Mobility as a Services (MaaS) – does it have critical mass?

Cities are the powerhouses of nations. Dense concentrations of households and businesses increase accessibility and productivity, which ultimately deliver agglomeration economies. As cities grow, and globally the urban population is set to grow, cities become more spatially dispersed, and travel becomes a necessity. Left unchecked, congestion continues and this eventually dilutes the benefits of agglomeration (Graham, 2007). With urban area growth forecast to continue into the future, how can congestion be curtailed and the benefits of agglomeration maintained? Transport contributes significant negative externalities – noise, air pollution and congestion. Contemporary transport practices increasingly compromise the well-being of existing populations. Perhaps more importantly, the way we travel today is constraining and compromising the environment of generations still to come. Climate change is largely (or entirely? ) driven by human activity, and transport is hugely implicated. The transport sector in Australia, for example, accounts for 16% of Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions, with light vehicles creating the lion’s share at 10% (Climate Change Authority, 2014, p. 17). Australia’s performance may be worse than other developed countries because of the greater share of road traffic, very low share of rail freight and the relative inefficiency of the vehicles (Climate Change Authority, 2014, p. 18). The transport sectors of other nations, however, make similar negative contributions to sustainability outcomes. Most cities have moved from the predict-and-provide mentality, whereby the cycle of congestion is met by an expansion of the road network, which then fills up with extra traffic “excited” by any promise of reduced congestion. Providing new roads in most developed countries is now met with some cynicism, particularly when the motivation is to reduce congestion. The cycle of growth – congestion – dealing with congestion, is unlikely to be cured by road building for many cities. In time we will surely run out of space, if not resources, political imperative and cultural appreciations. Putting an end to the downward spiral of congestion diluting agglomeration requires new ways of thinking about access in cities. A step change in technology promises much to sponsor new transport paradigms. Whilst many argue technology is driving change, this editorial argues that technology enables change. Sometimes this is rapid, and sometimes slow, but often it is dramatic when the right technologies come together at the right time. Gao, Kaas, Moh, and Wee (2016), for example, argues that economies are changing, consumer preferences around ownership are changing (more on this below) and digitisation, increasing automation and new business models are revolutionising industries and will eventually impact on the way in which cars are used. The connections between “smart” (a term reflective of the new digital opportunities) and urban sustainability is explored in Lyons (2016). However, for the purposes of this editorial, the discussion is focussed on the way in which technology is influencing our choice of mode, and the potential impact of autonomous driving has relevance to the need for greater sustainability in our cities. One of the new buzz words in urban mobility is “Mobility as a Service” or MaaS. MaaS is put forward as a technology-enabled Mobility Management service where the customer interface and business back office are integrated. The concept of MaaS recognises the way in which