Two-Thirds of People Don't Believe They Will Have The Transportation Flexibility to Meet Future Needs

NEW YORK, June 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The R/GA Future of Mobility Report shows that two-thirds of vehicle owners globally (67%) feel they will not have flexible transportation options in the future, even with the rise of new forms of mobility. This poses new opportunities in addition to new risks for automotive incumbents, who face a threat of losing direct access to customer relationships with the decline of car ownership.

According to the report, two-thirds (66%) of personal vehicle owners and eight in ten (82%) of leases are willing to give up their vehicles in favor of Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) over the next 10 years. For this reason, the automotive industry and service providers can play an even more prominent role by reshaping their mobility services and products to avoid being commoditized to earn a valuable role in people's lives.

The key findings of the report are:

• While 91% of personal vehicle owners said their vehicles give them a sense of freedom, 75% wish they could drive their personal vehicle less.
• 66% of personal vehicle owners and 82% of leases are willing to give up their vehicles in favor of MaaS over the next 10 years.
• Car sharing is estimated to reach 36 million users by 2025, and the usership from ride-hailing and taxi services alone has grown to 1.4 billion customers.
• Global mobility service revenue is expected to grow to $1298B by 2024 from $616.1B in 2020.

Ashish Prashar, Global Chief Marketing Officer of R/GA, stated, "We take "mobility" for granted, it's synonymous with transportation, but moving stuff and people is a basic description. Mobility is more than that. It's about access. Getting to places necessary for living a healthy life – your job, school, community centers, and parks. Living by a bus that comes once an hour isn't mobility. And owning a car in a city with congested highways isn't mobility, either."

Prashar added, "Mobility isn't just having access to one mode of transportation. Mobility is having transportation options and the quality of those options. The future of mobility will require investment in infrastructure. More Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) as a reflection of the diversity of consumer lifestyles. It's now more important than ever for transportation companies to make space for connected people-first experiences that allow for a differentiated brand offering."

Consumers' emerging needs and mobility behavior
The shift toward accessing mobility services is projected to accelerate as consumers' lifestyles adapt, creating a need for more flexible mobility options. The emergence of Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) has been accelerated by congestion in cities, high traffic, ease of parking, and the personalization of mobility services. The emergence of Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) has become an efficient and reliable means of transport due to flexible mobility options to suit consumer's needs and living conditions.

MaaS provides freedom, but there are two primary barriers to adoption
Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) provides consumers with the inefficient costs of personal vehicle ownership, door-to-door transport, and dynamic, personalized options to suit consumers' evolving travel needs. Consumers who use MaaS services more frequently become more likely to see MaaS options as a viable replacement for their vehicles. The desire to switch to its services is not unique to urban consumers. 86% of all vehicle owners globally, including those in suburban and rural environments, want to try new transportation options. The two remaining barriers to consumers' using MaaS more frequently indicated are "lack of availability in my area" (35%) and "safety concerns" (35%).

Brand as an Operating System: mobility players who own the consumer relationship will play an outsized role as the MaaS ecosystem mature
Brands must facilitate seamless integration and access to other brand services within their own consumer experience to drive recurring value. 83% of vehicle owners globally consider access to multiple services on an easy-to-use app experience to be a factor when deciding to use a MaaS service more than once. Although an easy-to-navigate app experience that provides access to multiple services drives the continued use of a MaaS brand's service, it is important that all the connections feel relevant to the brand curating the experience.

Download the full report at http://rga.com/futurevision/future-of-mobility.

About R/GA
R/GA is an atypical innovation design and communications company. We help brands and businesses define, connect with, and create more human futures. Our work spans innovation consulting, org design, brand design, experience design, and marketing communications.

R/GA is part of The Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE: IPG), one of the world's largest innovation and marketing services organizations, and has more than 1600 employees globally, with 16 offices across the United States, Europe, South America, and Asia-Pacific. For more information about R/GA, please visit www.rga.com, or follow @rga on Twitter.

Research Methodology
In fielding our survey, R/GA set out to better understand the shifting landscape of mobility services and car ownership. To do so, we surveyed vehicle owners to understand their views towards emerging MaaS players and personal vehicle ownership. We included users of four different types of mobility services in our survey: ride-hailing, car-sharing, scooter-sharing, and bike-sharing.

The survey was in the field from August 30 - September 30, 2020. The survey was translated into the predominant language spoken in each country. 5,084 customers were surveyed across 10 countries: China, Germany, Australia, Brazil, India, UK, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, and the USA. Categories fielded consisted of route finding, technology, ride-hailing, micro-mobility (bike-sharing), car sharing, and auto OEM.

SOURCE RGA