Delivered by Staffordshire County Council, Amey, the Connected Places Catapult and Keele University, SIMULATE Live Labs is the UK’s first accelerator programme to support SMEs developing mobility and air quality solutions with an opportunity to live-trial on the highway network.

1. Enabling SME access takes place in stages

We haven't yet fully unlocked the potential power of the SME marketplace within the highways industry, whether that's data or hardware solutions. But the creation of platforms such as SIMULATE is a good first step, proving how capable SMEs are, when given the right platform to develop and showcase their innovation. The industry would benefit from having these people involved more regularly.

2. Improving social mobility and air quality

Part of the SIMULATE Live Labs remit was to help improve air quality, by improving the ability to remove some of the tailpipe associated emissions, so NOx, carbon, PM2.5 and PM10 were the main areas of focus. By improving the mobility structure, we could improve air quality, but we also wanted to improve social mobility in rural counties.

3. Trial data can present surprises

Rolling out an e-scooter mobility trial within the county probably had the greatest impact, reducing the most CO2 from the highway and having the highest number of participants. We developed an understanding of how to create an e-scooter network within a rural county and the impact that can have, how existing cycle paths can be utilised, how they function on rural roads and how to find safe corridors.

The age range of users was particularly interesting. It wasn't just 16-25s: the oldest users were in their 80s and the 40-plus group accounted for over 50% of the use. That was a really impressive statistic that surprised me.

Another SME success was a living green wall developed by Biotecture. Placed as a barrier to remove pollutants from a highway outside a primary school, the results, both from a social value point of view and the removal of pollutants, were really impressive.

4. Shared goals must be coordinated properly

Working in partnership throughout the programme enabled very small SMEs to get help with anything from future marketing to understanding technical expertise. Connected Places Catapult led the SME development. Amey provided the programme management and facilitation and Staffordshire County Council led the integration of solutions into their network. Amey, within Staffordshire County Council, already delivers highway maintenance and design, so we’re a natural partner in this field and take a collaborative approach to our work with them.

However, the impact would not have been as great without the different partners, including cross industry partners such as academia, providers, the local authority and the SMEs. To make real change, you need to have everyone involved, be able to coordinate properly and have the ability to scale the successful solutions.

5. Thinking global, acting local

We had SME involvement from Australia and Finland but for a follow-up or similar project, I'd be interested in extending the scouting reach to make sure we're not replicating things that have already been done elsewhere but that wouldn't necessarily be on our radar.

SIMULATE Live Lab Programme is shortlisted for a CIHT Collaboration award - read the case study and attend CIHT’s Annual Awards Ceremony on 7 September to learn from the sector’s top initiatives and achievements in 2022.

Jake Harrison was in conversation with Craig Thomas.

SIMULATE Live Lab Programme is shortlisted for a CIHT Collaboration award - read the case study and attend CIHT’s Annual Awards Ceremony on 7 September to learn from the sector’s top initiatives and achievements in 2022.