The quality of public transport is one of the major criteria in assessing the quality of life in a city. Public transport is set to be a main artery of the world’s smartest city which aims to improve the quality of life of citizens, residents and visitors, whilst supporting economic development and attracting business and knowledge workers. Mauritius, having the aim to develop Smart Cities must consider a digital transformation of the public transport sector.
Disruptive trends for transport and smart mobility services:
User-centered mobility services put travelers in control; public transport will become personal. This changes the approach to operations and planning based on users’ choices, priorities, data flows and dynamic response to disruption. Staff will adopt ‘digital uniforms’, so that they have the information to support customers.
Integrated and intelligent transport networks will sense demand, measure performance, and monitor the health of physical assets. Intelligent systems will respond in real-time to manage capacity and predict and avoid disruption.
Pricing and payments will see a revolution over the next five years. Digitisation of tickets and payments will transform metro services and allow all rail operators to follow airlines by adopting e-tickets. Beyond contactless payments, pay as you travel will be based simply on location.
Automation and safety will benefit from the exponential potential of cognitive technology, with the potential to save millions of lives worldwide, particularly on the roads. Increases in safety and changes to the nature of liability will have a fundamental impact on the insurance industry.
Public and private innovation will work together to meet the mobility challenges of the 21st century. The role of the public sector will be critical to stimulate advances and protect citizens. New private sector entrants will take advantage of peer-to-peer models, digital and mobile technology, and low costs to scale globally.
The digital age is going to empower the travelling customer and disrupt the way transport providers operate and manage their services. This will put emphasis on the need for varied transport systems to intelligently integrate and facilitate joined up passenger journeys. To achieve this, the public and private sectors – from government to automotive manufacturers – must innovate and think differently, working together to ensure the growth and sustainability of transport for the future.
Digital technologies therefore offer the chance for individualised, tailored, accelerated and more effective strategy for businesses. If you want to know about the power of digital transformation, Anglo African team can help you, do contact Naazreen on 2331636 or via e-mail at naazreen.ghoorun@infosystems.mu.
