, B. (2010). Impact evaluation and interventions to address climate change: A scoping study. Journal of Development Effectiveness, 2(2), 228–262. https://doi.org/10.1080/19439341003786729
  59. Pukhova, A., Llorca, C., Moreno, A., Staves, C., Zhang, Q., & Moeckel, R. (2021). Flying taxis revived: Can Urban air mobility reduce road congestion? Journal of Urban Mobility, 1, 100002. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.urbmob.2021.100002
  60. Rimjha, M., Hotle, S., Trani, A., & Hinze, N. (2021). Commuter demand estimation and feasibility assessment for Urban Air Mobility in Northern California. Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 148, 506–524. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tra.2021.03.020
  61. Roll, J., McNeil, N., & Oregon Department of Transportation. Research Section. (2021). Understanding Pedestrian Injuries and Social Equity (FHWA-OR-RD-22-05, Project SPR 841). https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/60304
  62. Scheible, J., Funk, M., Pucihar, K. C., Kljun, M., Lochrie, M., Egglestone, P., & Skrlj, P. (2017). Using Drones for Art and Exergaming. IEEE Pervasive Computing, 16(1), 48–56. https://doi.org/10.1109/MPRV.2017.4
  63. Schmidt, F. P., Herzog, J., Schnorbus, B., Ostad, M. A., Lasetzki, L., Hahad, O., Schäfers, G., Gori, T., Sørensen, M., Daiber, A., & Münzel, T. (2021). The impact of aircraft noise on vascular and cardiac function in relation to noise event number: A randomized trial. Cardiovascular Research, 117(5), 1382–1390. https://doi.org/10.1093/cvr/cvaa204
  64. Senior, G., & Danson, M. (1998). Liam and Noel in Balloch: An Economic Impact Assessment. Tourism Economics, 4(3), 265–277. https://doi.org/10.1177/135481669800400305
  65. Shaheen, S., Cohen, A., & Farrar, E. (2018). The Potential Societal Barriers of Urban Air Mobility (UAM). https://doi.org/10.7922/G28C9TFR
  66. Shirmohammadli, A., Louen, C., & Vallée, D. (2016). Exploring mobility equity in a society undergoing changes in travel behavior: A case study of Aachen, Germany. Transport Policy, 46, 32–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tranpol.2015.11.006
  67. Stöcker, C., Bennett, R., Koeva, M., Nex, F., & Zevenbergen, J. (2022). Scaling up UAVs for land administration: Towards the plateau of productivity. Land Use Policy, 114, 105930. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2021.105930
  68. Sun, X., Wandelt, S., Husemann, M., & Stumpf, E. (2021). Operational Considerations regarding On-Demand Air Mobility: A Literature Review and Research Challenges. Journal of Advanced Transportation, 2021, e3591034. https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/3591034
  69. Taylor, B. D., Morris, E. A., & Brown, J. R. (2023). The Drive for Dollars: How Fiscal Politics Shaped Urban Freeways and Transformed American Cities. Oxford University Press.
  70. Tuchen, S., LaFrance-Linden, D., Hanley, B., Lu, J., McGovern, S., & Litvack-Winkler, M. (2022). Urban Air Mobility (UAM) and Total Mobility Innovation Framework and Analysis Case Study: Boston Area Digital Twin and Economic Analysis. 2022 IEEE/AIAA 41st Digital Avionics Systems Conference (DASC), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1109/DASC55683.2022.9925865
  71. Ubina, N. A., & Cheng, S.-C. (2022). A Review of Unmanned System Technologies with Its Application to Aquaculture Farm Monitoring and Management. Drones, 6(1), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.3390/drones6010012
  72. van Wee, B., & Mouter, N. (2021). Chapter Five—Evaluating transport equity. In N. Mouter (Ed.), Advances in Transport Policy and Planning (Vol. 7, pp. 103–126). Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.atpp.2020.08.002
  73. Vascik, P. D., & Hansman, R. J. (2018, June 25). Scaling Constraints for Urban Air Mobility Operations: Air Traffic Control, Ground Infrastructure, and Noise. 2018 Aviation Technology, Integration, and Operations Conference. 2018 Aviation Technology, Integration, and Operations Conference, Atlanta, Georgia. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2018-3849
  74. Vascik, Parker D. & Hansman, R. John. (2017). Constraint Identification in On-Demand Mobility for Aviation through an Exploratory Case Study of Los Angeles | AIAA AVIATION Forum. 17th AIAA Aviation Technology, Integration, and Operations Conference. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2017-3083
  75. Verlinghieri, E., & Schwanen, T. (2020). Transport and mobility justice: Evolving discussions. Journal of Transport Geography, 87, 102798. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2020.102798
  76. Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation. (2023). Virginia’s Advanced Air Mobility Future: AAM’s Economic Benefit for the Commonwealth.
  77. Yu, X., & Zhang, Y. (2015). Sense and avoid technologies with applications to unmanned aircraft systems: Review and prospects. Progress in Aerospace Sciences, 74, 152–166. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paerosci.2015.01.001
  78. Yuan, F., Wei, Y. D., & Xiao, W. (2019). Land marketization, fiscal decentralization, and the dynamics of urban land prices in transitional China. Land Use Policy, 89, 104208. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2019.104208
  79. Zhao, P., Post, J., Wu, Z., Du, W., & Zhang, Y. (2022). Environmental impact analysis of on-demand urban air mobility: A case study of the Tampa Bay Area. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 110, 103438. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trd.2022.103438