The Problem
Cities are growing – and fast. By 2050, it’s predicted that 75 percent of the world’s population will be urban dwellers: There will be more cities – and much bigger ones. To function, these cities each depend on mobility across all modes including public transit, private vehicles on toll roads, highways and bridges, car and bicycle share, taxis, etc.
People must get from home to work efficiently, and urban transportation in all its forms is critical to ensuring this happens. However, there are severe restrictions prohibiting many of the possible solutions that could otherwise accommodate this growth.
In many cities, especially in the developed world, it is not physically possible to enlarge stations, platforms or toll plazas.This will place enormous pressure on the urban transportation system; both government-run and privatized, to find ways to solve these problems.
The Challenges
As the leading integrator of payment and information technology and services for intelligent travel solutions worldwide, we believe to truly understand the challenges facing cities and their transportation infrastructures.
The challenges we have identified are:
- Systems are under-integrated and custom-built.
- Massive quantities of available information are not used effectively for region-wide planning.
- Effectively use "always-on" personal mobile devices to improve the quality of travel experiences and shape demand and behavior citywide.
- Changing behavior citywide across all travel modes and using price and incentives as market drivers.
The Solution
The NextCity vision is built on a model for real-time data gathered across a transportation network.
It is comprised of solutions that leverage our technology and services expertise, weaving together state-of-the-art technologies that include smart devices, contactless and open payments, mobile communications, advanced business systems, and big data:
- Account-Based Transaction Processing: An aggregating system to calculate settlement payments according to mode and operator
- Data Management: A system for extracting and interpreting critical information from devices and systems across the city
- Customer Management: A system for distributing that information meaningfully to customers for their benefit
- Financial Accounting: A clearing and settlement system to ensure all modes are paid for equitably
- Open APIs: A suite of mobile apps and mobile cloud services
The Results
NextCity provides a roadmap for a coordinated framework - using legacy and emerging payment methods and information systems to integrate all travel, payment, customer experience, operations, and analytic information in the regions for all modes of transportation.
Ultimately, the NextCity vision offers a set of powerful tools to address fundamental issues facing cities and transportation operators today and represents the future of urban transportation.
