Shared mobility is everywhere these days; from cities, to auto manufacturers, to transportation bodies and even autoclubs, everyone wants to be part of revolutionizing how we move around in cities.
Daimler has moved carsharing to a new level when introducing the one-way model with car2go. Uber is pushing the boundaries of an antiquated industry and gives travellers more choice. Over 600 cities worldwide have jumped on the bandwagon of bikesharing. Hitchhiking has a renaissance with services like blablacar or Hitchplanet and buses move away from station based pick up locations to a more on-demand model.
Most of these new services weren’t even fathomable a decade ago. Advances in GPS tracking, telematics and wireless technology have made it possible to connect cars, bikes, trains and buses with a population that is constantly on their smartphones. Just like in most industries, technology is eliminating the middlemen and puts consumer in control. Technology has given us an abundance of mobility choices and very few are interconnected. Not only do we have to register with every single system, download their app or carry their RFID cards in our wallets. We also have unlimited opportunities to make choices. Good or bad ones.
I personally don’t really want to decide in the morning how to get to the office looking at ten different mobility apps. Technology was supposed to make my life simpler and free up time for decision-making that impacts my live in more profound ways. The next big thing in shared mobility is to build systems based on anticipatory design. One platform where I enter my data and preferences; for instance that I’m an active person or how much mobility budget I have per month. The system then will show me the best option for that morning. And free my mind to enjoy my morning coffee!
