Exploring preferences in the Netherlands for MaaS mobility packages, as a transportation alternative for short-distance trips: A Stated Preference Experiment

Abstract

Cities of the Netherlands are the driving forces to develop and encompass a cluster of markets that boost productivity. In recent times, cities have tended to demonstrate the rapid transformation, more spatially dispersed and growing in demand for transportation. Reasonably, all the trips done intra-city are short-distance trips (i.e. trips less than 10km) accounting for approximately 30% of a person’s total trips per month.To make these short-distance trips for various trip purposes, the majority of the Dutch people prefer using their private cars or private bike. Thus, over the years, the usage of private transportation in the Netherlands has increased leading to an upsurge in roadway congestion and lack of parking space. The observations from the literature suggest that more than 50% of car usage for different trip purposes are non-essential and could be shifted to ‘other modes’. Further, short-distance mobility poses as a core challenge for sustainable mobility, accounting for 60% of emissions in the city.Therefore, there is a need for sustainable transportation and this could be achieved by providing Mobility as a Service (in short MaaS) which could be defined as “A service attributed to integrate various forms of transport services into a solo mobility service, accessible on demand”It is a novel approach to service bundling enabled technology that facilitates the usage of multiple means for travel. It has recently attracted more interest and it is observed that the notion of MaaS tends to be linked to the context of multi-modal transportation. However, it is still unknown regarding the true influence of MaaS for unimodal (i.e. short-distance) trips, spurring a clear gap in the available literature on MaaS. Hence, the main research question for the study is formulated as follows“What is the preference of Dutch people, regarding MaaS mobility package as a transportation alternative (to status-quo mobility pattern), for carrying out short-distance trips?”To achieve the goal, a web-based survey is carried out and there were 3 choice experiments. The survey had two parts. The first part consisted a stated preference (SP) experiment, while the second part collected information for a wide range of socio-economic variables and attitudinal questions. The survey was sent out to Dutch people via email (in the Netherlands) and about 555 respondents filled out the survey substantially. The data of respondents who spent 15 minutes to complete the survey were considered (remaining were considered as outliers) for further analysis because the survey was lengthy.To deepen the knowledge, the final dataset is then used for estimating consumer utility by applying a multinomial logit model, nested logit, and mixed logit model. The knowledge from the final mixed logit model is further applied to get insight into different latent classes and the probable share of MaaS class by applying the latent class model. The results on the attributes’ influence on the choice were mostly consistent and of the expected sign. In all the three models, the subscription pricing, as well as time parameters (i.e. access/waiting time), have a negative coefficient indicating dislike towards higher mobility expenses or access/waiting time in the process of carrying out a short trip. Regarding socio-demographics, it is observed that younger and mid-age people have a significant inclination towards using the MaaS mobility package. Alternatively, older people have shown a higher preference for using private transportation to carry out short-distance trips. Highly educated people are more inclined to use the MaaS package though being aware of the environment and traffic-related problems.People having a higher car trip usage for short-distance trips are more inclined to subscribe MaaS package. Similarly, in the scenario of the bike, people with high bike trip usage per month tend to find it convenient to use a private bike. However, for person with fewer number of bike trips (like less than 20 trips per month), tends to be preferring MaaS subscription package.For MaaS package with car included, higher-income group tend to have an inclination towards it whereas lower-income group are inclined towards integrated package with only bike as mode of transportation. Furthermore, regarding the attitudinal factors, people who are open-minded, tech-loving, always compare products, enthusiastic, and love traveling have a positive contribution to the choice for MaaS mobility package. The study also, reveals that people are highly sensitive towards the subscription price and are willingness to pay more towards reducing waiting or access time of shared vehicles in MaaS package.There is noticeable preference heterogeneity regarding preference for the MaaS subscription package. The same has been identified with the application of the LC model. The results from the LC model suggest a lower share of the MaaS alternative in comparison to the status-quo mobility pattern (like use of private car, private bike, etc.) for short-distance trips. Regarding the probable discrete preference profiles: people who are young and mid-aged people (<60 years), earning mid-level income (between 20,000 to 60,000 euros per year), residing with one or two family members, and have a high educational background (WO or HBO) possess a high likelihood to be a MaaS subscriber. In comparison between single-mode shared mobility package and MaaS integrated package, the study reveals a higher preference of Dutch people towards later. Nonetheless, the aggregate preference remains high for the private mode of transportation (for both primary/secondary choice). The estimated results from models reveal lower share of MaaS class for which it is currently realized that for the MaaS service to become popular, it shall take further time and familiarity to build upon the trust of people and bring about change in individual mobility preferences. There is a need for greater subsidy to MaaS initiatives (at the initial stage) to gain popularity. This has been the contribution of the study to the literature.