The advent of smart cities is unlocking new technologies as a way of responding to urban and societal challenges.

Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is at the core of the development of smart cities by providing a sustainable path forward in relation to smarter travel and mobility, as well as reaching net zero carbon emissions.

MaaS Technology in Smart Cities

There is a growing consensus that we need to reduce private car usage and harness the benefits of alternative shared transport solutions. MaaS travel options via buses present themselves as the most viable, and tangible, first step to incorporating MaaS in a widespread matter.

 

A study in the International Journal of Transportation found that “it is necessary to induce personal car users to use public transportation by improving personal mobility through MaaS in smart cities”.

“By doing so, modal share of public transportation will increase and use of personal cars will decrease. Due to these reasons, MaaS takes a great role for smart cities”.

Our transport systems underpin our lives and those of our descendants and it is critical that technology is able to remain relevant in its pursuit of sustainability. Therefore, MaaS services are increasingly migrating to the required technological advancement needed to develop smart cities.

Passenger information systems and integration platforms such as Bounce’s companion app will remove cumbersome, fragmented elements of the transport process.

Importantly, the app transforms the process of getting from point A to point B without hassle. This link is an electronic tool that focuses on travel updates, by giving, at any time, visual and acoustic information to passengers en route and soon-to-be on route. This is a practice dubbed as imperative by a report in MarketsandMarkets.

The technology used in MaaS is largely considered as fit-for-purpose in a ‘smart city’.

Asset tracking solutions can be implemented to provide passenger tracking with ‘be-in’ and ‘be-out’ options in the transportation system. Bluetooth beacons are posted at bus stations and at the end user mobile application in order to calculate the end-to-end trip for the passenger.

This ensures that MaaS technology meets the standards of an imminent shift to smart city designs around the world, while also providing ultimate flexibility, adaptability and dependability when travelling to and from the CBD for work.

“Start you day using Bounce as your zero emission transport service,” Bounce Mobility Director Robert Hayden said.

Hayden says he looks forward to “all customers playing a part of the future” by jumping on board Bounce towards a path of sustainable travel.

RELATED: Let Bounce be your emission-free corporate travel partner

Advancements are always occurring in this space, ensuring MaaS can continue its viability through further shifts in sustainability requirements – whether that be by way of infrastructure, environment or technology.

Such an advancement includes the ‘The Smart MaaS‘, a project funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. It was funded as part of the “Smart Service World” funding program, which is a movement focusing on the development of public transport in smart cities.

The ‘Smart MaaS’ incorporated the domain-neutral FIWARE infrastructures, which is increasingly viewed as the international standard for open source middleware in smart city applications.

MaaS Environmental goals

The extra component to the smart cities challenge is developing new virtuous transport systems and infrastructure within the prism of required sustainability and environmental solutions.

Transport options of the future will need to reduce carbon footprints, cut pollution and improve air quality.

 

A report from the European Commission indicates that urban travel accounts for 40% of all Co2 road emissions.

Bounce’s fleet of buses are entirely carbon emission-free.