Mobility as a service and sustainable travel behaviour: monitoring and evaluation

A mode shift towards more sustainable transport alternatives and the reduction of private car usage in cities are critical to achieve one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, 'Sustainable Cities and Communities'. Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is a new concept that has the potential to shift individuals’ travel behaviour towards more sustainable modes of transport as it provides a personalised journey planning and payment across various forms of transport in a convenient and compelling way. Most recently, a multi-city MaaS app has been developed for the Solent region as part of the Solent Future Transport Zone MaaS project, funded by the UK Department for Transport, to make journeys easier, smarter, and greener. The app allows users to plan, book and pay for sustainable journeys via a smartphone across the Solent region including Southampton, Portsmouth, South Hampshire and Isle of Wight. In this research study, we propose a travel behaviour change monitoring and evaluation approach which comprises the determination of the sustainability indicators, data collection, quantitative and qualitative analysis. The proposed approach aims to collect travel behaviour data using revealed preference surveys and focus groups and analyse the change in travel behaviour caused by the MaaS and its impact on the sustainability dimensions namely economic, social and environmental. The analysis of the data collected through the Solent MaaS app will be demonstrated to enable practitioners, policy-makers, and local authorities to understand the potential impact of the MaaS on individuals’ travel behaviour in a car-dependent region.