Populus Releases Report on Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) and the Role of Cities

Populus released a new report for cities and private operators on mobility-as-a-service (MaaS) and mobility management. Over the past several years, private fleet operators of shared mobility services such as Uber and Lyft have raced to integrate and bundle transportation solutions alongside stand-alone MaaS journey planning mobile applications.

The fundamental concept of a holistic MaaS solution is to enable citizens to plan, book, and pay for all of their transportation options—all through one convenient solution that may include mobility ‘subscriptions’. The commonly espoused objectives of MaaS are to reduce personal vehicle ownership, curb transportation climate impacts, and expand equitable and accessible transportation. However, it has become increasingly clear that in order to achieve these societal benefits, public agencies will need to play a central role.

This industry-leading report includes an overview of the current state of MaaS technology, different approaches to deliver MaaS by public agencies and private companies, and the role of ‘mobility management’ to enable the key outcomes desired by cities. Public agencies will need to embrace mobility management strategies that help them evaluate mobility impacts, design data-driven policies, and deploy pricing and incentives.