Toyota Mobility Foundation (TMF) has entered into an agreement with World Resources Institute (WRI) to seek possible solutions in first- and last-mile connectivity to metro transit in Bengaluru.
With a population of around 12 million people, the city has experienced rapid urban growth and development in part due to its status as the IT capital of India. While this surge has powered the economy, it has also led to congestion and limited access to mobility. To overcome these, Bengaluru has invested in a metro line within the city.
TMF and WRI want to improve accessibility to metro transit in the city and increase its use through a process of research, capacity building, open collaboration, and testing. This will ensure better ease of movement throughout the city.
TMF and WRI will collaborate with various stakeholders including the State government, public agencies and the IT industry. They will develop a project called the Station Access & Mobility Programme also referred to as the Bengaluru Mobility Project which will run from December 2016 to March 2018.
In the first year of the project, TMF and WRI will build a stakeholder network and invite them to identify practical and feasible solutions to first and last mile connectivity issues. They will propose these ideas through an open innovation challenge.
TMF and WRI will support winning solutions and aim at scaling them in Bengaluru and other cities. After evaluating the results of the project, TMF will determine the scope of future activities in India.
Shigeru Hayakawa, President of the TMF Secretariat and Senior Managing Officer, Member of the Board of Directors of Toyota Motor Corporation, said, “TMF will make efforts in the Bengaluru Mobility Project to realise an ever better mobile society by identifying opportunities to integrate public and private mobility.”
Shekar Viswanathan, Vice Chairman & Whole Time Director, Toyota Kirloskar Motor said this effort to find possible solutions to improve access to mobility in Bengaluru would make the lives of citizens more comfortable.
TMF was established in August 2014 to support the development of a more mobile society. It aims to support strong mobility systems while eliminating disparities in mobility. It uses Toyota’s expertise in technology, safety, and the environment, working in partnership with universities, government, non-profit organisations and research institutions to address mobility issues worldwide.
WRI is a global research organisation present in over 50 ountries with offices in Brazil, China, Europe, India, Indonesia, Mexico, and the United States. Its Indian arm endeavours to help solve the four most urgent challenges: rapid urbanisation, the demand for energy, responding to climate change and large-scale degradation of natural resources.
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