The Federal Transit Administration (FTA), part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, developed the Mobility on Demand (MOD) initiative to help communities nationwide incorporate the latest technology into their public transit services, with the goal of making them more effective, efficient, and equitable. Urban, suburban, and rural communities alike will benefit from better first and last mile connections, improved paratransit services, smart congestion management, and more.
Under the leadership of Secretary Anthony Foxx, the first-ever MOD Sandbox Program builds on the Department’s ongoing initiatives to promote innovative transportation technologies, such as the Smart City Challenge, Federal Automated Vehicles Policy, and Advanced Transportation and Congestion Management Deployment Grants.
These projects will use smartphone apps, open data platforms, and other advanced technologies to better connect transit riders to their destinations, aided by private companies and research institutions in fields such as software development, ride-sharing, and bike-share.
Congratulations to the following Arizona agencies for being awarded grants from the MOD program:
The Regional Transportation Authority of Pima County will receive funding for the Adaptive Mobility with Reliability and Efficiency project, integrating fixed route, subscription based ride-sharing and social carpooling services into an existing data platform to provide affordable, convenient and flexible service. The project augments transit by addressing first mile/ last mile issues and congestion mitigation by incorporating shared ride-on-demand services, integrated open payment systems and advanced traveler information systems.
Valley Metro Rail of Phoenix will receive funding for a smart phone mobility platform that integrates mobile ticketing and multimodal trip planning. The network will include a range of mobility providers, including ride-hailing, bike sharing, and car-sharing companies, allowing all levels of income, age and people with disabilities to have access to an integrated, connected multimodal transportation system.
