It is one of the megatrends to secure mobility in our cities: the inclusion of "autonomous", i. e. automatically controlled, driverless vehicles in our traffic systems. In public transport, this was previously difficult to imagine, but now this vision of the future is already becoming reality - thanks to the cooperation of two leading innovators in this field.

Bestmile, the leading mobility services platform used to plan, manage, and optimise autonomous and human-driven vehicle fleets, and init, the leading supplier of integrated planning, dispatching, telematics and ticketing systems for bus and rail networks announced a partnership to incorporate driverless vehicles into public transport in order to provide fully integrated mobility solutions.

The companies will collaborate closely to integrate their respective backend software platforms to offer turnkey solutions that allow public transport operators to seamlessly connect autonomous mobility services with mass transit transportation networks.

Bestmile offers the only mobility services cloud platform that has demonstrated the ability to manage autonomous vehicle-agnostic mobility services with multi-modal integration in public transit. With more than 35 years of experience init has a unique understanding of public transit. This know-how is crucial for integrating innovative mobility offers into a strong mass transit backbone.

Its proven technology enables now to fully incorporate autonomous first and last-mile services into the central management tool of public transit providers - Intermodal Transport Control System (ITCS). "This allows public transport companies to offer an excellent and individual service, which also convinces economically", said Dirk Weißer, Head of Research for init.

Together, the companies develop mobility solutions for driverless vehicle fleets incorporated into traditional transportation systems including key components required in today's modern public transport environments such as real-time traveler information systems, planning or ticketing. The ability to integrate with public transit back end systems to synchronize schedules and optimize service performance is key.

"Autonomous first and last-mile services that bring travelers to and from transit hubs have the potential to make public transit more convenient and to open it up for significantly more passengers. Service providers can also cost-effectively reach new service areas that may not be suitable for larger vehicles. This leads to rising ridership and revenue," explains Dirk Weißer.

About Bestmile

Bestmile empowers mobility providers to deploy, manage and optimize autonomous and human-driven vehicle fleets, supporting fixed-route and on-demand services, regardless of the vehicle brand or type. Bestmile's mobility platform allows operators to support multi-modal, multi-service offerings in a safe and efficient manner by integrating autonomous vehicles in the existing transportation ecosystem. Bestmile's autonomous mobility service platform is being used daily in shared electric autonomous vehicles in pedestrian areas and public roads. Incorporated in 2014, Bestmile has global offices in San Francisco (USA) and Lausanne (Switzerland). For more information, visit www.bestmile.com.