MaaS could lead to ‘unintended negative consequences’, say UK politicians

Mobility as a Service (MaaS) could lead to ‘unintended negative consequences’, according to influential figures in the UK parliament. The House of Commons Transport Committee’s report on MaaS suggested that increased road congestion and poorer air quality – as well as ‘social and digital exclusion’ – could be the unwanted outcomes of the widespread adoption of MaaS schemes. “Early research and piloting of MaaS should focus not only on maximising the potential benefits but also on mitigating potential
February 11, 2019 Read time: 2 mins
Mobility as a Service (8356 MaaS) could lead to ‘unintended negative consequences’, according to influential figures in the UK parliament.


The House of Commons Transport Committee’s report on MaaS suggested that increased road congestion and poorer air quality – as well as ‘social and digital exclusion’ – could be the unwanted outcomes of the widespread adoption of MaaS schemes.

“Early research and piloting of MaaS should focus not only on maximising the potential benefits but also on mitigating potential negative effects that could arise,” the MPs on the committee said in their report.

They added: “MaaS should be tested under as wide a variety of conditions as possible if those in local and central government considering MaaS or who are responsible for designing policies and commissioning schemes are to understand and avoid these potentially costly unintended consequences.”

The report also calls on the UK 1837 Department for Transport (DfT) to become “a more active participant in shaping the evolution of MaaS”, rather than observing as private companies and local authorities make the running.

The DfT should “help to support a much more varied ‘test and learn’ approach to the implementation of MaaS”, it adds, collecting data on a diverse range of MaaS projects and “sharing best practice between local and regional authorities and MaaS platform providers”.

The government should also examine “what steps it needs to take to ensure there is fair market competition and that users’ financial interests are protected”.
Paul Campion, CEO of 7800 Transport Systems Catapult, told MPs: “We are at a critical point at the moment. It is not too late to do the right thing, but the longer we leave it, the more private companies will try to monopolise, because that is how they work.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • The long road to Spanish enlightenment
    October 22, 2018
    Julián Núñez, immediate past president of ASECAP, gets his teeth into the vision of a European strategy for toll roads. David Arminas reports from Madrid. Getting European politicians to agree to a long-term cross-border highway infrastructure programme for toll roads is extremely difficult. It’s a bit like pulling teeth: people want to avoid the pain. But pain is something that Spanish operators, including Abertis, OHL, ACS, FCC and Acciona, have been going through for the past decade. The country has
    Read More
  • Road death toll increasing in poor countries, says WHO report
    February 20, 2019
    The latest figures from the World Health Organisation on road deaths make sobering reading – but they are particularly shocking when you consider how the relative poverty of countries contributes to high fatality rates, says Adam Hill Around 1.35 million people died on the world’s roads in 2016, while road traffic injuries are now the leading cause of death among young people, according to new statistics from the World Health Organisation (WHO). Perhaps the most sobering point from its latest research
    Read More
  • Karhoo says London faces decline in taxis and private hire vehicles
    December 13, 2018
    Ride-hailing platform Karhoo says that the number of taxis and private hire (PH) vehicles in London is set to decline as demographic and financial pressures bite. Taxis can be hailed in the street while PH vehicles can only be booked in advance, but both are struggling, Karhoo says in its submission to the Greater London Authority (GLA)’s investigation into the sector. The headline figures of a large increase in PH numbers in London - and claims of this being the cause of congestion - have obscured
    Read More
  • Mobility pricing offers new tools for managing mobility
    November 23, 2017
    Mobility pricing is the best way of sustaining and enhancing mobility, argues Moving Forward Consulting’s Josef Czako. Mobility pricing (MP) is effectively the culmination of the ‘user pays’ principle and has been referred to in many policy discussions about electronic toll collection, road user charging (RUC), and pricing. MP not only reflects the ‘use more, pay more’ nature of RUC, it also takes account of the external cost of journeys including pollution, noise, the cost of congestion and accidents.
    Read More

Highlighted Content