Analysing Mobility Hubs using Microsimulation Travel Demand Model

Abstract

The traditional transport hubs are shaping into the idea of the mobility hubs with the advent of multiple vehicle-sharing forms, such as bike-sharing and car-sharing. Also, a gradual shift in the culture of consumption towards more usage and less ownership, as well as the shared economy supported by internet platforms and mobile apps, allows easy access to multiple daily mobility choices, especially in urban environments. The Mobility hubs seek to merge conventional public transport with these new shared services which have the potential to serve as a solution to the first/last mile problem within the public transport and will allow operators increase their ridership. Transport demand models are used to forecast future travel demand but consider the same travel behaviour as that of today. Mobility Hubs have the potential to change the travel behaviour of travellers and travel demand models should not only be able to forecast the future travel demand but also take into consideration the potential changes in travel behaviour due to the mobility hubs. This study deals with a microsimulation travel demand model, OCTAVIUS and to identify the extent to which such a microsimulation demand model can capture the travel behaviour associated with the future mobility hubs.