MaaS use cases #9: safeguarding the health and security of citizens and employees

This is the ninth article in our ten-part series on mobility as a service (MaaS) use cases, highlighting the many different ways in which it can help to solve travel and transport problems for individuals, organisations and governments.

The COVID-19 pandemic has seen public health take centre stage, including social distancing measures and at least temporarily an end to all but essential trips. Safety rightly remains high on the agenda — and Mobility as a Service has an important role to play.

MaaS can help individuals make important decisions about their travel choices. TripGo’s occupancy feature for example allows travellers to gauge which carriages have fewer people in them. If users can assess time-in-transit, frequency of cleans, location-based coronavirus instances and contact threat, they can more easily determine personal risk.

Security features — especially for children, women and the elderly or those with additional needs — can increase confidence too, particularly at night, during off-peak travel or on less crowded routes. Driver profiles, ratings, and vehicle registration are just some of the details that can be provided to passengers while location information, such as reported crime incidents, can alert people to potential issues. Also the walkability of an area including how well-lit it is, any potential hotspots or danger zones, can be very helpful to know.

In-app contact with security personnel or customer support further enhance the safety for any traveller, and the ability to report health and safety issues make the user part of the valuable data collection process and increase safety for everyone.

“Modern mobility services include dynamic transit options, which brings riders door-to-door rather than requiring them to wait and ride in potentially unsafe stations. These systems are being tested and run in several large cities, including London and Paris. Individuals with safety authority should be present throughout the transit system for monitoring and intervening.”

Sarah Kaufman Associate Director, NYU Rudin Center for Transportation (New Cities) — @sarstar

MaaS health and security in practice

National Rail in the UK warns commuters if stations and/or trains are busy, so they can follow social distancing rules (BBC). These types of instances are relatively easy for transport operators to incorporate into MaaS applications where data is available. This way, information is relayed to passengers in near real time as data becomes available.

In the US, eBodyGuard — a personal safety app “with voice activation, GPS location, direct to 911 connection, and evidence collection” — shows a selection of tools which also have the potential to be integrated with MaaS apps. This can ensure vulnerable individuals — and indeed all citizens — feel safe with swift access to help if needed.

Who is MaaS health and security for

• Vulnerable adults and children
• Public transport authorities
• Transport operators
• Safety and security technology providers
• Corporates, SMBs and not-for-profits looking to protect employees and volunteers

Questions to ask yourself

• How do you ensure vulnerable passengers remain safe particularly at night or on quieter routes? How can they easily access help?
• What measures are in place to safeguard passengers while travelling during pandemics or other volatile situations (e.g. terrorist attacks, crime incidents)?
• How do you relay important information to the general public, employees or volunteers?
• What are you doing to provide alternative real-time route guidance?
• How could MaaS be used to support your health and safety remit?

Answering questions like these will help you figure out how you can best safeguard public health and safety. If you’re a charity, not-for-profit, government body, public transit authority, business or other organisation, feel free to get in touch if you’d like to discuss how SkedGo could help you serve your passengers and travellers better.

We hope you enjoy this series. Read part 1 about accessibility, part 2 about corporate mobility, part 3 about active travel, part 4 about lifestyle MaaS, part 5 about business models, part 6 about sustainable transport, part 7 about vehicle optimisation and part 8 about a more inclusive approach to transport.

Photo by Ketut Subiyanto from Pexels