Intelligent Transport Conference Speaker’s Interview: Jenny Milne

What will your presentation focus on and what can delegates expect to learn from what you have to say?

The presentation will focus on the concept of MaaS in a rural environment, whether it is really possible, and what it would mean to the rural economy and to those people that use transport. This presentation won’t be about words, but pictures about the user and a project in the Cairngorm National Park in Scotland. The project focuses on how stakeholder engagement plays a pivotal role to rural development, which hinges on the mobility of goods, services and people.

What would you say has been the biggest step forward regarding transport technology for your organisation in the last five years?

The appetite for change has come around. Stakeholders – whether it’s operators, councils or businesses – now have the desire to work in partnership to make things happen. That change means the use of technology is easier and can be more beneficial to the end user.

In your opinion, which public transport organisation(s) do you think are doing the best work to keep abreast of transport developments?

In Scotland, it’s always a changing scene, but for me HITRANS, a regional transport partnership, has their finger on the pulse.

What challenges do you think the public transport sector will face in the future concerning how transport technology is utilised?

The industry must understand that technology isn’t always needed. It isn’t about necessarily developing new technology, but more about using the technology that already exists in a better and smarter manner. The market will be flooded with apps and digitalisation projects, but at the end of the day it’s about offering choice to the traveller – if the market is flooded and the user confused, they won’t use public transport.

Looking at the conference’s programme, who among your fellow speakers are you most interested to hear from and why?

I am interested in speaking to or hearing from Arnd Bätzner from Mobility Cooperative. As someone who has lived in Switzerland and has visited regularly for many decades, I am passionate about their transport systems and their mobility solution is one that we can learn from in Scotland.

Biography

Jenny Milne has spent over 15 years in the ITS and technology field, and is well known for facilitating innovation and delivering on projects. Jenny is currently involved with a project in the rural economy in Scotland, which originated from her first hand experience, and is now a focused trial for Mobility-as-a-Service. With enthusiasm and passion for social policy and transport, Jenny is an ‘out of the box’ thinker, and a strategic visionary.