Thread by @DavidZipper, Fall seems to be the season for Mobility-as-a-Service panels and debates.Speaking at [...]

Fall seems to be the season for Mobility-as-a-Service panels and debates.

Speaking at several has led me to reflect on my own MaaS journey, summarized in the

below (w/article links).

TLDR: Despite great promise and hype, very few people use MaaS today. We need new models.

Fall seems to be the season for Mobility-as-a-Service panels and debates.Speaking at several has led me to reflect on my own MaaS journey, summarized in the below (w/article links).TLDR: Despite great promise and hype, very few people use MaaS today. We need new models.

2/ I first learned about MaaS ~5 years ago. It offered a captivating vision: Leverage new technology to knit together trips on transit, bikeshare, carshare, scooters etc to improve cities and reduce private driving.

I was fascinated and wanted to learn more.

3/ 2 years ago I heard a top US transportation guru cite Helsinki as the future of urban mobility “because everyone there uses Whim, a MaaS app, to get around town.”

I then met several Finns who disagreed. That led to this article, my first about MaaS. https://www.citylab.com/perspective/2018/10/helsinkis-maas-app-whim-is-it-really-mobilitys-great-hope/573841/

Is Helsinki's MaaS App, Whim, the Future?

The transport app Whim is oft-cited as a model for the future of urban mobility. Two years post-launch, has it changed the way people move around Helsinki?

https://www.citylab.com/perspective/2018/10/helsinkis-maas-app-whim-is-it-really-mobilitys-great-hope/573841/

4/ Neutral startup platforms weren’t the only ones promoting MaaS at the time.

Uber’s CEO said he wanted to be the “Amazon of transportation.”

That struck me as dangerous. I wrote this article warning about what I call “mobility walled gardens.” https://www.fastcompany.com/90261748/why-uber-and-lyft-want-to-create-walled-gardens-and-why-its-bad-for-urban-mobility

Why Uber and Lyft want to create walled gardens–and why it’s bad for urban mobility

As ride-hailing apps begin to control scooters and bike shares, they’re making it harder for people to make the best decisions about how to move around their cities.

https://www.fastcompany.com/90261748/why-uber-and-lyft-want-to-create-walled-gardens-and-why-its-bad-for-urban-mobility

5/ The deeper I got into MaaS, the more I realized that *any* MaaS solution-- good or bad-- relies on government to improve transit, protect micromobility users, and price auto use higher.

But policy isn't as flashy as a slick MaaS app. So I wrote this. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-13/going-car-free-will-take-more-than-mobility-apps

Technology Isn't Enough to Lure Drivers Away From Their Cars

“Mobility as a Service” boosters say that technology can nudge drivers to adopt transit and micromobility. But big mode shifts will take more than a cool app.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-13/going-car-free-will-take-more-than-mobility-apps

6/ Meanwhile I've been looking for an example of a MaaS platform that sparked mode shift, but I haven't found one.

A few transit agencies launched their own MaaS app (like Berlin’s Jelbi), but I don't see evidence of widespread use with those either.

7/ Finally, I pulled my ideas together and wrote this @CityLab article about thorny tensions within the MaaS B2C business model.

Other MaaS approaches might work—like B2B or a solution for car owners—but the hype of 5 years ago hasn’t panned out. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-08-05/the-struggle-to-make-mobility-as-a-service-make-money

The Problem With ‘Mobility as a Service’

Startups, transit agencies and policymakers are eager for “MaaS” apps that let travelers choose multiple modes — and give up private cars. But revenue has been elusive.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-08-05/the-struggle-to-make-mobility-as-a-service-make-money

8/ That @citylab piece drew a slew of responses, many of them smart and entertaining rebuttals. A few of note:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/trending-maas-piia-karjalainen/
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/maas-beer-stijn-vernaillen/
https://whimapp.com/maas-is-like-a-heavy-metal-band/
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/boyd-cohen-ph-d-211869a_maas-activity-6696858551253647360-HaT3/

9/ I’m still searching for evidence MaaS can meet its hype. But I’m not sure how, unless brave public officials lift transit + micromobility and suppress driving.

A city like Mayor Hidalgo's Paris could be a MaaS hotbed —*if* MaaS biz models work. https://www.forbes.com/sites/carltonreid/2020/10/20/paris-mayor-anne-hidalgo-to-make-good-on-pledge-to-remove-half-of-citys-car-parking-spaces/#754f3eb716ec

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo To Make Good On Pledge To Remove Half Of City’s Car Parking Spaces

Before she was reelected in June, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo pledged to make more space on the streets of her adopted city for pedestrians and cyclists by removing car parking spaces.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/carltonreid/2020/10/20/paris-mayor-anne-hidalgo-to-make-good-on-pledge-to-remove-half-of-citys-car-parking-spaces/#754f3eb716ec

10/ For more info, the OECD’s @ITF_Forum has an intriguing new report of MaaS: https://www.itf-oecd.org/pricing-and-efficient-public-transport-supply-mobility-service-context

To be clear, I want car-light cities to thrive. I just don’t see evidence (yet) that MaaS will get us there.

Want to tell me why I’m wrong? Have data to share? I'm all ears.

You can follow @DavidZipper.

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