MaaS (Mobility as a Service) market futures explored

Abstract

The term Mobility as a Service (MaaS) refers to a seamless, single interface, fully integrated and customised transport service. Whilst the technological barriers to implementing MaaS are steadily being overcome, less is known about how the MaaS eco-system might evolve. This paper unpicks the MaaS concept in light of broader societal trends to suggest how it could evolve and offers insights for practitioners and policy makers. The paper draws on relevant literature, together with discussions with stakeholders, to better understand how MaaS has emerged. It then constructs four future MaaS market scenarios and identifies implications. It is concluded that current expectations of how the MaaS concept may evolve are limited in their understanding of how the transport system could change should MaaS be adopted on a wide scale. The major challenges for policy makers will likely relate to balancing the promised benefits offered with issues such as safety (including bio-safety in our post Covid-19 world), data security and privacy, equity and the threat of dominant suppliers distorting the marketplace. Together, these insights suggest that the MaaS reality may be messy and difficult to manage, and that future transport systems might look very different to now.