The Scottish Government has committed £2m to testing mobility as a service (MaaS), as part of its 2018-19 programme. “This concept has the potential to transform the way we use transport,” it said, “making public and shared transport options as desirable as owning our own car”.
Models being developed include using personal smart devices, such as phones and watches, to receive personalised travel information, ticketing and payment for transport “all through one portal incorporating all modes”.
The Government added: “We want to facilitate growth and innovation in this area, building on strengths and skills already in Scotland.” The funding will be available from next year and will complement existing work on smart ticketing.
It said it will also encourage and support the “research, development, demonstration, and deployment” of driverless cars.
The Government will be hosting a summit to explore how Scotland can best capitalise on the opportunities and benefits of technology in transport.
“The Scottish Government’s commitment to a MaaS delivery fund is a truly wonderful result and testament to all the hard work from everyone involved in MaaS Scotland, as we have gathered momentum and built the largest Mobility as a Service cluster in Europe,” said a spokesperson for Technology Scotland.
“MaaS Scotland [a joint venture between Technology Scotland and ScotlandIS] aims to be the champion of future mobility in Scotland, leading the conversation and highlighting the social, environmental and economic benefits of MaaS to key stakeholders, and securing Scotland’s future as one of the leading locations in the world for Intelligent mobility.”
At the launch of MaaS Scotland earlier this year, Polly Purvis, chief executive of ScotlandIS, said: “Building intelligent and coordinated public transport networks will be key in addressing society’s mobility needs in the years ahead.”