6.1 Framework definition
We defined an MSG framework based on the political goal, status quo analysis, stakeholder workshops and legal system. Unlike many of the various existing definitions of mobility guarantees (c.f. Sect. 2), our definition does not focus on one particular aspect such as financial compensations but tries to address the political goal of a holistic approach in a comparable manner to the mobility acts in Berlin and France.
The analysis of current PT coverage demonstrates that a considerable number of people in Austria is not served by public transport at the moment (up to 20%), which shows the need for strong measures on the supply side of traditional PT infrastructure and services. In the Austrian context considering the “nationwide” aspect, particular attention has to be paid to the area outside of major cities, where the level of PT coverage is currently low (c.f. Sect. 3).
There are different expectations among professionals concerning the extent of a nationwide MSG, regarding the general goal of such a guarantee and spatial differences (see Sect. 4). They see the need to differentiate between cities and rural areas and pointed out the limitations of covering very remote areas of the country with such a guarantee. We address this by defining varying parameters for cities and rural areas in different scenarios (see Sect. 7).
Both, professionals and everyday users emphasized the need to consider accessibility, affordability, clarity and simplicity of tariff and booking with regard to the MSG.
Reflecting these findings, we understand the goal of the nationwide MSG is threefold:
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1.
To ensure a sufficient level of mobility services as a condition for equal participation of the population in public life without owning a car (provision of general interest/social or socio-political dimension)
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2.
To provide non-discriminatory access to these mobility services for everyday journeys (special consideration of barrier-free access)
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3.
To create an incentive to switch to sustainable forms of mobility (environmental dimension)
The mobility services under the MSG are to be provided in a safe and reliable way to all at non-discriminatory conditions and affordable prices in a certain minimum quality.
In order to reach these goals, certain foundations should be part of the nationwide MSG that we explain with reference to the three legal layers. Regarding the first layer, a sufficient provision and maintenance of transport infrastructure has to be guaranteed for PT and for active modes (e.g., bike lanes and bicycle parking facilities, as well as footpaths and sidewalks) in a certain level of quality. While the infrastructure for PT forms a foundation for the PT services (see below), the provision of high-quality infrastructure for active modes has twofold relevance to MSG: one is to assure the mobility on foot and with bicycles for door-to-door travels, which strongly contributes to the goal 3 above (environmental dimension), while ensuring goal 1 (social dimension) at the same time. The second relevance is to ensure the access to PT services; this is also strongly related to the goal 3 in that the secure access to PT services incentivises the use of it, and eventually ensure the goals 1 and 2, too.
The second layer (PT services) is where the core part of MSG is anchored in the legal system. The MSG itself will serve as a basis to provide a certain minimum level of PT service throughout the country, available to all persons living or working within defined settlement areas. Several parameters will have to be set such as a maximum distance to PT stops or minimum density of PT stops, frequency of services and operating hours. These parameters may vary depending on regional characteristics and further details have to be researched and discussed in the future. In the description of scenarios below, we provide first suggestions.
In addition to PT services themselves, the possibility of compensation for cancelled services or missed connections, similar to the existing form, may also be incorporated into the MSG and could be extended to DRT and car-pooling services.
Related to the third layer of broker services, the MSG will ensure a framework for the development of open and neutral mobility platforms that provide information and brokerage of transport services in a non-discriminatory and undistorted manner. This means that no particular service provider should be preferred in any of such mobility platforms and all platforms should have access to the information from all service providers. Additionally, the MSG may incorporate platforms providing a way to network private vehicles for car-pooling.
6.2 Limitations
As described above, The MSG primarily covers everyday trips of people who live and/or work in Austria. It applies to the physical mobility of persons, and “virtual” mobility such as video-conferencing and mobility of goods (e.g., grocery deliveries) are out of the scope. Occasional trips (e.g., tourism) and virtual mobility as well as freight transport share many aspects with everyday mobility and could be beneficial for the sustainability goals; however, within the scope of this research, which serves as the first gedankenexperiment (thought experiment) towards MSG, we limited the scope to everyday mobility of persons so that the essential goals of MSG are addressed in the most direct manner.
In light of the social and sustainability goals (goals 1 and 3), private motorized transport is excluded from the MSG. The MSG considers only PT (both regular ones and DRT), as well as cycling and walking, mainly as a feeder mode for PT. Nevertheless, the guarantee may also apply to car-pooling services, in order to help increase vehicle occupancy rates of private cars as a kind of “bridging service” during the transition period. As it will take a long time to implement measures to realize the defined service level fulfilling MSG, it is reasonable to tap into the potential of reducing car trips through pooling in the earlier transition period until the final service level of an MSG will have been achieved nationwide. Nevertheless, a potential rebound effect at later stages of transition to full service under MSG must be taken into consideration in that pooling services might lead to more attractive car trips than available PT.
In our proposed definition, the MSG may cover the provision of mobility platforms for carpooling, but not the ones for vehicle sharing as well as not the provision of vehicle sharing services per se. With the currently known forms of vehicle sharing services (e.g., station-based and free-floating services), it is not possible to guarantee the availability of vehicles in the outside of densely populated areas throughout the country. In addition, vehicle sharing calling for driver’s license (e.g., car sharing) cannot be used by those who do not possess it. Such services would exclude children, elderly people and others who are not capable or allowed to drive by themselves and therefore do not fulfil the aforementioned non-discriminatory goal of MSG (goal 2). Furthermore, in light of the sustainability goal (goal 3), free-floating vehicle sharing services are known to encourage the use of private motorized modes [4, 28]. Thus, vehicle sharing is out of the scope of MSG, but it is still a welcome addition to MSG.
There are further aspects that are important to consider in relation to MSG but beyond the scope of this study. This includes the comfort and added-value services of PT (e.g., ambient design, air conditioning on board) as well as disruption management. Another important issue is the cohesion between MSG and spatial planning. Travel needs derive from the dispersion of uses in space. Therefore, a supporting strategy for minimizing travel needs could be to provide more mixed use areas with services such as grocery stores and doctors in rural areas, in contrast to providing mobility services to reach such uses further away. Those aspects will have to be expanded upon in further research on the topic.