Drones and air taxis will create new means of mobility and transport routes.
Drones will be used for surveillance, delivery and in the construction sector as it moves towards automation.
The introduction of these aerial craft into cities will require the built environment to change dramatically.
Drones and other new aerial vehicles will require landing pads, charging points, and drone ports.
They could usher in new styles of building, and lead to more sustainable design.
My researchexplores the impact of aerial vehicles on urban design, mapping out possible future trajectories.
An aerial age
Already, civilian drones can vary widely in size and complexity.
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Drones normally used in agriculture havesprayed disinfectantover cities.
In the UK, drone delivery trials are taking place to carry medical items to theIsle of Wight.
Travelling in vertical takeoff and landing craft (VTOL) could become commonplace in the future.
Now, though, these flying vehicles are reality.
A number of companies are developingeVTOLwith electric multi-rotor jets, and a wholenew motorsportis being established around them.
These aircraft have the potential to change our cities.
However, they need to be tested extensively in urban airspace.
New cities
The widespread adoption of drones and VTOL will lead to new architecture and infrastructure.
Anumber of companiesare already trialling dronedelivery services.
The architect Saul Ajuria Fernandez has developed a design for adelivery drone port hub.
This drone port acts like a beehive where drones recharge and collect parcels for distribution.
Drones may also help the urban environment become more sustainable.
Researchers at theUniversity of Stuttgarthave developed a re-configurable architectural roof canopy system deployed by drones.
Demand for air taxis and personal flying vehicles will develop where failures in other transport systems take place.
We are at a critical period in urban history, faced byclimatic breakdownand pandemic.
Drones and aerial vehicles can be part of a profound rethink of the urban environment.
