Smart mobility systems and their attendant infrastructure are designed and built with connectivity at the heart of the process. Unfortunately, this means that the growing sophistication of cyber attackers’ methods makes a successful hack of public transport networks a deadlier and more plausible prospect. At the same time, emerging smart mobility systems need to counter current transport network threats, such as natural disasters, flooding, collisions, mechanical failure, traffic control system failures and threats to public safety caused by overcrowding.

In the event of a major cyber attack or conventional crisis, transport operations will be impacted, damaging revenue levels while inconveniencing or even endangering public end users. Given that smart mobility solutions are an emerging form of technology, any reputational losses caused by such incidents will be disproportionately severe. Public buy-in and trust in these systems will be essential if they are going to be accepted and successfully integrated into our lives. Safety breaches of smart mobility systems also carry an added complication of potentially impacting the regulatory landscape that is still evolving around these technologies.