Society is changing and with it consumer habits. The revolution goes from the replacement of supermarket shopping trolleys with virtual carts to the option of sharing cars with strangers instead of taking public transport. In the case of mobility, the future is still at such an early stage that any proposal still deserves a hearing. And that goes from projects to improve public transport, such as the unification of Barcelona's trams, to the announcement made by Uber this week saying it will resume operations in Spain.
The different alternatives have led the authorities and society to talk about the sharing economy, efficiency and sustainability, but everything must first be put on the table. Information is required, listening to the needs of users, providing solutions and creating a regulatory framework. Also debate, as happened in a day-conference organised by Sharing España and Adigital for some of the main carsharing companies and business proposals looking to become this valid alternative to Catalonia's mobility system.
Adapting to new demans
Drivy and Amovens are two of the services offering car rental between private individuals. Both companies operate all over Europe and come out of the change of dynamic that has brought the new generations into the market. "They are people who use public transport or bicycles so as not to have to own a car," says country manager for Spain of Drivy, Jaume Suñol. However, the Amovens COO, Pablo Carrión, adds that it is a type of user who models his or her new business according to its use.
Carrión explains that the start-up began with a service similar to that of BlaBlaCar, sharing trips, but that it has had to adapt to the demand and also offer vehicle hire. Even though this turns it into another platform offering this service, he thinks that the "flexibility and convenience"in finding cars nearby is what makes the business viable, despite the increasing competition. "And the best thing is that that way we know we will find someone who lives close by," he points out, "there is no need to go to a specific office or to the airport, we can be in a mid-way point because there is flexibility".
Saving money is another factor in the rise of the transport sharing economy. "The people who have a car parked 90% of the time can earn some extra money", Suñol argues, going on to add that ownership "is not a bad thing, but rather a case of coexistence between rental and ownership". "We P2Ps do not want to get rid of ownership, we want to rationalise it", he stresses.
Regulation, the origin of discord
The criticisms of taxi driver against Uberhave made regulation seem like an obstacle to the sector, but that does not mean that the authorities reject new players in the market. That is according to the head of the Àrea d'Instrucció d'Expedients from the Autoritat Catalana de la Competència, Susanna Grau, who recognises that in the mobility sector regulation is "too restrictive" and that the entry of new platforms is helping to make it more flexible. "However, abuse needs to be avoided," she warns.
For Grau, "the sharing economy is important because it has put competitive pressure on projects and because it has led to innovation and new options for users." Thus, she stresses the role of her competition agency as a bridge between the authorities and companies: "We now have the option of getting rid of rules that go against free competition. We no longer just make simple recommendations on the consequences of restrictive laws, we have more involved mechanisms." And, she explains, the European Union itself is dealing with the conflict so that governments rethink their focus. It is a whiff of hope for services that want to establish themselves and grow.
Applying open date to transport
"Uber and Hailo are in the end just VTC services –vehicle rental with a driver- which is more of the same," says the director of Innovació at the Ajuntament de Barcelona, Àngel López. He thinks that one of the great challenges for the mobility sector is "creating true innovation", which is something he considers very different from the "innovation to improve" that we are seeing at the moment, or the trend of "looking for gaps that are currently out of bounds."
The mass use of Big Data could become the driver for this innovation. That is what the senior business development manager at CartoDB, Miquel Nieto, thinks. The Spanish start-up analyses and visualises geospatial data to apply to the management of bus fleets, among other things. It is a tool that has been used in Barcelona to work out where and when transactions took place in restaurants and shops during the Mobile World Congress. "The IoT and Big Data produce a lot of Excel spreadsheets overloaded with data; we want to help draw conclusions from this information to improve services," says Nieto.
The recommendation appeals directly to a better management of resources by the authorities and a practical application of information. Although it seems easy, López prefers to be cautious: "I do not know if councils can be asked to have more data than what can be used or taken on." He also argues that it is the data that has to adapt to innovation and its application, and not the other way round. "First we need to think what we have to go on to look for, because no doubt the data is available," he concludes.
Moreover, he thinks that the city of Barcelona already has a good public transport system, as well as a taxi service "that is perhaps exclusive, but under public regulation," which leads him to argue that the future model is not just about private companies. "Uber does not guarantee night buses or trips to the airport," he points out, adding "trust can have more value than a legal guarantee, but I do not agree with there being mobility needs without cover."
And the electric vehicle?
It is taking some time, but it is arriving, both cars and motorbikes. That is why it is not unreasonable to opt for new start-ups like eCooltra or Electromaps, one a service for hiring electric scooters by the minute and the other a provider of information about electric vehicles.
But it is not limited to entrepreneurs, as platforms like Live, led by the Ajuntament de Barcelona with public and private support, are working to give users more information and to create an infrastructure that reaches new electric vehicles. It is a field that is still being defined and that has still not reached a turning point, and providing education through a sharing model has not been ruled out. "More maturity of the business system is needed and to see what the best way to get into it is, perhaps P2P is a good option," reflects Live's technical secretary, Eva Español.
Burger King and Just Eat have already gone over to the electric model, specifically delivering with eCooltra motorbikes. "They manage their fleets easily; it works and is profitable for them," says the director of the start-up, Tomàs Megía, to the point that they are thinking of extending it to private use through the option of motorbike sharing so as to reduce costs.
Electric vehicles are expensive and need plenty more charging stations in cities and between large cities. "To go from Barcelona to Madrid is a two-day trip because you have to keep an eye on the battery and stop whenever you find a charging station," is the example given by the CEO of Electromaps, Xavier Cañadell, who adds that "the lack of a strong infrastructure is the main barrier to users accepting the electric vehicle."