Meet our Mobility Artists: Hans Arby
During the UITP Summit in Stockholm you will be inspired by speakers from all over the world, coming from every industry within the public transport sector. Celebrating the Summit’s theme “the Art of Public Transport“, we believe that each speaker is a mobility artist in her or his own way, working to craft the perfect urban journey.
Our fifth mobility artist is a Mobility Designer! Easily inspired by the latest trends and the ongoing digital revolution, Hans Arby sees current challenges as an opportunity to design the intermodal mobility solution of the future. As a Mobility Designer, Hans has the unique ability to weave together traditional patterns of mass public transport with cutting-edge designs of new mobility services.
“Public transport will always be the most effective way of moving people – but to stay relevant, it needs to be fully integrated with the city and people’s lifestyles.”
Hans is the founder and CEO of UbiGo, a fully integrated mobility service for everyday travel, launched in Stockholm. Hans has worked for many years with city and public transport developments, as well as in marketing and sales in the sustainable transport industry.
Hans will be speaking at the session “Different MaaS models in Scandinavia” during the UITP Summit. Explore our interactive programme to find out more.
Can you describe what your presentation at the UITP Summit will be about?
I will discuss one of the biggest challenges of implementing Mobility as a Service (MaaS), specifically how to integrate a tax subsidised and politically controlled public service such as public transport into a commercial service. As a MaaS operator, we at UbiGo need to show that we create value for the Public Transport Authority (PTA) and the city. Together with SL, Stockholm’s regional PTA, we are testing a contractual model for fair pricing, revenue neutrality and transparency, even when implementing new, flexible price models. My presentation will also cover other challenges of building MaaS services, as well as its benefits for public stakeholders – if we do it right.
Why are MaaS and combined mobility so important for public transport?
Two reasons. Public transport should be easily accessible, and not just in the physical sense of the word. For example, tickets should be found in all relevant services and apps, not only in our type of all-inclusive subscription service. Today people take taxis in cities just because they don’t understand how to buy a ticket, or what ticket to buy.
That is today, but the long term consequences of not taking an active role in the mobility ecosystem could be very big. Public transport will always be the most effective way of moving people (in terms of carbon footprint, cost, environment, etc.), but to stay relevant, it needs to be fully integrated with the city and people’s lifestyles. Most people will stay in their door-to-door self-driving taxi if they know that the train is going to be late, dirty or noisy, even if doing that costs more and creates congestion in the city. People will also keep owning their own cars if it’s complicated to mix modes during the week. To be relevant, public transport must be where the customers are.
What is the most exciting development within MaaS and combined mobility at the moment?
The dawning and humbling insight that this is complex and that there isn’t one big solution that fits all cities. We believe in a franchising model, where we can support local operators with what can be replicated (e.g. part of technical and business platforms) and then share cost and knowledge across a wider network. In this new model, public transport authorities will play different roles.
What does “The Art of Public Transport” mean to you?
Public transport is an integral part of the Art of the City and of the people living – and moving – in it. It is about mobility, but also about connecting places and lives. And without the Art of Public Transport, the Art of MaaS is not sustainable in either the social, environmental or economic dimension.
Mobility as a Service and the new combined mobility paradigm is one of the seven main topics of the Summit. Want to discover the full programme? Download the full brochure for the UITP Summit!
Are you a Mobility Designer just like Hans? Take the quiz and find out!
