Voi at Autonomy’s Berlin City Summit

May 5, 2022

We are thrilled to announce that today, 5 May 2022, we participated in Autonomy’s first Berlin City Summit. Since its launch in 2016, a year after the historic Paris Climate Agreement, Autonomy Paris has become the world’s most important event for sustainable mobility solutions. We are grateful and excited to have been represented by Jasmin Rimmele, our Senior Manager Public Transport & MaaS Strategy at Voi, at the very first Autonomy City Summit in Berlin.

Berlin City Summit 

This first Berlin City Summit focused on mobility hubs as the physical and digital representation of the transition that our mobility system is experiencing.

Being a focal point of access to all modes of transport, mobility hubs are key to  the development of future mobility in Europe. Especially in the capital city of Berlin which has one of the largest networks of mobility hubs throughout the continent, thanks to BVG Jelbi, ​​a mobility app for Berlin’s public transport and sharing services.

Panel discussion: Train stations as natural mobility hubs 

In the framework of this exciting event a panel was held on the topic of train stations as natural mobility hubs. The speakers, who included Jasmin Rimmele from Voi, focused on  requirements for the successful implementation of a mobility hub, the role of sharing providers and the cities and the outlook for the future . The moderator of this panel event was Tine Haas, Principal at Dornier Consulting International GmbH.

In addition to Jasmin, we heard insights from the following panellists:  John David von Oertzen, CEO at Mobimeo and pioneer in the field of MaaS solutions; Dr. Philipp Henzgen, Senior Project Manager at DB Smart City who is currently managing the development of mobility hubs at DB Station&Service AG. At Voi, Jasmin leads on strategies to integrate micromobility into public transport and MaaS platforms, is a member of WEF’s Global Future Council on Urban Mobility as well as the EU Commission’s Multimodal Passenger Mobility Forum (MPMF).

 

Panel remarks on implementing  mobility hubs

During this lively panel discussion, Dr. Philipp Henzgen highlighted some crucial components such as the location in a train station, the availability of MaaS applications, local partners for parking management and, of course, the presence of shared mobility service providers – “the more the better,” he stated. 

Jasmin pointed out that we need to take a three level approach: First, it is important to identify the right locations while balancing supply and demand. . To integrate sharing operations there are temporal and geographical requirements that have to be met. Second, she pointed out that there are also different charging hardware requirements to be met, given the diversity of modes of transport hubs such as e-scooters, e-bikes or e-mopeds. Third, to create value, it is also important to set a mutual target for optimal data sharing – platforms, cities and providers need to be united on what they want to achieve, what data is needed etc. 

John David von Oertzen then underlined the importance of a mobility hub to fulfil a user’s need – the availability of the vehicle of choice is key. To enable an optimal mobility node, it is necessary  for the involved players – cities, public transport companies and mobility providers – to combine efforts. 

 

Panel remarks on the role of sharing providers, cities and public transport organisations 

“Our goal is to provide an alternative to private car ownership to decrease emissions, make better use of land and reduce congestions to reach climate protection goals”,  John David von Oertzen explained. On this note he highlighted the importance of intermodality, or an integrated approach for different modes of transport. For example,  the Pilot Project at S-Bahn Stuttgart by Voi and Mobimeo in Bad Cannstatt

John David von Oertzen then discussed Mobimeo’s efforts to create an infrastructure that is connected online and offline, and the importance of bundling everything digitally on one MaaS platform for a better capacity planning. 

To this note Jasmin added that micromobility is an essential pillar in mobility hubs, driving their adoption by increasing the accessibility of public transport. Another important role sharing providers have, added Jasmin, is the support with data sharing on identifying appropriate locations.

Dr. Philipp Henzgen then also referred to  the role of cities as the main drivers in climate protection and the mobility revolution. The use of municipal areas for mobility hubs is crucial for citizens to gain flexibility when moving around the city, having the possibility to change between different modes of transport. “Cities also function as trend setters for rural areas”, Dr. Henzgen explained and”therefore cities will always be the first test field for innovations and set blueprints for other areas.”

 

Panel remarks on a vision for the future

As for the future, “sustainable and shared modes of transport and public transport ridership shall be encouraged through interlinking operations between physical mobility hubs and digital platforms,” according to Jasmin Rimmele.

Dr. Henzgen added that these hubs will be the solution for the first and last mile problem and an important part of the traffic turnaround as well as a key player in climate protection.

“Closer collaboration between the involved parties through, for example, mobility bundles and integrated ticketing, is important to make new forms of mobility more attractive”, states John David von Oertzen. On this note David ended the discussion by stating how mobility hubs could improve the quality of lives in towns and cities and change mobility behaviour for the better.

 


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