The vision for Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is to offer a seamless and integrated user experience that combines all transport services and providers under a single transport platform – allowing users to seamlessly plan, book, and pay for their trips.
This single platform approach is proven to deliver powerful and intelligent MaaS applications for users but to achieve it requires careful considerations around the travel experience, technology infrastructure, integration of features, capabilities and services. In contrast, a modular approach is focused on delivering services with a specific purpose in mind – simplifying service design and deployment.
The most recent evolution in MaaS is a new approach known as Mobility as a Feature (MaaF). This concept was introduced by David Hensher – Professor and Founding Director, Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies at the University of Sydney.
The idea behind MaaF is to make mobility solutions more accessible and convenient for users by shifting towards a ‘service-delivery-paradigm’, whereby mobility and non-mobility (e.g. commerce or events) services can perform and communicate effectively in one application.
As Australia’s mobility journey evolves, governments and business need to consider whether MaaF can provide a more efficient route to achieving Sustainable Development Goals, including emission reduction, and deliver smarter forms of mobility.
Evolution of MaaS
The origins of MaaS can be traced back to the early 2000s when the first car-sharing services emerged in Europe and North America. Since then, the concept has gained momentum with a growing number of companies and cities developing large-scale MaaS platforms and services.
Today in Australia, MaaS systems and applications are commonly deployed as temporary pilot projects or with a focus on a specific mode of transport to achieve a particular objective. These systems can be characterised as standalone – with little or no integration with other applications.
Examples include Transport for NSW’s digital Opal card trial, Queensland’s ODIN PASS trial, and Intelematics’ trial with Merri-bek Council, in partnership with Lug + Carrie, which allowed users to plan safer bike journeys using the ridePlan app – a feature of the Omniway MaaS platform.
Challenges of MaaS adoption
Trials in Australia have demonstrated the power of MaaS to influence behaviour and encourage more active forms of transport, but to make the leap from supporting select groups of users to larger populations – across entire cities or states – requires long-term commitment and investment.
Another barrier is the fact that Australian cities and regions are diverse in both infrastructure and landscape. Each city faces unique challenges – meaning there is no one-solution-fits-all approach. Similarly, the requirements of governments and businesses are disparate and dependent on the stakeholders and audiences they are targeting at any one time.
Alongside these challenges is the ongoing fragmentation in user experience, caused by the availability and production of new travel and mobility applications. Many established brands are also securing long-term loyalty – ultimately creating an uneven playing field for new applications servicing similar needs.
Moving towards Mobility as a Feature (MaaF)
MaaF refers to the integration of transportation services into applications or commerce sites, as a value-added feature.
The move towards MaaF is gaining traction in Australia. Companies such as Uber Eats have integrated ride-hailing to provide customers with an easy way to order food and arrange transportation at the same time. This allows customers to order a ride home after their meal without needing to switch applications.
Another example is the integration of micromobility services in journey apps. Companies such as Lime have partnered with Google Maps to provide real-time information about eScooter availability and locations.
Taking a modular approach
The successful deployment of MaaF requires a modular approach – meaning new features need to be designed to meet a specific need and in a manner that allows them to be seamlessly integrated into other applications.
This is the approach we have taken at Intelematics from day one. Our Omniway platform is a modularised MaaS solution that is built as a series of modules (or micro-services) with each module serving a specific purpose or function. This allows seamless feature integration into existing apps and the incorporation of third-party features.
RACV’s recent launch of an integrated fuel finder feature within the AREVO application is another good example. This feature was designed by Intelematics to help users save money by providing regularly updated, specific fuel pricing from retailers across Victoria. More details on the feature can be found here.
A modular approach also allows for greater flexibility and scalability in both design and deployment. Due to the modular design, all parts of the system can scale up, be modified, or even be completely removed as needed, without affecting performance.
To meet Australia’s unique transport requirements, Omniway incorporates a range of private vehicle features with the objective of making driving ‘greener’. The arevo app equips drivers with the fastest routes to their destination, whilst integrating parking and fuel. Live traffic updates inform drivers, whilst decreasing congestion in busy areas. These features can complement non-mobility services, for example a shopping centre may integrate MaaF to improve the end-to-end shopping experience, or an events company may integrate MaaF to help attendees find the best transport options for their event.
Partnering for success
A key advantage of MaaF is that it enables the faster development, deployment and integration of new services and features. But key considerations, such as how to seamlessly integrate these features, need to be accounted for in planning, design and development. This includes the use of deep linking, data layering and developing strategic partnerships with the companies whose stand to benefit most from these features.
When integrating MaaF into non-mobility solutions, the end user needs to be well understood to ensure the mobility features are incorporated in a way to enhance the user experience. This makes finding the right partner in mobility crucial.
Intelematics is well positioned to do this given its 20+ years’ experience delivering mobility solutions to meet the differing needs of governments, vehicle manufacturers, transport service providers and auto clubs.
With continued investment in this area, MaaF has the potential to transform the transportation landscape in Australia, but to deliver on this promise, will require specialists like Intelematics to ensure integration is seamless and firmly focused on the ‘value-add’ for the end user.
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