I strongly believe that public transport can help solve many of the burning problems facing our towns and cities today and in the future. This is a theme I discussed on a PwC podcast published to mark the launch of its 22nd Annual Global CEO Survey.
According to research, 80% of Europe’s population will live in an urban area by 2050. This will put additional pressure on existing public transport networks in towns and megacities, as well as new mobility challenges in rural and semi-rural areas.
For many people, car ownership is seen as a necessity rather than a choice. Yet relying on the private car to meet our mobility challenges will result in more gridlocked roads and poorer air quality.
Traditional public transport will remain the backbone of strategies to move substantial numbers of people to and around urban areas. New and technology-enabled shared mobility solutions will undoubtedly have an important role to play but as a supplement to, rather than a replacement for, traditional public transport.
Technology enabled demand-responsive transport is set to bring flexible transport options. These services will, in turn, link up to transport hubs where passengers can seamlessly change onto more traditional public transport to continue their journey.
ArrivaClick in Sittingbourne is proving an exciting test bed for this approach. In what is a relatively rural area, ArrivaClick has created new connections between the railway station, local business park and surrounding areas.
Research shows that just over half of those journeys on ArrivaClick were previously made using a private car or taxi, demonstrating the success of the model.
I am convinced of the need for operators, technology providers and governments to work together to make public transport an attractive and realistic alternative to private car ownership. That means continuing to invest in traditional public transport networks as well as embracing new mobility options.
Via LinkedIn: Manfred Rudhart, CEO Arriva Group
