How can we facilitate the use of the various mobility services? The answer combines two concepts: mobility as a service and super apps, writes Sander Mändoja.
The debate on mobility in Estonian public space has recently focused on two politically challenging topics: the car tax and the disappearance of free public transport in the county. It is very understandable why these decisions get a lot of publicity, because personal expenses increase, but the quality of services does not improve. The bus still runs from the settlement to the city, and even when paying the car tax, Tallinn citizens have to stand in traffic jams in the morning.
From the user’s point of view, the goal is not to actually use a certain means of transport, but to reach the desired destination as quickly, economically and comfortably as possible. Therefore, when talking about the future of mobility, we should take a step back and try to formulate strategic development directions through travel planning.
Every journey begins with the need to arrive somewhere at a certain time. Based on this need, the traveler chooses the most suitable travel method. However, the prerequisite for making the best choice is access to an environment that allows you to compare different alternatives to reach your destination.
Considering current digital technology platforms, it is the simplest and most logical solution to bring together travel planning information into a personal smart device, i.e. a mobile application.
At first glance it may seem that everything is already digital: e-tickets are used in public transport, trains and ferries, while ride-sharing services are available in mobile applications. Quite comfortable and smooth, but only as long as a means of transport is used for the trip.
Traveling from Tartu Kambja county to Tallinn Nõmme involves at least three, maybe even four or five different transport services: intra-county bus line, long-distance bus line or train. Arriving in Tallinn, public transport, taxi, ride-sharing service or (scoot) bike rental. At the same time, you have to pay for different stages of such a trip in at least three different places. Not to mention the possible folding of driving programs.
How can we facilitate the use of the various mobility services? The answer combines two concepts: mobility as a service mobility as a service i.e. MaaS1) and superapp2.
In the field of mobility, the super app must allow access to all or at least most of the mobility services available in the area. Its functionality must include planning a trip, choosing the fastest and/or cheapest solution among several alternatives and easily paying for the entire trip in one place.
A mobile application that brings together many different mobility services will definitely make life easier for end users who are travelers. At the same time, such an integrated solution also supports other stakeholders in both the public and private sectors.
“Moving from a service-based model to journey-based travel planning will reduce reliance on the private car.”
Large-scale implementation of MaaS contributes to reducing car ownership in several ways. Shifting from a service-based model to journey-based travel planning reduces reliance on private cars, helps distribute passengers more evenly across the transportation network, and reduces overall traffic load and congestion.
One of the values of the digital mobility ecosystem is also the data received from users. The public sector needs detailed information on people’s travel habits, especially to keep the route network up to date at both the state and local levels.
The more accurate the data, the easier it will be to organize public transport to cover the areas where there is greatest demand. On the basis of big data it is also possible to more precisely evaluate the country’s strategic needs in expanding the transport network and directing investments.
There are already several MaaS super apps in the world: Moovit (USA, South America, Israel), Whim (Finland, Switzerland, Japan), Floya (Belgium) and others. However, it is currently unclear when a comprehensive digital ecosystem of mobility services could be used in Estonia. This is despite the fact that mobility as a service is indicated as an important development direction by the country’s long-term strategy “Estonia 2035″3.
The MAAS XT application, which is still in development4, and the news reaching the public this spring about the joint project of Tallinn and Tartu for the development of the MaaS platform, which is supported by the European Regional Development Fund5, introduce a little of optimism on the subject. However, there are still a number of issues that need to be discussed in the case of such a large-scale project: scale (both national and regional), financing, interface with the digital platform system of companies providing mobility services, etc.
Data protection related to the management of Big Data also requires a lot of attention from the point of view of company secrets. Both the private end user and the service provider need assurance that the data flows flowing through the MaaS super app are protected from third parties.
Both super apps and MaaS are part of the digital future. The question of whether such a service will come to Estonia does not begin with the question “if?”, but “when?”. All interested parties would benefit from a well-thought-out, easy-to-use and secure super app. In the long term, the application would contribute to the reduction of car use and the introduction of service-based vehicle use.
Estonia’s image as a digital country requires the introduction of innovative solutions also in the provision of mobility services. The transition from the hitherto fragmented approach to a unified ecosystem requires extensive preliminary work, which should be addressed more actively now.
2 A superapp means a mobile application that integrates various services and features, .h payments, messaging, etc. The result is a complete ecosystem that the user can access through a single application. Alipay, WeChat and Grab can be called super apps, but also Bolt apps with concessions.
2023-12-10 08:28:00
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