Forget the flying taxis depicted in the far-away world of Futurama — the future of transportation is closer than you think.

In an industry consistently shaped by the customer experience, transportation trends offer a glimpse into the industry’s aspirations and failings, paving the way for exciting new mobility options.

So buckle up. It’s time to explore trends that will drive the industry.

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Contents:

• Key Takeaways
• Reading the Industry
• Public Transit Trends
  • Rise of Post-Pandemic Ridership
  • Automated Fare Collection
  • Fare Free Transit
  • Rise of Mobility as a Service (MaaS)
• TMS Trends
  • Electric Vehicles Dominate the Market
  • Automated Vehicles Are Fast Approaching
  • Rise of Last-Mile Deliveries
• Closing Thoughts

Key Takeaways

• Post-pandemic public transit numbers have risen.
• Public transit features automated fare collection and free travel.
• Companies are launching single bundles of multimodal mobility services (MaaS).
• Numerous startups are championing charging infrastructures for EVs.
• Last-mile delivery gains the center stage.

Reading the Industry

Transportation management and logistics have numerous components, each presenting a trend for us to follow. It’s easy to lose track of the crucial ones.

Moreover, merely reading trends doesn’t work. It helps to analyze and leverage them.

But how do we go about doing that?

Just one look at the scene reveals how customer expectations are evolving, the market is adapting, startups are sprouting and tech firms are rolling out innovations.

Flux is the norm.

We’ll identify a few constants amid these variables and analyze how these trends address most of them. The concrete points are:

• The Trend
• The Problem It Solves
• Implementation Challenges and Expert Recommendations
• Statistical Evidence/Expert Opinions

We’ll start with public transportation trends. They reflect a move towards inclusivity and affordability. Read on for the details.

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Public Transit Trends

1. Rise of Post-Pandemic Ridership

The COVID-19 pandemic hit the public sector hard, and we saw a significant dip in April 2020 when ridership plummeted to 20% of pre-pandemic levels due to travel bans and safety concerns.

Recovery has been slow, but we have a brighter picture today. Ridership is now surpassing 77%.

The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) revealed that this recovery is a testament to the resilience of public transport systems and socio-economic factors like local economies regaining strength.

Modality differences arise for this trend:

Buses and demand response services generally lead to ridership returns. Interestingly, in some regions, such as Boston, the Commuter Rail outpaced the Light Rail.

So, what sparked this positive trend?

Employment growth, especially in the service industry, significantly influences ridership. As jobs return, so do commuters.

APTA adds another compelling dimension to this trend by revealing potential annual savings of over $13,000 from public transit, making it an attractive option for workers returning to physical workspaces.

Another surprising development is that city size doesn’t have a monolithic impact on ridership recovery. Smaller cities and rural areas report more robust bus ridership in the post-pandemic scenario.

Meanwhile, the largest and smallest urban areas report similar ridership recovery, reiterating that public transportation remains a critical backbone of urban life, regardless of scale.

Connecting activity centers across large metropolitan areas will result in high ridership unrelated to work commutes. Creating regular, all-day bus networks to link communities outside of downtown isn’t new; Canadian and European metro areas have long had such networks.

The year 2024 is witness to the rise of post-pandemic ridership with rehabilitative efforts in the form of mobile ticketing, automatic fare collection and zero-fee transit — all of which we’ll cover in the following sections.

2. Automated Fare Collection

Mobile ticketing isn’t new, but the public transportation sector fast-tracked fare collection to minimize physical contact and increase safety.

Forecasts for 2024 envisage a swell in using mobile ticketing by transit agencies, pointing towards an era where a smartphone becomes an integral part of commuting.

To facilitate this, many agencies are introducing downloadable smartphone applications for riders that offer ease of ticket purchase and payment.

Tech giants like Google are also taking the wheel to redefine commuter experiences, with Google Pay enabling smartphone payments for transit. The Google Pay mechanism addresses payment and offers ride history features to users, a service already operational in at least 500 cities.

Transit agencies are embracing public transport software that adds a new dimension to automated fare collection. Its wide range of capabilities includes:

• Modernized ticketing and payment options that align with the digital age
• A hybrid intelligent ticketing system that supports media and account-based models, making it flexible and versatile
• Open-loop smart ticketing that embraces various electronic payment options
• Integrated mobile ticketing applications that use transformative technologies like barcodes and NFC/HCE (Near Field Communication/Host Card Emulation)

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3. Fare-Free Transit

The Greater Richmond Transit Company (GRTC) emphasizes the far-reaching benefits of zero-fare travel for the local economy, riders and operators.

Despite facing reduced revenues, GRTC strategically plans to collaborate with community leaders and institutions to secure enhanced funding, ensuring the sustainability of fare-free transit programs.

Fare-free transit acts as a catalyst for economic growth and enhanced community quality of life.

With fares offset, GRTC aims to:

• Stimulate local economies
• Create employment opportunities
• Foster heightened community engagement

One of the notable advantages of fare-free transit is its positive impact on essential workers and low-income riders.

Redirecting the money saved from transportation costs towards essential needs such as food, health services and recreational activities alleviates financial strain on these demographics. It contributes to an overall improvement in their quality of life.

GRTC CEO Sheryl Adams said,

During the course of the pandemic, we embarked on a strategic plan. We recognized through COVID that transit is critical…a lifeline service for people. We need to rethink the model. [Be] flexible and agile and listen to people.”

Successful implementations are already evident in places like Kansas City, Missouri and the DASH bus system in Alexandria, Virginia.

4. Rise of Mobility as a Service (MaaS)

MaaS constitutes one of the most widespread transportation trends and with good reason. Think OTT apps but for traveling. That’s precisely where the industry is heading.

What is MaaS in technical terms? It’s a single interface offering multimodal transportation (cabs, bikes or public transit) that commuters can access with a subscription plan.

Renowned futurist and thought leader Bernard Marr comments on the factors necessitating MaaS:

Two factors are driving the increasing adoption of the ‘as-a-service’ model of delivery for transport – the growth of subscription models of payment for all types of goods and services and the increasing urbanization of human populations.”

If this transport trend goes mainstream, we’ll unlock a host of advantages:

• Traffic congestion would cut in half
• Private transport reductions would drop emissions
• Roads and public spaces can be repurposed for pedestrian use
• Net spending on the purchase and maintenance of cars would decrease

Juniper Research anticipates a surge in MaaS users, projecting an increase from 17.3 million in 2023 to 73.7 million in 2028.

Notably, North America is identified as the region experiencing the most substantial growth during this period. This growth is attributed to:

• Heightened investments in urban mobility
• Advancements in public transport
• The presence of a robust network of ride-hailing services

Moving on to the software side of things, the industry has been grappling with exogenous and endogenous factors that shaped trends in transportation management. Let’s explore them.

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TMS Trends

1. Electric Vehicles Dominate the Market

Electric mobility has been one of the forerunning transportation industry trends for quite some time.

The environmental impact of EVs is at the heart of this trend. EVs are a powerful tool in combating global warming and the depletion of fossil fuels, and they play a critical role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Since these vehicles are battery-powered and rechargeable, they serve as a long-term solution to growing environmental concerns.

If 2023 was the year of adoption-centered anxieties due to the shortage of charging infrastructure, then 2024 will spearhead the solution. How?

Voltpost, a U.S. startup, converts lamp posts into EV charging points. This solution includes a charging socket and an electricity-tracking meter embedded in lamp posts, with a companion mobile app allowing users to locate and book charging points.

Beyond the U.S., EVIO, a Portuguese startup, contributed to the revolution of electric transport trends.

EVIO’s smart electric socket device transforms regular sockets into virtual intelligent charging stations. The platform facilitates charging based on energy tariffs.

It encourages users to share services within a more extensive network, fostering a sense of community and collaboration in EV charging.

Despite the overall positive trend, the U.S. experiences a geographical divide in EV adoption. Some states lead the charge, notably California, where zero-emission vehicles comprised an impressive 25% of new sales in the second quarter of 2023.

2. Automated Vehicles Are Fast Approaching

So be it if removing humans from the equation equals higher pedestrian safety and fewer accidents. That’s why driverless trucks occupy the center stage of automated transportation trends.

The emphasis on improving safety by eliminating human errors such as driver fatigue and distraction is one of the primary drivers of automated transportation.
Their use in first- and last-mile delivery operations ensures a smooth and secure package journey. This results in faster and more flexible deliveries, which is especially beneficial in urban areas where traffic and time constraints are typical.

Integrating automation and artificial intelligence (AI) in the supply chain heralds a new era in logistics management.

3. Rise of Last-Mile Deliveries

Customer expectations single-handedly necessitated this transportation industry trend. The industry will undergo a profound transformation in 2024 due to the massive increase in last-mile deliveries, which mark the final critical step in the logistics process where products reach their intended consumers.

Rising eCommerce sales and the enhanced need for visibility drive this hike.

Draven McConville, CEO and founder at Klipboard, a London-based business management tool for field service businesses, says:

This customer-centered method isn’t just about fixing problems that people are already having; it’s also about creating interactions that are personal for users. Personalized suggestions, easy-to-reach help channels, and self-service choices work together to make sure that businesses not only meet but also exceed customer expectations. In turn, this makes people feel faithful, which builds a strong base for long-term customer relationships.”

So, how do we refine last-mile deliveries?

Firms are setting up micro-fulfillment centers, deploying warehousing robots and integrating autonomous delivery vehicles. The overarching goal is to meet customers’ rising expectations in an era of instant gratification by providing fast and cost-effective delivery.

ELDs, Internet of Things (IoT) technology, pallet sensors and the digitization of paperwork, including bills of lading, all contribute to this comprehensive data collection.

According to Mike Doyle, Kuebix’s vice president of product management, visibility is critical for shippers to deploy their TMS platforms in new ways, such as tracking freight across multiple modes, building APIs with regional parcel carriers or consolidating packages for delivery to a carrier’s regional hub as part of a “zone-skipping” strategy.

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Closing Thoughts

Our cross-sectional transportation trends analysis reveals the ongoing digitalization of the supply chain, heralding a transformational period in the industry for 2024.

As the industry recovers from the pandemic through automation technologies, comparing top solutions for their claims management, tracking or mobile access features with our free, analyst-backed comparison report is wise.

The overarching goal is to promote equity, accessibility, sustainability and inclusion. The transportation landscape is shifting toward a model prioritizing inclusivity, environmental responsibility, and stakeholder collaboration.

What transportation trends do you expect to see this year? Did we miss any? Let us know in the comments.

SME Contributors

Draven McConville, founder of job management software Klipboard, began his entrepreneurial journey with just £200 and an education. His achievements include winning the Chamber of Commerce’s Young Person in Business award, receiving the Freedom of The City of London, and securing more than $3 million in investment to expand his business globally.

In 2015, Draven founded Klipboard | Field Service Simplified, where they currently hold the positions of CEO and Founder.