NSW open to Ideas for On-demand Public Transport

Seeks innovation occurring in other world cities.

The NSW government is moving forward with its plans to trial “on-demand” public bus services next year, inviting proposals for “innovative models” that better match transport to demand.

The government said it is now accepting expressions of interest from “industry groups” that it hopes can be converted into a “series of pilots” for transport services that turn up as and when people need them.

The idea – in theory – is to allow commuters to use public transport in a similar way that they use other services.

“We have Netflix, Stan, and Foxtel to give us movies on demand – so why can’t we have our public transport respond to where people are and what they want?” NSW Transport and Infrastructure Minister Andrew Constance said last month.

“Imagine a NSW where you don’t need to check the timetable because the right numbers of trains, buses or ferries arrive when and where they need to. This future is not far off if we are quick off the mark today."

Transport for NSW customer services deputy secretary Tony Braxton-Smith noted today that “new and emerging technologies are changing the way that businesses operate”.

“Customers now expecting to get what they want when they want it, and transport needs to keep up,” Braxton-Smith said.

“The beauty of on-demand services is that they could improve the convenience and reliability of public transport for all customers, not just those on main transport routes.”

The agency has been on a deeper push to adopt technology to a greater degree, and developed a Future Transport Technology Roadmap earlier this year.

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