More people living in cities want to retain their independence through public transport. A growing number believe that one should make use of what is already available rather than bear the burden of owning a car. The trend of car-sharing and rental bikes within major German cities is on the rise. Moreover people prefer using dynamic mobility options within cities rather than queuing up in traffic jams and cruising around searching for a parking lot. We want to see cities turn “green” and play a role in forming sustainable environments. That is why we from Bosch Software Innovations are participating in a venture that is aimed at this target market. It is called Stuttgart Services.
The venture in detail
Stuttgarter Straßenbahn (SSB) is the leader of the project Stuttgart Services where we are technically responsible for the IT systems part and work together with nearly two dozen project partners. The participants share a common goal and are working on the next generation of integrated mobility services creating an opportunity for citizens to have easy access to eMobility and other city services with just one registration. The core element is the Stuttgart Service Card. It is essentially a combination of an e-ticket for public transport, a key to electric rental cars and bicycles and an identity document to access libraries and other public services, including payment options and bonus features.
The benefits
Card users are encouraged to use many different means of transport available. This enables a successful move to substitute traditional vehicles for environmentally-friendly ones, reducing unnecessary emissions. Access, usage and billing options will be made as easy as possible to increase appeal and make it a growing part of everyday life.
The central access system is the internet portal granting users information, booking options and other services. Either via website or app customers can have on-the-go accessibility to route planners for public transport and a location-tracker for rental cars and bikes.
The technical solution for this business ecosystem
The heart and soul of the project is our Services Brokering Platform which ensures that the solution is open for new partners and which is capable to support different services offerings for the various municipalities within the Stuttgart region.
Our aim is to make use of the existing standards with new interfaces, benefiting everyone. Having gained significant experience providing software platforms, we have created a base platform allowing connections to be made between the various providers. This makes including new project partners easier, regardless of the differences between their systems, data types or standard interfaces. All this technical effort goes on behind the scenes.
This is not completely new to us. Examples of other projects we are already involved include:
- The joint venture “Hubject”, which connects different charging station operators, energy providers and e-car manufacturers
- “Crome”, which is a standardized, provider-independent charging station network currently located around the French-German border region
The project Stuttgart Services will grant the key to intermodal mobility to at least 200,000 people. The project is part of the Electromobility Showcase in Baden-Wuerttemberg, an initiative of the German Federal Government.
The way of the future
In essence, intermodal mobility isn’t just the way of the future; it is the way of the “here and now”. And with so many available options, technologically speaking, we are able to reach out and change our tomorrow with one simple choice. The Stuttgart Service Card might just be a viable solution for everyday life.
Would you sign up for such a service? Do you have further services in mind that would make sense integrating?