Screenshot: A previous trip planning platform in the Atlanta region (released in 2014), "eligibility & accommodations" and DRT services were integrated (property of ARC)
Client Question:
How can the various on-demand transport (ODT) and demand-responsive transport (DRT) options across the Atlanta metro area, with a population of more than 6 million people, be unified so that riders can plan, book, and even pay for their trips more seamlessly across different ODT and DRT services as well as across the entire mobility system?
Civic Sphere worked with the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) in Atlanta, Georgia, USA in partnership with Nelson/Nygaard’s office in Boston, Massachusetts, USA in 2019-20. The project involved providing strategies to ARC to guide its process of unifying DRT and ODT services not only as a transport mode, but also with the other modes in the mobility system. Civic Sphere provided technology-related expertise throughout the project. Interviews and group discussions regarding the applicability and viability of various technology-related strategies and tactics were conducted with stakeholders.
The Atlanta region has a variety of DRT and ODT services for multiple reasons. First, the lower density (more rural) counties on the edge of the region often rely on DRT as the only public transport option. Second, there has been recent growth in the creation of new ODT services due in part to improvements in technology (leveraging software and apps similar to Uber, for example). Third, there is a long history of providing “specialized” DRT specifically for people with disabilities in connection with fixed route/guideway public transport (related to the “Americans with Disabilities Act” paratransit requirements).
Since many of these DRT/ODT options are geographically adjacent to each other, and also overlap with all the other mobility options in the Atlanta region, there is a need to enable riders to see all the options together during the trip planning process (through Google Maps, Moovit, etc.), book them together (for adjacent DRT/ODT options), and even pay for them together.
The answer? The data for these services should be standardized/made shareable as a start. The data should be displayed on all commonly used trip planning platforms. For the platforms that don’t include DRT/ORT options, the Atlanta region’s riders should have some means to see the entire mobility system for planning purposes at a minimum (such as through an updating of the Simply Get There project). In addition, work should be done to centralize booking and payment (or provide “collaborative” booking and payment between operators).
How can the various on-demand transport (ODT) and demand-responsive transport (DRT) options across the Atlanta metro area, with a population of more than 6 million people, be unified so that riders can plan, book, and even pay for their trips more seamlessly across different ODT and DRT services as well as across the entire mobility system?
Civic Sphere worked with the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) in Atlanta, Georgia, USA in partnership with Nelson/Nygaard’s office in Boston, Massachusetts, USA in 2019-20. The project involved providing strategies to ARC to guide its process of unifying DRT and ODT services not only as a transport mode, but also with the other modes in the mobility system. Civic Sphere provided technology-related expertise throughout the project. Interviews and group discussions regarding the applicability and viability of various technology-related strategies and tactics were conducted with stakeholders.
The Atlanta region has a variety of DRT and ODT services for multiple reasons. First, the lower density (more rural) counties on the edge of the region often rely on DRT as the only public transport option. Second, there has been recent growth in the creation of new ODT services due in part to improvements in technology (leveraging software and apps similar to Uber, for example). Third, there is a long history of providing “specialized” DRT specifically for people with disabilities in connection with fixed route/guideway public transport (related to the “Americans with Disabilities Act” paratransit requirements).
Since many of these DRT/ODT options are geographically adjacent to each other, and also overlap with all the other mobility options in the Atlanta region, there is a need to enable riders to see all the options together during the trip planning process (through Google Maps, Moovit, etc.), book them together (for adjacent DRT/ODT options), and even pay for them together.
The answer? The data for these services should be standardized/made shareable as a start. The data should be displayed on all commonly used trip planning platforms. For the platforms that don’t include DRT/ORT options, the Atlanta region’s riders should have some means to see the entire mobility system for planning purposes at a minimum (such as through an updating of the Simply Get There project). In addition, work should be done to centralize booking and payment (or provide “collaborative” booking and payment between operators).
