Mobility and supply in the region
The study serves to answer the question of whether passenger transport and logistics can be combined in rural, structurally weak areas, and if so, under what conditions.
Due to the lack of good public (local) transport in rural regions, there are already numerous systems of demand-orientated transport which are moderately accepted by the population. So-called micro public transport systems can cover the basic mobility needs in smaller municipalities and create a connection to the surrounding infrastructure for people without a driving licence or their own car.
At the same time, resources are available that could also be used for logistics (supply journeys and courier services) in the region. The regular journeys in the structurally weak regions should be used for the transport of both people and goods in order to ensure basic supplies cost-effectively and efficiently.
The evaluation of the requirements for a system for the simultaneous and combined transport of passengers and goods raises legal, technical and numerous organisational questions, which are examined as part of the study.
Optimised route planning for efficient fleet deployment © AIT, route optimisation
Results of the Project and Evaluation
The project is divided into two work packages (WP), which produce the following results:
WP 1 deals with the exploration of the legal framework and answers the question of whether the joint transport of people and goods is permissible and, if so, under what conditions.
The organisational requirements for feasibility are also relevant. The focus here is on the necessity of the various processes that are required and the organisational forms into which these must be integrated.
The third focus of the work package provides answers to the question of technical feasibility and the requirements for implementation.
The following results are defined in WP II:
- regional requirements and demand
- Definition of possible scenarios
- Potential analysis for scenarios in cross-over transport
On the basis of the needs identified and the regional requirements, scenarios are defined and subjected to a potential analysis in order to create a decision-making basis for the further procedure and, if necessary, a pilot operation.
Outlook
Goods transport of various kinds (collection or delivery of regional products, parcel delivery, trips to pharmacies, etc.) could be simplified and offered more widely in rural areas by interconnecting or linking existing passenger transport systems and logistics services. At the same time, this could lead to better utilisation of existing capacities, support regional value creation and contribute to a reduction in empty runs and empty kilometres. If the results of the study are positive, a subsequent pilot project is planned to verify the feasibility in practice.
