Back in 2020, The Routing Company (‘TRC’) successfully responded to a CivTech 5.0 challenge (how Scotland can use technology to create a smart and sustainable travel network). It was through this that TRC established a relationship with West Coast Motors, who now run 3 separate on-demand transportation services in Scotland using TRC’s Pingo platform.
Since then, DDRT-related innovation has begun to rapidly proliferate across the UK. Here at TRC, we believe there are 4 major tailwinds which are driving this change:
- More holistic thinking & government spending related to transportation – look no further than the Rural Mobility Fund & Bus Back Better strategy in England or the Bus Partnership Fund in Scotland.
- Increasing pressure from climate targets – passenger transportation represents a significant proportion of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions and it’s no secret that enabling a modal shift away from single occupancy vehicles will be crucial to achieve net zero carbon targets. The fastest and most positively impactful way to achieve this will be through prioritising and improving the experience of using public transport, walking & cycling.
- The uncertainty around the impact of the pandemic on daily travel patterns – public transport networks will likely need to be more flexible to support mobility outside of peak commuting hours and dense areas. Transport providers are looking to more efficient ways to provide services given the massive impact on the farebox.
- The continued innovation in technology and availability of data – not only are there more customer-facing digital apps & solutions, but there is more data available related to vehicle fleets and individual travel patterns.
TRC decided to join CoMoUK because we believe it will represent the fifth and potentially most powerful tailwind – the open sharing of learnings across local authorities, DDRT technology providers and fleet operators. We must all be humble in recognising that DDRT is not a new concept in the UK and new technology is not going to be the silver bullet which makes it work this time. TRC looks forward to collaborating with all CoMoUK members to:
- Establish the highest leverage methods to drive the behavioural change required for the successful uptake DDRT and other shared transportation offers.
- Uncover how DDRT will best integrate into the wider public transport offering and sit alongside other mobility innovations.
Here at TRC, our vision for the future is that “a community of any size, in any place, with any resources can meet the transportation needs of its people”. We are delivering on this by providing our partners with our truly on-demand transport toolkit (Pingo) and a dedicated team who are seriously obsessed with helping usher in the next generation of public transport. If you would like a demo or to simply chat / geek out about shared transport, please reach out to our Partnerships Lead, Dami Adebayo.
EMAIL DAMI@THEROUTINGCOMPANY.COM
THEROUTINGCOMPANY.COM
