Exploring the Feasibility of Mobility as a Service in Small Urban and Rural Communities: Lessons from a Case Study

Abstract

Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is a concept that provides individualized choices for multimodal shared trips and has been extended with growing applications in large cities and metropolitan areas around the world. However, it is challenging to implement MaaS in small urban and rural areas that cover the vast majority of the land area in the US that have different user characteristics and availability of public transportation services. Using the state of Wisconsin as an example, this study aims to identify critical issues affecting the implementation of MaaS from both the demand side and the supply side as well as proposing strategies for these identified issues. An advisory committee of eight members representing Wisconsin agencies and organizations was employed to gain insights into problems and issues associated with the implementation of MaaS in small towns and rural areas in Wisconsin. Three advisory committee meetings were held to assist the research team in (1) background analysis, which explores sociodemographic, economic, and technological changes in Wisconsin (phase I), (2) problem identification, which defines the MaaS concept and conducts a feasibility analysis from policy and planning to implementation issues (phase II), and (3) strategy development, which develops potential strategies responding to the problems identified in phase II (phase III). Critical issues in small urban and rural communities include an aging population, lack of public transport travel experience, limited smartphone service availability, municipal boundaries, funding issues, staff availability, limited capacity, and technical capabilities. Corresponding to these critical issues, response strategies include collaboration between stakeholders, tailored service packages, user interface design, and pilot projects. The research findings could provide implications for other local governments, transportation service providers, and MaaS integrators in the country to develop MaaS schemes in small urban and rural communities.