Good practice:

Mobilfalt

Mobilfalt is a pilot project that aims to combine public transport and individual transport. On the one hand, this is intended to ensure efficient public transport and, on the other hand, to respond to the financial challenges of public services. By supplementing the existing regular transport, call-collecting taxi and community bus services, private journeys can provide better mobility for citizens in rural areas. They are implemented in the existing fare and interval offer. Private journeys, whether regular or irregular, can be posted via an online portal. The driver receives a flat rate per kilometre, while a trip is charged according to distance. Participants can register by phone or online, verification takes place at the town hall, at a local department or at the tourist information office. If a ride is not available, it will be replaced by a taxi or community transport. Each trip is supplemented online in the regular timetable, sometimes a 10-minute interval can be reached. The participation process has taken on a special significance in the implementation. In selected pilot communities, local politicians and opinion leaders were recruited and trained as "start helpers". These were to promote the project and remove and overcome barriers. Furthermore, locally limited cinema advertising was placed.

A good participation process is crucial for Mobilfalt. On-site help and a high level of acceptance before the start of operation are important to ensure that trips are available and Mobilfalt can be used. A legal coordination is still necessary.

After one year, in 2014 Mobilfalt had 700 participants and 100 drivers. Altogether 4000 rides with 4600 passengers were completed. Until then, the share of private journeys had been around 10 percent; in the long term, up to 30 percent is targeted. In some areas, a 10-minute cycle can be achieved. To date, 2291 trips with 2073 passengers have been completed in the city of Witzenhausen alone.

Due to the multifaceted participation process involving local advocates, the campaign is complex in many ways on several levels.

As many rural regions are struggling with increasing urban sprawl or migration, the potential for more flexible modes of operation embedded in a participatory process seems to be trying out. A direct comparison of different regions can be of great interest. Under which aspects ridesharing models are successful and how they are accepted is of central interest to sharpen the offer and the participation process.