Hard to believe we’re in the final stretch of 2017 already. Earlier, we asked experts from various fields what the biggest transit trend will be for this year. So how are faring now? See what some of the original contributors had to say.
PREDICTION: Mobility as a Service (MaaS) will Become the Norm
“Seven months is an eye-blink in public agency time so I’m not discouraged that my prediction hasn’t come to full fruition yet. But LA Metro is proceeding with a microtransit pilot, Seattle DOT is poised to unveil a “new mobility” playbook, and the Finnish startup, MaaS Global, just raised 14 million euros from Toyota and Transdev to launch service in the UK and Amsterdam. When a company like Ford Motor is talking about partnering with cities to create a “transportation operating system” something is definitely happening. But will it happen fast enough?”
— Greg Lindsay, senior fellow, New Cities Foundation
PREDICTION: Zero Cost and Zero Emission will be the Future of Public Transit
“It’s still early, but we’ve already seen one transit agency roll-out zero-cost, zero-emission transit in Park City, Utah. Electricity costs will only continue to decrease with renewable energy. Meanwhile, pollution and congestion continue to be growing problems. Los Angeles just committed to 100 percent EV by 2030 — every municipality will be grappling with this decision in the coming years. I just hope they do the math and realize how easy the decision can be.”
– Brook Porter, partner in Green Growth Fund (GGF), Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB)
PREDICTION: Advanced Technologies will Reshape Public Transit
“In late 2017, the Federal Transit Administration began to launch their 11 Mobility on Demand (MOD) Sandbox pilots in an effort to assist public transit integrate with private mobility services, document best practices, and measure the impacts of MOD on travelers and transportation systems. The Transportation Sustainability Research Center (TSRC) at UC Berkeley and Booz Allen Hamilton are excited to evaluate these pilots to better understand how MOD is reshaping public transport delivery and their potential to enhance accessibility.”
– Susan Shaheen, adjunct professor of civil and environmental engineering, UC Berkeley
PREDICTION: Real-Time Technology will become a Necessity for Passengers
“Real time apps and access to last mile solutions are becoming more prevalent in the industry. What the industry needs now is software that will allow riders to view the location of their vehicle and watch it in real time on their app as it gets closer to them – just like on UBER. This visceral approach to customer service will appeal and encourage millennials to take public transit.”
– Paul Comfort, former CEO at Maryland Transit Administration (MTA), Current VP of Business Development at Trapeze Group
Needless to say, 2017 may have been flying by and the industry is making great strides, slowly making the trends a reality. But that’s not all, we have seven more experts weighing in and evaluating the trends they mentioned late last year. View them all on the Trapeze Group blog.
