Click here for full transcript and to watch the session on video.
This was a 2 hour engaging dialogue between the Transport Committee and expert panel members, Paul Campion, Chief Executive, Transport Systems Catapult, Si Ho, Global Chair of the TravelSpirit Foundation, Professor Maria Kamargianni, Head of Urban and Energy Lab, UCL Energy Institute and TravelSpirit UK Board member, and Piia Karjalainen, Senior Manager, MaaS Alliance. The session was chaired by Lilian Greenwood MP for Nottingham, supported by commitee members Paul Girvan MP for County Antrim, Graham Morris MP for Easington, Luke Pollard MP for Plymouth, Graham Stringer MP for Greater Manchester and Iain Stewart MP for Milton Keynes.
The oral evidence covered definitions of MaaS, comparisons with the activities of tech companies such as Uber and Google, what economic and environmental benefits it could bring to the UK, barriers to implementation and the differences between a open and closed MaaS system, what role central government could/should play and to what extent MaaS was relevant outside the London capital and the potential for unintended consequences, including exclusion of vulnerable groups. TravelSpirit championed the role of government to leading on a new “Open Mobility” framework that focussed on interoperability and customer data portability and to consider on the positive benefits MaaS could bring to young people and air quality issues in the UK regions outside of London.