ZF technology brings mobility
We bring you up to speed
The demand for mobility is increasing everywhere in the world. The statistics clearly demonstrate this. According to the most recent detailed statistical mobility survey carried out in 2002, Germans make around 300 million trips each day, covering a total of 3 billion passenger kilometers. 60% of these trips are covered in the car. Journeys to work or school account for only about 30% of the total number of daily trips. Yet the average travel speed by car - considered over the distance from door to door - is amazingly low. In 2002, it was an average 30 km/h. So a society gets ready to roll – and then ends up in a jam. And the environmentalists and climate protection lobby demand less rather than more mobility from each individual.
Mobility research is investigating the causes
This is the point at which mobility research is applied. It takes two fundamental directions. Firstly is the sociological perspective, looking into what moves people – in the truest sense of the word. The other approach is the interdisciplinary development of transport innovations, aiming towards intelligent utilization and environmentally compatible use of resources. The BMW Group maintains its own independent Institute for Mobility Research (ifmo) in Berlin, focusing on cross-platform mobility research - by no means favoring individual mobility by car. The aim of ifmo is to stimulate debate and underpin it with facts. An example of its studies is into the causes of mobility.
More information at http://www.ifmo.de
Mobility means taking part in social life
Several years ago, the press reported that at least 50% of road traffic in Germany was occasioned by leisure and vacation activities, and suggested that a good deal of all car journeys were superfluous. However, a household survey conducted on a local level, showed that a large proportion of these private journeys are used by people to maintain their social contacts and networks. Friends and relations are visited and information exchanged. Other journeys are made for voluntary services and political activities, or club activities on the regional level. Care of relatives also accounts for a proportion of such travel. In other words, those factors that make up social life and social responsibility are largely based on mobility. This has corresponding social consequences for the future, as mobility generally becomes more and more expensive, while real income tends to fall.
ZF helps enable more mobility
Whether in public transport, helping promote social life, or goods transport, contributing to the growth of the economy, mobility is globally important. As an automotive industry supplier, ZF helps maintain mobility - and make it safer, more convenient, more economical and environment friendly with the latest generation of driveline and chassis technology.
