A common standard for designing digital transport services is being considered by three EU-funded projects working on improving the mobility of EU citizens with the help of Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS).

MyCorridor, MaaS4EU and IMOVE agreed to explore the options put forward by the MaaS API (Application Programming Interface) aiming to streamline the currently cumbersome and time-consuming API integration process of the various transport services. This would encourage MaaS aggregators to develop attractive transport services that would incentivise travellers to move away from car ownership and make more use of public transport and shared services.

Developed by MaaS Alliance, the API defines a common approach to designing a transport service API, from the use of communication protocol and data format to security standards, basic methods and service calls, responses and general behaviour of an API. The use of a ‘common language’ will help boost the expansion of the MaaS service offering which will, consequently, lead to a unified and seamless cross-border experience for the end user.

The three projects, funded under the H2020 Mobility for Growth Programme, are looking into how MaaS solutions should be deployed in order to address the main promises of MaaS: accessible, affordable, smooth and secure mobility of passengers. All three projects are engaged in developing and testing advanced, cross-border, multi-modal travel planning and booking/ticketing solutions but tackle different problems and propose different solutions. The projects are also working on identifying future organisational, regulatory and business framework requirements, including socially responsible behavior to foster sustainable development and social inclusion.

MyCorridor, MaaS4EU and IMOVE will also bring their contribution to the further development of the standard by providing feedback from the experience they will gain in implementing and piloting it across several EU countries.

The MaaS Alliance is constantly working towards a wider implementation of MaaS where technical interoperability and common standards are a key, facilitating the emergence of new services and aggregation thereof. The MaaS Alliance sees these projects as an input to the development of a specification of a harmonised MaaS API and as a basis for the standardisation work. The invaluable work done by these three projects reinforced by the collaboration with the MaaS Alliance fosters the development of single market for the intelligent mobility services in Europe.

MyCorridor

Mobility as a Service in a multimodal European cross-border corridor (MyCorridor) is a 3-year, 17 partner project, funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme. Its overall objective is to achieve sustainable travel in urban and interurban areas and across borders by replacing private vehicle ownership by private vehicle use. The project looks into connecting services from various service providers and providing the traveler with alternatives to replace their own vehicle trip with combined shared vehicles and multimodal transport solutions. The project is part of the Mobility as a Service (MaaS) concept that puts users at the core of transport services, offering them tailor-made mobility solutions based on their individual needs. (H2020 Grant agreement no. 723384)

MaaS4EU

MaaS4EU is a research and development project funded by the Horizon2020 research and innovation programme bringing together 17 partners from several sectors and backgrounds to provide viable evidence and solutions about the MaaS concept. MaaS4EU will provide quantifiable evidence, frameworks and tools to remove the barriers and enable a cooperative and interconnected EU single transport market for the MaaS concept. (H2020 Grant agreement no. 723176)

IMOVE

IMOVE project will deliver enhanced real-time data collection about user needs and preferences, tools for the exchange of information and systems to enhance interoperability between different MaaS schemes and service components. IMOVE solutions will be tested in four European Living Labs – Berlin, Göteborg, Greater Manchester and Turin – all of which are currently engaged in MaaS development. IMOVE will also pilot roaming services for MaaS at a cross-border European level. (H2020 Grant agreement no. 723314)

MaaS Alliance

The Mobility as a Service (MaaS) Alliance is a public-private partnership creating the foundations for a common approach to MaaS, unlocking the economies of scale needed for the successful implementation and take-up of MaaS in Europe and beyond. The main goal is to facilitate a single, open market and full deployment of MaaS services. The MaaS Alliance is hosted by ERTICO – ITS Europe. For more information, please visit www.maas-alliance.eu.

Contact person:

Gorazd Marinic – Manager – Technical Affairs, IRU Projects (gorazd.marinic@iruprojects.org)

Erwin Vermassen – MaaS Alliance Technology & Standards Working Group chair, ERTICO – ITS Europe (e.vermassen@mail.ertico.com)