How DVG implemented on-demand buses in just 12 months

Summary

In September 2017 the city of Duisburg’s public transport company, DVG, became the first in Germany to run an on-demand bus service as a fully integrated part of the public transport network. Using door2door’s platform, DVG successfully transformed its fixed-route and fixed-schedule service into a dynamic & digitalized one.

Realising the need for change

DVG had been facing a number of challenges, which led to the decision to integrate an on-demand bus service into its current network:

Running public transportation during off-peak hours or in suburban areas has long been unfeasible and unprofitable.
The city of Duisburg suffered from high personal car usage and congestion during rush hour. Given the waiting time and lacking first and last mile accessibility, many people still opted for their car.
The rise of competing services such as cab-hailing apps and car sharing, offering a level of comfort similar to the private car, threatened to lure passengers away from public transportation while putting even more cars on the road.

Finding the right partner

DVG is a publicly run transport provider coming from a traditional line of business. As such, they were looking for a long-term partner for their digital transformation. door2door presented DVG with a field-tested and mature product, as well as a long-term approach to supporting its partner.

Interview with Birgit Adler, DVG Project Coordinator

DVG is proud to expand its passenger transport to include myBUS, a truly future-oriented tool, and to play a pioneering role alongside door2door when it comes to demand-driven mobility.

Birgit Adler

DVG Project Coordinator

With the DVG myBus, local public transport has been made more accessible for all.

Fast implementation

Working on the project, we quickly found common ground and were able to progress at a fast pace to overcome regulatory and concessional issues to bring a new form of publicly operated service on the road. door2door’s innovative nature helped in maintaining enough flexibility to adjust to changing demands along the way. Together we managed to move from initial talks at the start of our cooperation to the final launch of the on-demand bus service DVG myBUS within the set timeframe of 12 months. Introducing this dynamic, demand-based mobility offering reduced operating costs for DVG by adjusting its supply to real needs while making public transport more widely accessible.

September 2016
Start of cooperation
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November 2016
Launch of DVG Route Planner
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January 2017
Launch of Mobility Analytics
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September 2017
Closed test phase of myBUS (on-demand bus)
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October 2017
Public launch of DVG myBUS
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June 2018
Operating area quadruples
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January 2019
Launch of the multimodal app myDVG
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September 2020
Extension of the test period
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September 2021
Introduction of the night service; DVG myBUS
is now available 7 nights a week
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Expansion of operating area

The operating area of myBUS was quadrupled at the end of June 2018 after surveys showed that users wanted the minibus to also run outside the city centre to better connect areas beyond the Rhine. DVG went one step further and also expanded the service area to the north and south of the city, now serving eight more districts from Rheinhausen to Meiderich and Wanheimerort. Using door2door’s Mobility Analytics tool, DVG was able to implement the expansion promptly and effectively. Mobility Analytics provides data-driven simulations of on-demand bus services that helped to quickly define the right service design and the right number of vehicles needed to serve people optimally, while at the same time achieving good pooling rates.

At the end of June 2018, the operating area of myBUS was quadrupled at the request of the local population.

Introducing the multimodal app myDVG

In January 2019, DVG and door2door entered the next phase of their cooperation. With the new multimodal app myDVG, passengers can compare all available means of transport in real time at a glance, buy tickets directly in the app and always make the best choice. Transport modes include bus, train, myBUS, bike rental and taxi. myDVG unites two discontinued apps that customers had previously used separately: the Route Planner (route planning and comparison of transport modes) and myBUS (booking myBUS rides). Offering one-stop access to the city’s entire mobility spectrum is an important step in making public mobility smarter, more seamless and more responsive to citizens’ needs.

“With myDVG, passengers can quickly and easily find the route that works best for them,” says Birgit Adler, Division Manager Operations and Market at DVG. “You get all the information in real time from a single source and can book myBUS directly in the app.” Adler adds: “The app provides a good basis to develop next steps. For example, we are planning direct ticket purchases in the app and would like to include even more transport modes. This brings us closer to our goal of intermodality.”