Search

• Assess interest in various MaaS subscription bundles using Sydney trial data. • Establish the role of financial savings on MaaS bundle uptake. • Identify key drivers of user's choices between subscriptions and PAYG. • MaaS with PAYG option only is unlikely to grow the market. • MaaS could obtain a sizeable uptake with appropriate incentive and subscription bundles. Australia's first Mobility as a Service (MaaS) trial commenced in April 2019 in Sydney. A key objective of the trial is to assess interest in various MaaS subscription plans through bundling public transport, ride share, car share and car rental with varying financial discounts and monthly subscription fees, in contrast to pay as you go (PAYG). This paper develops a mixed logit choice model to investigate the participants' choice between PAYG and four subscription plans (or bundles) that were incrementally introduced over a 5-month period. This is the first paper to model real uptake as previous studies are based on stated preference data. New evidence is provided on what role financial savings, estimated using tracking technology embedded in the MaaS app, play in the context of modal offerings and a monthly subscription fee as well as socio-demographic and seasonal effects. Behaviourally, we present evidence on the extent of take up of each bundle relative to PAYG as well as elasticity estimates for all exogenous influences and estimates of willingness to pay and scenario assessment, particularly for how much someone would have to save over a previous month's cost outlay to be willing to subscribe to a particular bundle in a subsequent month. Within the context of the trial, the findings suggest a substantial market for mobility bundles but PAYG is an option preferred by many, particularly those with varying travel needs. We are, however, not in a position yet to conclude that these choices necessarily align with a contribution to societal sustainability goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diet-related chronic diseases are a major health problem faced by developed and developing countries. Although individuals’ dietary patterns are often associated with varied psychological and socioeconomic factors, built environment factors can be important determinants of food choices. Whilst there is some evidence to suggest a link between access to food and food consumption, it remains unclear how a wider range of built environment factors influence residents’ food choices. A deeper understanding of these relationships could reveal under-researched aspects of a healthy built environment. This paper explores how residents in inner Sydney neighborhoods access food and investigates how characteristics of the built environment influence their food choices. Eighteen participants, representing a range of ethnic backgrounds and levels of income, were selected for in-depth interviews. Several urban barriers to healthy food consumption were identified through analysis. Distance, land use and urban form, in particular, shape the food choices of individuals in different ways. These findings have implications for urban planning and policy making for healthy cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We are told that electric vehicles, cars in particular, will be good for the environment. But what exactly might this mean? It is true that end use emissions will be significantly reduced when we move from fossil fuels to green energy sources? Assuming that the demand for such cars, including battery electric vehicles (BEVs) in particular will grow, we can expect a significant number of such vehicles manufactured in future years. Given the potentially relatively lower cost (fewer moving parts) compared to internal combustion engine vehicles as well as the significantly lower usage costs per kilometre, we would expect a level of uptake that could impact on the performance of the road network (perhaps increased congestion and crash risk) but also a concomitant reduced use of public transport and fuel excise loss. In this paper, we apply the MetroScan modelling system in the Greater Sydney Metropolitan Area (GSMA) over the period 2021–2056 to identify the likely impact that the growth in BEV ownership and use will have on vehicle kilometres, modal shares, government revenues, levels of CO 2 emissions and other impacts. Moreover, we investigate the introduction of a BEV usage charge proposed in Australia to see what it might do to these key performance indicators and whether it can offset the adverse effects during BEV uptake such as government fuel excise revenue loss and increased congestion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]