The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded an interdisciplinary team of UMass Amherst researchers a $2 million, four-year grant to study the societal impacts of automated commercial motor vehicles (ACMVs). The UMass study will help inform debates over whether automation will lead to a deskilling of work and widening of societal inequalities, or rather present new opportunities for reskilling and open the profession to traditionally excluded populations.
Led by Professor Shannon Roberts, PhD, from the UMass Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering within the College of Engineering, this study combines the expertise of faculty from engineering, computer science, and the social sciences. The project is divided into three overlapping thrusts that reflect the diverse interests and specialties of the lead researchers.
Professor Henry Renski, PhD, from the UMass Department of Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning (LARP) within the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences will head the thrust focused on skills, licensing, and training, specifically in regards to the trucking industry.
Trucking of the future will require a new set of skills and abilities. To help understand this future, Renski's thrust will develop a model of occupational transformation that combines data on the skill and task content of long-haul trucking, coupled with first-hand observations of how truckers interact with new driving assistance technologies. The team’s goal is to improve the effectiveness of training programs and regulatory policies to help make these technological changes less disruptive to the people and places most likely to be displaced. Furthermore, Renski hopes that the work on this grant will be foundational to establishing LARP as a knowledge center for understanding the impacts of technological changes on the social and built environment.
Visit UMass News to read more about the study!
Photo: Henry Renski, PhD, is the Director of the Master of Regional Planning (MRP) program at UMass LARP.