The expectations of today’s travellers are ever more demanding: urbanites are a mobile and hyper-connected community. With the evolution from conventional mobile phones to smart devices (phone, tablets, etc.), people expect uninterrupted and fast broadband connection wherever they are even when travelling in underground metros.

Internet connectivity is thus becoming a subject of paramount importance for the attractiveness and competitiveness of metros.

148 cities around the world have a metro system, adding up to nearly 540 metro lines, 9,000 stations and 11,000 kilometres of line infrastructure. Two-thirds of these systems are located in Asia and Europe, while Eurasia, Latin America and North America have roughly 10% each. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region currently accounts for 4% of the world’s metro systems. Together, the world’s metro systems carry 150 million passengers per day, moving the rough equivalent of Bangladesh’s entire population, the 8th most populous country in the world (...)

Over the past few weeks we’ve been concentrating on the topic of integration and how a well-designed integrated mobility plan contribute to creating seamless travel experiences for citizens. This month, we are going to concentrate on the next logical step: travel modes.

Over recent years, public transport has registered big ridership increases, not only in cities with sophisticated systems, but also in many large cities in developing or emerging countries. The question is, then: which modes should planners choose?