A mobile application integrating all transport services in Brussels is in the works and will be released in around two years, Brussels' mobility minister said on Tuesday.
The Mobility as a Service (MaaS) app will seek to make commuters' lives easier by bundling different modes of public transport into a single app, and offering real-time data for users planning a trip.
Car users will also be targetted by the app, which will be able to offer users an estimate of the time and money that one trip will cost if done by car or public transport.
Tickets and travel passes from different modes of transport will also be grouped in MaaS, which will aim to implement a QR code feature in order to rid users of the need to subscribe to different services or buy different transport tickets, according to Bruzz.
With Brussels Mobility currently working out the legalities of the app with different transport stakeholders, Minister Elke Van den Brandt said that they were nearing an agreement on fees.
"We are almost done with the tariff integration, there is a proposal that the four companies can agree with," Van Den Brandt said, referring to the four public transport companies active in the Brussels-Capital Region, the SNCB/NMBS and STIB/MIVB as well as Wallonia's TEC and Flanders' De Lijn.
MaaS, which is already offering integrated transport services to city authorities across Europe, will also seek to integrate private transport providers, such as taxi or parking services, which will require an additional round of negotiations.
"I think the spirits are ripe," Van Den Brandt said, adding that she hoped that all parties could reach an agreement within two years' time in order to launch the application.
Gabriela Galindo
The Brussels Times
