In the public transport sector, accessing the “last mile” – i.e. the journey from the stop to the destination or home – is critical for customer acceptance. If this distance is too long, people prefer to get into the car instead of using the existing public transport. Automated minibuses can significantly improve the attractiveness of public transport as a local feeder.
The trend towards automation in the transport sector is increasingly recording public transport. Here the opening up of the last mile – the path from a railway station to the driving area and vice versa – has repeatedly been a critical aspect of customer acceptance. Micro-ÖV systems, ie feeder services to existing public transport, have led to a quality improvement, particularly in the rural areas in recent years. However, the operation of micro-public transport systems is either cost-intensive or based on volunteer services. As a result, the roll-out of such systems is currently not possible in all areas. Automated passenger transport systems – highly automated vehicles or autonomous minibuses – can enable novel micro-public transport systems, which can be used primarily for the development of rural regions or urban districts.
