Mobility Communication Lab brings projects of transport integration

Mobility initiatives were the central theme of the second meeting of the year of the Mobility Communication Lab, an Aberje initiative, presented by General Motors (GM) and supported by CCR. The initiative is in its third edition.

Four cases were presented at the event in early September with practical cases of communication and planning strategies. The first case described the strategies and communication campaigns carried out on lines 4 and 5 of the São Paulo subway, operated by ViaQuatro and ViaMobilidade, respectively.  One of the difficulties is to communicate to a very diverse audience, composed of individuals connected with new technologies and people from previous generations, not so keen on using new technologies.

The second case was the Origin and Destination survey, which was last updated in 2017 – the survey is conducted every ten years. The survey presents a vast database with information on the displacement of people throughout the metropolitan region of São Paulo. It is the largest urban mobility survey in the country, and one of the largest in the world. It is not restricted to rail transport, accounting for all other transport modes – motorized and non-motorized, collective and private. One of the highlights of current research is the increased use of mobile apps for hiring cars, bicycles, and scooters. The rate of use of taxis and other forms of private transport, such as Uber, was one of the largest increases when comparing 2007 and 2017 surveys. Technology proves to be a trend in the evolution of individual mobility.

The theme of the third case was the use of biogas derived from sewage as a source of energy for fuel. Sabesp, which is responsible for sanitation and water supply in various regions of São Paulo, has been working on ways to generate biomethane from sewage. Biogas, derived from biomethane, can be used as car fuel, cooking gas fuel, electric power, among others. However, there is still much to develop, and there’s a lack of skilled labor in the country.

The last case of the day featured startup Vuxx, created to facilitate communication between truckers and suppliers. In the system, a company purchases the desired product and the type of vehicle needed to transport it. Then, the app shows, in 15 seconds, the route and the freight for delivery. A driver is then contacted to accept the trip.