Cubic pushes greater role of public transit authorities in driving MaaS

Public transit agencies must start playing a central role in shaping the direction of Mobility as a Service (8356 MaaS) solutions, driving the implementation effort and acting as coordinators of future endeavours, according to 378 Cubic Transportation Systems' (CTS’) report presented in Washington DC. The document, authored by the company's president Matt Cole, aims to help clients, partners and the transit industry revisit their assumptions about MaaS and encourage an open discussion about public transit as the backbone of the concept.

Called MaaS: Putting Transit Front and Center of the Conversation, the white paper was launched at the American Public Transportation Association Legislative Conference and was delivered to the MobilityManagement Committee.

Additionally, the inquiry discusses trends taking place on the urban, technological and social layers that make Maas applicable to the current transportation landscape and drive the discussion about the need for MaaS solutions forward. The report goes on to define ten objectives for a responsible, people-centred and socially inclusive MaaS that points to a crucial role that public transit agencies must play. CTS' paper also explores challenges that MaaS players need to overcome such as improving integration, encouraging responsible, secure data sharing, solving issues related to ownership of the customer and finding a common language of agreeing on the right economic and pricing model. It also covers the role that local authorities and governments should play in the overall MaaS picture and what responsibilities should remain in the hands of local authorities and what should be outsourced to third parties.

Cole, said: “Today, the definition of MaaS remains ambiguous. The early adopters of MaaS were almost exclusively private mobility providers and so the industry has come to consider MaaS a private sector initiative. With public transit at its heart, MaaS can bring many benefits to cities, communities and transit agencies.”

A full copy of the report is available %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external here false https://www.cubic.com/sites/default/files/Maas_Final_Whitepaper.pdf false false%>.