The Highlands and Islands Transport Partnership (HITRANS) has won the most innovative transport project of the year category at this year’s Scottish Transport Awards for its pioneering Go-Hi MaaS (Mobility as a Service) project.
The 20th anniversary of the awards was held at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Glasgow on 22nd June, bringing together the transport community to recognise and celebrate the people and organisations that make a real difference to transport across Scotland,
The Go-Hi app, launched by HITRANS in June 2021 and powered by FOD Mobility Group’s Mobilleo MaaS platform, allows users to plan, book and pay for their end-to-end, multimodal journeys with ease using their smartphone or desktop devices. The platform offers instant access to book buses, trains, taxis, ferries, hotels, e-bikes, folding bikes, demand responsive transport (DRT), car clubs, car hire and air travel.
The Go-Hi project partners include Enterprise Car Club and Car Hire, Hi-Bike, Brompton Bike Hire, Stagecoach Bus, ScotRail, Loganair, Northlink Ferries, Liftango MOVE Flexi (DRT), West Coast Motors, Inverness Taxis, Leeds Institute for Transport Studies, Arcadis and SkedGo.
Go-Hi is funded by the Scottish Government through Transport Scotland’s MaaS Investment Fund. The MaaS Investment Fund was established as a Programme for Government commitment by Transport Scotland to test the ability of MaaS to deliver real benefit that incentivises sustainable travel.
Ranald Robertson, Director of HITRANS, was delighted with the award and the national recognition of the project. He commented:
“Go-Hi is addressing Government ambitions to reduce carbon emissions by encouraging a modal shift from private cars to cycling, walking, public transport car club and foot passenger ferry travel as a better alternative. It also aims to reduce the feeling of isolation among those without access to a car, and create healthier lifestyles by improving the sustainable travel choices people can make in the region including active travel opportunities.
“The project supports the delivery of Transport Scotland’s National Transport Strategy, which recognises the importance of embracing new technologies that are beneficial to society. The technology is helping Scotland to become an international leader in Smart Mobility by supporting digital innovation within Scotland and offering good practice in the application of MaaS for other similar regions.
“Since its launch, the ground-breaking Go-Hi project has made a significant contribution in improving accessibility to multiple transport services for residents and visitors in Scotland’s Highlands and Islands region. It is the UK’s largest MaaS deployment to date, covering a huge region that also includes multiple cities and towns.”
Ross Basnett, Strategic Account Director at FOD Mobility Group, added:
“The project team at FOD Mobility Group and I are delighted to see our close partners, HITRANS, win this award. It is testament to public and private collaboration that has resulted in the delivery of a ground-breaking technology.
“HITRANS, FOD and our wider project group will iteratively evolve the Go-Hi platform, introduce new innovation and continue to build the user base in order to help drive more sustainable behaviour in travel. We look forward to continuing our journey with HITRANS.”
There have been over 3,000 unique downloads and registrations of the app so far, with plans to launch a mobility credits scheme this year in conjunction with leading mobility charity, Motability. The scheme will provide funded access to mobility for individuals qualifying for Motability support.
The Go-Hi platform is also to be used by The Highland Council to provide alternative mobility options to their employees for commuting and business-related travel. This will simplify current processes and reduce administrative burden relating to travel.
For more information about Go-Hi visit www.gohi.app.