Didi, Lyft, Ola, Uber, Via, Zipcar, Keolis among companies to announce joint vision for the future of cities
NEW DELHI: Fifteen of the world’s leading transport and technology companies signed the Shared Mobility Principles for Livable Cities, pledging to prioritize people over vehicles, lower emissions, promote equity and encourage data sharing, among other goals. The companies include- BlaBlaCar, Citymapper, Didi, Keolis, LimeBike, Lyft, Mobike, Motivate, Ofo, Ola, Scoot Networks, Transit, Uber, Via and Zipcar.
City streets are a finite resource that are getting increasingly congested and polluted. The 15 companies that signed the principles have a massive impact on how people live, work and play in cities across the world. Together they account for 77 million passenger trips per day and inform the travel decisions of 10 million people each day.
New technologies and modes of transport are already disrupting the status quo and changing the way people move. The pace of innovation is rapid and filled with opportunity, as well as risk, because decisions made today will lock in infrastructure for decades to come. The Shared Mobility Principles provide a clear vision for the future of cities and create alignment between the city governments, private companies and NGOs working to make them more livable.
The principles were developed by Robin Chase, Zipcar co-Founder, and a consortium of leading city and transport organizations including: the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, Natural Resources Defense Council, Partnership on Sustainable Low Carbon Transport (SLoCaT), Transportation for America (T4America), Rocky Mountain Institute, Shared-Use Mobility Center, and WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities.
“For most cities, urban planners, legislators and residents, there is a cacophony of advice,” said Chase, a WRI Board Director. “Our goal is to align cities, the private sector and civil society around a shared vision to ensure we harness the good and avoid the bad of new business models and technologies. These companies represent some of the biggest players and we are thrilled to see we share common goals, like a commitment to zero-emission vehicles and efficient use of urban roads.”
“WRI is a proud signatory and founding supporter of the Shared Mobility Principles for Livable Cities,” said Ani Dasgupta, Global Director of WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities. “We believe strongly that the future of cities depends on new mobility services that are sustainable and work for everyone. These companies, often competitors, are some of the most important actors in the urban ecosystem and their commitments today represent a step toward a common vision for the future of cities.”