Shared mobility: A revolution in urban mobility and beyond

Within a constantly changing world, public transport is an evolving sector. If you have an eye on mobility and how people move in their daily life, you will have heard this before.

Here at the International Association of Public Transport (UITP), our international team of experts works to advance sustainable mobility and best represent the interests of our global membership, with more than 1,900 members in 100 countries. It is their insight, experience and expertise that drive UITP to gather the knowledge and content that can keep our cities moving and support the sector in the full-speed transition to sustainable and liveable cities and regions.

By allowing people to access shared vehicles such as bikes, e-scooters and cars, or be carried by on-demand buses or cars, shared mobility enriches the mobility mix, satisfies different needs and makes door-to-door journeys easier.

In our vision, these services can seamlessly complement traditional public transport modes and encourage the shift away from private cars. They can reduce congestion, energy consumption, noise and air pollution, and provide essential mobility to all, in urban and less urban areas.

At UITP, our members share that vision and, collectively, we felt the need to advance our own knowledge by growing our shared mobility presence… And I’m extremely happy to bring our new Shared Mobility Division alive and help shape its path alongside our members.

By bringing together the entire shared mobility value chain, as a micro-cosmos of the diverse membership of our association, UITP is offering professionals from this evolving and growing space the opportunity to join forces.

On top of that, the committees and working groups inside this brand-new division will work to advance knowledge on shared mobility, enable the exchange of ideas, best practices and experiences, as well as establish a fruitful dialogue among different key players, especially authorities, public transport operators and shared mobility providers.

We know that the term ‘shared mobility’ is quite broad given the diversity of the sector.

So, what do we mean at UITP when we refer to ‘shared mobility’?

On the one hand, you have shared vehicle services where users drive a car or ride a bike themselves to their destination. On the other, you have on-demand mobility services where others drive for you, such as Demand-Responsive Transport (DRT), taxis, ride-hailing and carpooling. When these work in tandem with traditional public transport modes, we call this combined mobility.

Thus, shared vehicles, on-demand mobility and combined mobility are our key committees for the shared mobility sector. However, wider synergies are possible with other committees and working groups below the wide roof of UITP; the working group on automated mobility being another example.

Why is UITP strengthening the focus on shared mobility with the launch of the division?

Well, the answer to that is both simple and logical. As the only worldwide association that brings together all those with a vested interest in sustainable urban mobility, it was about time to move the needle forward.

If we want to represent all of our members, then as a member-led association, we must recognise when evolution takes place and act on it. By acknowledging that representation matters, and that all modes should play a part in the conversation around improving mobility in our streets, UITP’s newest division was born.

The UITP Shared Mobility Division brings together stakeholders from across the sector. This includes start-ups working on the cutting edge of micro-mobility, autonomous driving or Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) platforms, but also welcomes traditional stakeholders like taxi companies and public transport operators that operate, for example, a shared bike system. The division is also open to authorities that are regulating the sector and associations in the field.

Cities across the world are beginning to adjust to a wider mobility mix and understand the need for shared and combined mobility. Over the past decade, shared mobility – from vehicle sharing, on-demand mobility and shared micro-mobility – have grown impressively fast. In the U.S., for instance, shared micro-mobility trips jumped from just 2.4 million in 2011 to 147 million in 2022. Europe’s number rose even higher to 485 million trips.

How do we see the future?

New mobility promises to revolutionise urban transport. By 2030, the vehicle sharing market is forecasted to be worth €215.4 billion, double the 2019 figure, and on-demand mobility will be even bigger at €622 billion, a staggering 400% increase.

In the last couple of years, both grew fast by emphasising market share over profitability. Indeed, only in 2022 did the first shared micro-mobility company experience a full profitable year. It is now time for more mature and profitable services, integrated into a wider mobility ecosystem. UITP can accompany this change.

Our cities are changing, too, and with development comes the excitement of being a part of that change.

In March 2024, the Shared Vehicles Committee will come together as a group for the first time. The On-demand Mobility Committee will have its second meeting in Montreal in June 2024. Members will meet their peers, discuss the most pressing issues that they are facing and, importantly, learn from each other.

In the upcoming months, the shared mobility division will also discuss its priorities for the coming years and set a direction for the sector. It will express a chairperson that will bring the voice of shared mobility to the boards of UITP and, from there, to the world.

I was delighted to be part of our first public launch during the 2024 Shared Mobility Rocks event in Brussels. It was a great occasion to celebrate a new milestone – and, thanks to the UITP members and colleagues who participated, we could share with the audience our new dedicated space to foster accelerated group learning and support dialogue between stakeholders.

Our collective aim is clear – to advance public transport towards sustainable, accessible and liveable cities for everyone. Shared mobility is dynamic and innovative. It may be difficult to predict exactly what change will occur in public transport with every single reform or transformation.

But what is clear is that with innovation comes the opportunity to collectively advance our sector. I’m pleased to say that UITP and our members are doing their part to deliver that change every single day.