Mobility as a Service (MaaS) Market

Potential Profitability Drives Proliferation of MaaS Demand

The Mobility as a Service (MaaS) Market is valued at USD 7.4 Bn in 2026 and is projected to reach USD 42.1 Bn,  growing at a CAGR of 28% by 2033.Mobility, a fundamental human need, is the key enabler of economic and social prosperity. While mobility has been on a constant revolution over centuries, each stage of the revolution has a different set of challenges to face. The challenges include truly crucial issues - the ever-increasing population (expected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050), rapid urbanization (two-thirds of people will live in cities – a figure 60% higher than the number today), megacities (41 mega cities with at least 10 million residents), congestion (liveability and accessibility issues), and pollution (impact of CO₂ emissions and the consumption of limited resources). Demographic and social trends continue to place an additional pressure on an already strained transport system.

Moreover, urban areas are witnessing rapid emergence of new transportation models that offer bundled transportation options as a service (removing the need for private vehicle ownership). Mobility as a service (MaaS) provides everything to the commuter - from travel planning to payments. With brisk emergence of MaaS, riders can embark on personalized and optimized transportation routes using a variety of different transportation modes, viz. cars, trains, and scooters. Global MaaS market is on the rise as MaaS offers seamless mobility to end users in addition to providing economic, societal, transport-related, and environmental benefits to future cities.

Rising Technology Integration Adds to Application Potential of MaaS

Amidst complexities in transportation, numerous opportunities continue to spring up on the back of technological sophistication, such as ridesharing, autonomous pod, autonomous vehicles, and driverless vehicles. Newer avenues such as drone delivery are surfacing the horizon and gaining popularity especially among shipping companies. The future of transport is getting integrated. Technology will provide a single platform for numerous smart and intelligent commute services. Players seek technologies to improve their service level. Digital proliferation, smartphone penetration, connected devices in Internet of Things, smart sensors and machine learning are the salient aspects that lunge smart transportation. This is paving the way for emergence and establishment of a commuter-centric model of transportation that offers on-demand, real-time platform.

The most sought-after application of MaaS would be its ability to enable commuters to plan their journey seamlessly within lesser time, at reduced costs, and improved comfort level. The method to be effective however depends on many variables including rides per day, distance travelled, and cost per trip. A continuous shift in consumer expectations and newly sprawling opportunities along with the transportation revolution will accelerate the progress of MaaS market at a global level. However, the growth of MaaS market can be hampered by operational requirements and revenue.

MaaS Market Suffers due to Pandemic-driven Social Distancing Measures

The global mobility as a service market is expected to face hinderance over the next few years as the current pandemic situation has forced people to follow stringent regulations related to social distancing. This has led to a shift away from public transport and more preference will possibly be seen for private conveyance. Lyft and Uber have witnessed massive ride drops due to COVID-19 pandemic. Concerns related to spread of the virus along with work from home shift has declined the demand for public transport. This negative impact has caused a revenue decline, causing the mobility as a service market to suffer the loss to a measurable extent. Preference for personal mobility solution is likely to dent the rapid expansion of MaaS market over the next few years.

Government Initiatives over Alternative Transportation Choices to Bolster Demand for Ride Hailing Segment

Supportive settings must be created to encourage commuting via public transport. Mobility service providers and transport and regional authorities are the key actors, whereas governments are the enablers here. For instance, German government is considering provision of public transport free of cost in cities suffering from air quality problems.

Ride hailing segment is expected to lead the global market as ride hailing is widely used at all levels ranging from enterprise use to personal use as it delivers ease of booking, passenger convenience and comfort, and reduced traffic congestion. Governments’ initiative to reduce air pollution along with growing consumer awareness regarding the same will boost the demand for ridesharing, specifically e-hailing. Ride hailing is widely becoming popular as it can be easily integrated with numerous modes of transport. For instance, Moovit Inc., partnered with Uber to study real-time traffic management. The latter is entering MaaS market by extending its ride hailing services with mobility services.

Asia Pacific Forerunner in Global MaaS Market; European Cities Pioneering Adoption Trend

Asia Pacific leads the global MaaS market, which is attributable to the region’s swelling urbanization and escalating demand for efficient transportation. Key economies of the region are primarily focusing on canny mobility to reduce routine congestion and travel time. However, improved 5G infrastructure will most likely boost the regional MaaS market in the near future. Hong Kong currently leads the pack of 100 major cities on the Sustainable Cities Mobility Index from Arcadis. Two other Asian cities, Seoul and Singapore, are also featured in the top-10 of this list. On the other hand, the rest of the top-10 is dominated by European cities, including Zürich, Paris, Prague, Vienna, London, Stockholm, and Frankfurt.

Partnerships Remain Preferred; Innovative Launches Take Front Seat amid Competition in MaaS Market

Prominent companies driving competition in the global mobility as a service market are involved in offering a wide array of MaaS. With established, stronger distribution networks, these companies are expected to rely more on traditional growth strategies such as strategic collaborations and partnerships. M&A will also remain a preferred move of top companies playing in the marketplace.

MaaS Global Ltd. announced its partnership with Enfuce Finland’s largest fintech company recently, in May 2020, over the launch of a card payment service in Whim, an all-inclusive app of the former. This partnership enabled the company to issue Mastercard prepaid cards. Similarly, SkedGo Pty Ltd, in May 2020, launched a new alert to its MaaS app amid the global COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID alert helps commuters to learn about both the crowded and less crowded routes so as to facilitate their choice of alternative transport forms and routes.

Some of the key players operating in the global MaaS market include 

• Uber Technologies Inc.
• Lyft, Inc.
• Didi Chuxing Technology Co., Ltd.
• MaaS Global Ltd. (Whim)
• Moovit (Intel Corporation)
• Grab Holdings Inc.
• Ola Cabs (ANI Technologies Pvt. Ltd.)
• Citymapper
• BlaBlaCar
• Careem Networks FZ-LLC
• Bolt Technology OÜ
• Siemens Mobility
• Cubic Corporation
• Trafi Ltd.
• Transdev SA

By Service

• Ride-Hailing
• Car Sharing
• Micro-Mobility
• Bus Sharing
• Train Services

By Business Model

• Business-To-Business
• Business-To-Consumer
• Peer-To-Peer

By Solution type

• Technology Platforms
• Payment Engines
• Navigation Solutions
• Telecom Connectivity Providers
• Ticketing Solutions
• Insurance Services

By Transporation type

• Private
• Public

By Vehicle type

• Buses
• Four-Wheelers
• Micro-Mobility
• Trains

By Application type

• Personalized Application Services
• Journey Management
• Journey Planning
• Flexible Payments & Transactions

By Operating System

• Android
• iOS
• Others

By Propulsion Type

• ICE
• EV
• Hybrid electric
• CNG/LPG

By Payment Type

• Subscription
• Pay-as-you-go

By Commute Type

• Daily
• Last mile connectivity
• Occasional

By Region

• North America
• Europe
• Asia Pacific
• Latin America
• Middle East and Africa