N. Geržinič
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21 records found
1
Mobility-as-a-Service, known simply under the acronym of MaaS, can be described as an integration of information, reservation and payment for a wide variety of transport modes into a single service. In that respect, MaaS is not a transport mode in a traditional sense. Through technological innovation, it became a viable solution in the 2010s, capturing the attention and interest of entrepreneurs, policymakers and researchers alike. Through research and trials, we now have a much clearer understanding of what MaaS is, what it can do for us and what are potential difficulties that need to be addressed or pitfalls to watch out for. Results on what would encourage travellers to use MaaS are often inconsistent, largely dependent on the specific national/regional context or the design of the service itself. Perhaps the most conclusive outcome is that effective and efficient public transport is essential for any MaaS scheme. It can and should be seen as a baseline, to which other (shared) services can then be coupled. Given the strong impact of context and design, it is not surprising that the implications are highly variable, with multiple studies stating what may or may not occur under specific circumstances. The novelty and lack of real applications beyond trials also means governance issues tend to be hypothetical, with papers generally echoing the need for collaboration among stakeholders and finding a balance between overregulation and laissez-faire policymaking. This uncertainty on various fronts also makes the future evolution of MaaS difficult to predict. Closer cooperation with public transport is a viable path forward, especially given the necessity of its inclusion in any MaaS scheme. Another approach may be integration of MaaS with non-mobility offerings.
MaaS bundle uptake among university students
A cross-European survey
Tradeable Mobility Credits (TMC) are a novel demand management policy. Travel can be priced based on externalities and travellers are allocated TMC, which are consumed when travelling, with the price depending on trip characteristics. Travellers can buy/sell TMC in exchange for money. In this study, we analyse (1) how travel behaviour would be affected by a TMC-scheme, (2) TMC trading behaviour and (3) their interaction. We carry out an online stated preference survey, and apply a latent class choice model (LCCM) to analyse travel behaviour, whereas credit trading is analysed by means of a multiple linear regression. A key finding throughout the research is that TMC tend to be perceived non-linearly, with a logarithmic transformation often outperforming linear specifications. This means each additional credit carries less value. The LCCM reveals three out of four groups (88 % of respondents) consider their current balance when making travel choices. Two groups (∼50 %) are predominantly unimodal, travelling almost exclusively by bicycle or public transport. Others base their decision primarily on travel time and cost. In trading, the exchange rate and balance have a substantial influence, offering evidence for loss aversion. The number of travel instances remaining, and the experience of having performed a trade in the past also affect trading behaviour, whereas socio-demographic characteristics are found to have a limited impact. Our result show a TMC policy can achieve substantial behavioural adaptations, reaching the desired outcomes. The limited awareness of such policies, concerns about equitable TMC allocation and additional hassle associated with trading remain challenges to be addressed.
Year-on-year analysis of multi-modal digital travel diaries
Temporal, spatial and modal traveler profiles
Understanding multi-modal urban mobility patterns is essential for effective planning and policy-making. Traditional data sources, such as infrequent surveys or smart card records, often lack the temporal, spatial, and modal comprehensiveness required to fully capture the complexity of multi-modal travel behavior. Emerging mobility data sources are instrumental in capturing these patterns and in enabling additional insights. This study leverages a digitally collected trajectory-level dataset (i.e., TravelSense) obtained from a smartphone application operated by the public transport authority of Helsinki, Finland. Unlike conventional public transport data, TravelSense provides insights into modal choices alongside temporal and spatial travel characteristics. In order to analyze mobility patterns and explore the capabilities of this novel dateset, a Latent Profile Analysis is employed to classify travelers based on these attributes over a week-long period, with profiles compared across three consecutive years (2022, 2023, and 2024). Findings reveal that while spatial travel patterns remain relatively stable, temporal and modal patterns exhibit greater variability. A distinct shift is observed between 2022 and subsequent years, likely reflecting post-pandemic behavioral changes. Key traveler groups identified include exclusive active mode users (13 % annually) and non-private car users, whose share declined from 38 % in 2022 to approximately 20 % in 2023 and 2024. Study findings offer valuable input for shaping evidence-based mobility policies, particularly those aiming to support sustainable travel behavior and adapt to evolving urban mobility needs through enhanced multi-modality. TravelSense enables detailed analysis of temporal, spatial, and modal travel patterns, underscoring the value of novel data for multi-modal transport research.
Shared micromobility (SMM), including bicycles, e-bikes, scooters, etc., is often cited as a solution to the first and especially the last mile problem of public transport (PT), yet when implemented, they often do not get adopted by a broader travelling public. As behavioural adaption is largely related to peoples’ attitudes and perceptions, we develop a behavioural framework based on the UTAUT2 framework to gain better understanding why individuals may (not) be willing to use SMM. Through an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and a latent class cluster analysis (LCCA), we study the adoption potential of SMM and assess drivers and barriers as perceived by different user groups. Our findings uncover six user groups; Shared mobility positives, Car-oriented sharing neutrals, Older apprehensive sharers, Young eager adopters, (Shared) Mobility avoiders and Skilled sharing sceptics. The Young eager adopters and Shared mobility positives tend to be the most open to adopting SMM and able to do so. Older apprehensive sharers would like to, but find it difficult or dangerous to use, while Skilled sharing sceptics are capable and confident, but have limited intention of using it. Car-oriented sharing neutrals and (Shared) Mobility avoiders are most negative about SMM, finding it difficult to use and dangerous. Factors relating to technological savviness, ease-of-use, physical safety and societal perception seem to be the strongest adoption predictors. Younger, high-educated males are the group most likely and open to using SMM, while older individuals with lower incomes and a lower level of education tend to be the least likely.
Unplanned train disruptions are a source of passenger dissatisfaction because they are often accompanied by overcrowding and lack of information. To better accommodate passengers during disruptions and preventing travellers from switching to other less sustainable modes of transport, mitigating control strategies can be applied by railway operators. This however requires predicted passenger flows over all available travel options as an input. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic these passenger flows have becomes less predictable, as many travellers have gained an additional feasible alternative to cope with unplanned disruptions on outbound commuter trips − they may return home and start teleworking. Because this travel option is only available to teleworkers and now utilized more than before the COVID-19 pandemic, heterogeneity in route choice behaviour has increased. To fill this knowledge gap and provide predictions of passenger flows, an online survey containing a labelled stated choice experiment was carried out among Dutch train commuters. Consequently, a latent class choice model was estimated to investigate the influence of disruption characteristics, teleworking, COVID-19 risk perception and information provision on travel behaviour during train disruptions in the Netherlands and uncover heterogeneity in behaviour. Our results indicate that the strongest predictors of route choice behaviour are the moment of discovering the disruption, the disruption length and job characteristics. Uncovering four latent classes shows the different valuations of crowding, waiting times and additional travel times among commuters. Commuters with the option to telework are more likely to return back home during disruptions as well as commuters who are sceptic towards the provided information and those who are still conscious of COVID-19. Commuters who cannot telework and trust the provided information are more likely to reroute within the train network whereas commuters who cannot telework and do not trust the provided information are more likely to wait for the disrupted services to resume.
In the Netherlands, 39% of all train passengers arrive to the station by bicycle, with over half a million bicycle parking spaces offered around the country (Dutch Railways, 2023). And although some travellers have their own bicycle on both the home and activity side of the train trip, most only have a bicycle on their home-end, meaning they have to rely on other forms of transportation on the activity-end, such as walking or local public transport (buses, trams, metros). A bicycle-sharing scheme is also available at almost 300 stations, with over 21 thousand bicycles, resulting in 5.4 million total trips in 2022 (Dutch Railways, 2023).
In recent years, the rise of digitalisation and increased use of smartphones have brought along with them many new shared (electric) (micro)mobility alternatives to the mobility ecosystem, such as car-sharing, (electric) bicycle-sharing, e-scooters, e-steps to name but a few. Currently mainly present in larger cities and used predominantly for shorter trips within urban areas, they do hold the potential to improve the accessibility of public transport stations, especially for more distant access/egress trips due to the assistance of electric motors.
To get a crucial understanding of train travel, micromobility and how they can interact and complement each other, we investigated the perceptions and preferences of individuals; how they perceive these emerging modes, how likely they are to use them and what they find important when making their travel decisions. We looked into the joint access-mode and train station choice, analysing how the quality of access modes and train service at a specific station affect each other; in other words, how do people trade-off attributes from different legs of the same trip. Secondly, we investigated the potential to use various shared mobility services, included a comparison when pitted against the car and bicycle.
Lastly, we evaluated the impact of introducing shared e-mopeds on public transport, considering it as both an egress mode at the activity-end of the trip, as well as a potential competing mode for the main leg of the journey.
We show that more positive perceptions of micromobility and a higher intention to use such services is often linked with past experience using such services, digital savviness (knowing how to use a smartphone), a more multimodal travel behaviour portfolio (particularly frequent use of public transport) and a higher achieved level of education. We analysed latent market segments and uncovered similar patterns, with a somewhat large share of those ready to use (shared) micromobility, with around a quarter of the population being more sceptical, but then also residing in rural areas, having a lower level of education and being less skilled with digital technology.
These results provide valuable insights for policymakers on how to proceed with introducing such services. Selecting the correct policy is vital to achieve a desired modal shift, as introducing new modes can also result in shifts from modes which are already at a satisfactory level (e-mopeds attracting cyclists for example). We show that shared e-mopeds can be both a competitor and ally to public transport, meaning that the service implementation strategy is key to secure the desired outcomes and mitigate the negative side-effects.
Future research should also compare how the various new micromobility services compete with each other for new and existing travellers. Additionally, checking for potential induced demand of such services, both as a the main mode or simply as an access/egress mode, would be valuable for policymakers. ...
In the Netherlands, 39% of all train passengers arrive to the station by bicycle, with over half a million bicycle parking spaces offered around the country (Dutch Railways, 2023). And although some travellers have their own bicycle on both the home and activity side of the train trip, most only have a bicycle on their home-end, meaning they have to rely on other forms of transportation on the activity-end, such as walking or local public transport (buses, trams, metros). A bicycle-sharing scheme is also available at almost 300 stations, with over 21 thousand bicycles, resulting in 5.4 million total trips in 2022 (Dutch Railways, 2023).
In recent years, the rise of digitalisation and increased use of smartphones have brought along with them many new shared (electric) (micro)mobility alternatives to the mobility ecosystem, such as car-sharing, (electric) bicycle-sharing, e-scooters, e-steps to name but a few. Currently mainly present in larger cities and used predominantly for shorter trips within urban areas, they do hold the potential to improve the accessibility of public transport stations, especially for more distant access/egress trips due to the assistance of electric motors.
To get a crucial understanding of train travel, micromobility and how they can interact and complement each other, we investigated the perceptions and preferences of individuals; how they perceive these emerging modes, how likely they are to use them and what they find important when making their travel decisions. We looked into the joint access-mode and train station choice, analysing how the quality of access modes and train service at a specific station affect each other; in other words, how do people trade-off attributes from different legs of the same trip. Secondly, we investigated the potential to use various shared mobility services, included a comparison when pitted against the car and bicycle.
Lastly, we evaluated the impact of introducing shared e-mopeds on public transport, considering it as both an egress mode at the activity-end of the trip, as well as a potential competing mode for the main leg of the journey.
We show that more positive perceptions of micromobility and a higher intention to use such services is often linked with past experience using such services, digital savviness (knowing how to use a smartphone), a more multimodal travel behaviour portfolio (particularly frequent use of public transport) and a higher achieved level of education. We analysed latent market segments and uncovered similar patterns, with a somewhat large share of those ready to use (shared) micromobility, with around a quarter of the population being more sceptical, but then also residing in rural areas, having a lower level of education and being less skilled with digital technology.
These results provide valuable insights for policymakers on how to proceed with introducing such services. Selecting the correct policy is vital to achieve a desired modal shift, as introducing new modes can also result in shifts from modes which are already at a satisfactory level (e-mopeds attracting cyclists for example). We show that shared e-mopeds can be both a competitor and ally to public transport, meaning that the service implementation strategy is key to secure the desired outcomes and mitigate the negative side-effects.
Future research should also compare how the various new micromobility services compete with each other for new and existing travellers. Additionally, checking for potential induced demand of such services, both as a the main mode or simply as an access/egress mode, would be valuable for policymakers.
This paper uses stated preference data collected in the city of Rotterdam and discrete choice modelling techniques to study the relationship between public transport and shared micromobility. It assumes a hypothetical condition of integrated systems and studies the relationships of complement and competition between these modes. The findings suggest that shared micromobility modes are viable alternatives as egress modes for metro trips. Shared micromobility can be seen as a complement to metro, yet shared e-mopeds proved to also be a viable option as individual modes for long-distance trips. Different characteristics proved to be important in choices in this context: frequency of public transport use, previous use of shared micromobility, and age. Considering the results obtained, collaboration between shared micromobility and transit operators might benefit them as well as travellers. Collaborations should be designed so that they help travellers to decrease total travel time, even if it implies longer egress legs. However, the costs of these shared modes should not be as high as to prevent travellers to use them as egress alternatives. Finally, young travellers and frequent transit users could be specifically targeted, as they showed to have a better perception of shared micromobility.
On-demand mobility services (FLEX) are often proposed as a solution for the first/last mile problem. We study the potential of using FLEX to improve train station access by means of a three-step sequential stated preference survey. We compare FLEX with the bicycle, car and public transport for accessing two alternative train stations. We estimate a joint access mode and train station choice model. Estimating a latent class choice model with different nesting structures, we uncover four distinct segments in the population. Two segments (∼50%) with a lower Willingness-to-Pay seem to be more likely to take-up FLEX. Ex-urban car drivers seem to be the most likely segment to adopt FLEX, showing great, since members of this segment are currently frequent users of the private car. Our case study also shows that while FLEX competes primarily with public transport when accessing local stations, it competes primarily with car for reaching distant stations.
Understanding user's perception of service variability is essential to discern their overall perception of any type of (transport) service. We study the perception of waiting time variability for ride-hailing services. We carried out a stated preference survey in August 2021, yielding 936 valid responses. The respondents were faced with static pre-trip information on the expected waiting time, followed by the actually experienced waiting time for their selected alternative. We analyse this data by means of an instance-based learning (IBL) approach to evaluate how individuals respond to service performance variation and how this impacts their future decisions. Different novel specifications of memory fading, captured by the IBL approach, are tested to uncover which describes the user behaviour best. Additionally, existing and new specification of inertia (habit) are tested. Our model outcomes reveal that the perception of unexpected waiting time is within the expected range of 2–3 times the value-of-time. Travellers seem to place a higher reward on an early departure compared to a penalty for a late departure of equal magnitude. A cancelled service, after having made a booking, results in significant disutility for the passenger and a strong motivation to shift to a different provider. Considering memory decay, our results show that the most recent experience is by far the most relevant for the next decision, with memories fading quickly in importance. The role of inertia seems to gain importance with each additional consecutive choice for the same option, but then resetting back to zero following a shift in behaviour.
Neighbourhood mobility hubs may play an important role in mitigating the impact of passenger cars on climate change and urban public space. As a relatively new concept, academic research on the user potential of neighbourhood mobility hubs is so far limited. This research aims to identify which user groups are likely to adopt services offered by a neighbourhood mobility hub. A survey was distributed in the Netherlands (N=298), an Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) executed and a Latent Class Cluster Analysis (LCCA) estimated. Four distinctive groups of intended users are uncovered. Two of the clusters have intentions to use neighbourhood mobility hubs. Two other clusters do not (yet) intend to use neighbourhood mobility hubs. The clusters indicate that people who currently already travel more by sustainable modes (train or (e-)bicycle) are more likely to be adopters of neighbourhood mobility hubs than the traditional car users. In practice, this may limit the positive effect of hubs or even increase car use. However it could also facilitate those travelling sustainably to do so for longer as additional shared modes become available to them via hubs. Limitations and directions for further research are discussed.
On-demand mobility services are promising to revolutionise urban travel, but preliminary studies are showing they may actually increase total vehicle miles travelled, worsening road congestion in cities. In this study, we assess the demand for on-demand mobility services in urban areas, using a stated preference survey, to understand the potential impact of introducing on-demand services on the current modal split. The survey was carried out in the Netherlands and offered respondents a choice between bike, car, public transport and on-demand services. 1,063 valid responses are analysed with a multinomial logit and a latent class choice model. By means of the latter, we uncover four distinctive groups of travellers based on the observed choice behaviour. The majority of the sample, the Sharing-ready cyclists (55%), are avid cyclists and do not see on-demand mobility as an alternative for making urban trips. Two classes, Tech-ready individuals (27%) and Flex-ready individuals (9%) would potentially use on-demand services: the former is fairly time-sensitive and would thus use on-demand service if they were sufficiently fast. The latter is highly cost-sensitive, and would therefore use the service primarily if it is cheap. The fourth class, Flex-sceptic individuals (9%) shows very limited potential for using on-demand services.