[New Wave] Preparing for the Full-Scale 'MaaS' Era in the Post-Corona Period

Manager Kim, an office worker, needs to travel from his office in Yeouido, Seoul to the Sejong Government Complex for a business trip. When he inputs the departure and arrival locations into a smartphone map app, various routes such as rail, express bus, and intercity bus are recommended, and the system provides the travel time and estimated fare for each route. When Manager Kim selects the route using the KTX, detailed directions are provided, including how far to walk from the office to which bus stop, which bus to take, and how to get to the train station.

Before internet navigation services existed, people had to acquire information about travel routes one by one through experience or advice from acquaintances. Otherwise, out of convenience, they would simply drive their private cars even for long distances. Compared to those times, it has certainly become more convenient.

However, there are still some shortcomings. Up to now, users have had to enter separate apps for rail, air, and express bus services to check schedules, make reservations, and complete payments. Even if they want to take a taxi to the station, they must call one through a separate app.

For several years, the term MaaS (Mobility as a Service) has been frequently mentioned in mobility services. MaaS refers to a service where a single platform integrally provides all transportation modes needed for travel. With technological advancements enabling real-time processing and integration of large volumes of data, platforms can now combine different transportation modes to offer consumers a one-stop service.

In the world of MaaS, the moment a user selects one of the recommended routes, all reservations and payments for the transportation modes within that route are completed at once. Not only traditional transportation modes but also electric bicycles, electric scooters, car-sharing, and rental car services can be used integrally.

When MaaS evolves one step further, subscription-based services become possible. A representative example is the Whim platform promoted by the Helsinki government in Finland. By paying a fixed monthly fee, users can freely use various transportation modes within a certain area on a subscription basis.

MaaS provides consumers with a seamless and convenient travel experience that makes it unnecessary to use private cars. Reducing private car usage has been a common challenge for almost all cities worldwide. To solve social costs caused by traffic congestion, energy consumption issues, greenhouse gas emissions, and climate change, the world has focused on MaaS. However, last year, an unexpected obstacle appeared: COVID-19. As the pandemic prolonged, people who felt uneasy about public transportation inevitably drove private cars more than before.

However, with the start of vaccinations, the tunnel of COVID-19 that troubled us for a long time is now heading toward an exit. When we return to daily life, we must tackle the MaaS challenge that has been put on hold.

Domestic leading mobility service company Kakao Mobility launched 'Kakao T Train' in February within the KakaoT app, which has 28 million subscribers, enabling railway ticket reservations. This adds a long-distance metropolitan service to existing services such as taxi, navigation, designated driver, parking, electric bicycles, shuttles, and intercity buses.

With Kakao T Train, users can book and pay for desired train tickets by simply entering the initial departure and arrival points without knowing the nearest train station or route information. It guides users on public transportation routes to the train station and connects to taxi calls if necessary. Although it is still premature to call it full-scale, it is a meaningful step toward MaaS.

Kakao Mobility plans to integrate more services related to mobility contexts into its platform in the future. Other mobility companies such as T Map Mobility, T Money, and SoCar are also restarting preparations for the full-scale MaaS era. We look forward to a new era where MaaS takes responsibility for fast and comfortable travel, replacing private cars.

Jaeho Lee, Director of Digital Economy Research Institute, Kakao Mobility