Moving towards car-free cities with Unwire

This month there has been a focus on the promotion of car-free cities with Car Free Day on September 22nd and European Mobility Week.

It is great to have events that focus the public and policy makers on this subject. However, the problem of how people can be encouraged to leave the car at home more is an ongoing one. Fewer cars in city centres means less pollution, safer roads, and faster journey times. But people still need to get to where they need to go. So how can people be encouraged to leave the car at home more or even go completely car-free on a long term basis?

The perceived barrier to being more or completely car-free is often the practical possibility of completing an entire journey using alternative transport. Or to know the multimodal forms of transportation available to you in any given city. The first and last mile part of a trip often being the sticking point, which leads people to feel more dependent on their cars.

For many cities, it is possible to encourage people out of their cars if the public transit agencies or cities have adopted a mobile mobility platform.

Mobile mobility platforms, such as ours, mean users have the chance to plan, book and pay for a variety of fully integrated services including traditional fixed routes, bike-sharing, e-scooter, and on-demand micro- and paratransit services and all through one app. This wide range of transport laid out all in one place makes the decision-making process much more manageable.

There is also the opportunity to pay for the entire journey via the app. This means there is less confusion about what tickets to buy, where to get them, or how to show the paid-for ticket to an inspector.

Of course, a huge part of breaking the cycle of car dependency is the availability of public transport options. However, even with those options available, it takes some work to encourage more motorists to consider choosing between using a car or getting onto public transit.

One way is to show how convenient and connected public transport is, as well as the integration of other multimodal options. With a high percentage of smartphone users in the world, one of the easiest ways to do this is for public transit agencies to adopt a mobile mobility platform.