ScolaCar+ pilot in Grandson and the region, VD
Spring 2024 project
Today, 50% of children are taken on leisure excursions by car. With our fully digital, on-demand bus service, we reduce car travel and make everyday life easier for families. The pilot, conducted under real-life conditions, took place from March to June 2024 in the Grandson–Yverdon area.
Anchor Navigation
Initial situation
The ScolaCar+ on-demand service allows you to choose the pick-up time you want within the defined time slots, at the closest stop to your home or the activity. Journeys to and from leisure centres can easily be booked and paid for by smartphone using the dedicated digital app, which is available in Google PlayTarget not accessible and the App StoreTarget not accessible.
This service was not intended as a substitute for small journeys that can be made by children on foot or by bike. The purpose of this experimental phase was to assess the need for the ScolaCar+ service by looking at: appeal, functionality, viability and sustainability.
Objectives
- Target: school-age children (via their parents).
- To offer a straightforward, safe alternative that can help the taxi of mum and dad when it comes to taking children to their extra-curricular activities, such as music lessons, football training, the gym, the swimming pool or daycare.
- To group children by destination.
- For municipalities, this service aims to become more appealing in order to encourage families to settle down in their municipality.
- ScolaCar+ helps reduce road traffic, noise pollution and CO2 emissions.
Results
Parents particularly appreciated the convenience of the service, its ease of use and being able to follow their child's journey while giving them some responsibility.
More than 200 young passengers were transported, resulting in a 24% reduction in the number of kilometres travelled. Users of the service see several benefits: time savings, flexibility and freedom to focus on other obligations.
By using ScolaCar+ twice a week during a school year, parents can save the equivalent of 2 weeks of work.
- 79% of parents would recommend the service to other parents.
- By using the service on a weekly basis, parents can save the equivalent of 2 weeks of work per year.
- The number of passengers carried (219) and the pooling rate (1.45) should improve.
Key figures
- 219 passengers carried
- 1.45 pooling rate
- NPS 68
- 70 bus stops served
- 2,707 passenger kilometres
- 93% of ratings = 5*
- 24% reduction in kilometres
- 15 municipalities / 50 km2
Sector and hours of operation
From April 16 to 27 June 2024, Tuesdays and Thursdays at the end of the day, as well as Wednesday afternoons and at the end of day.
From Yverdon-les-Bains to Fontanezier, passing through Grandson and the neighbouring municipalities, a territory of about 50 km2, and a 500-m change in elevation.
A single journey for CHF 3 per person per trip.
6 journeys for the price of CHF 15.
2 vehicles and 2 drivers
Reactions and articles
Development
The pilot project turned out to be instructive and enlightening. The results obtained have enabled us to learn valuable lessons, both in technical terms and in terms of user experience.
Experience has also shown us that parents have exceedingly high expectations. We are very happy with the performance and the positive feedback received, so we will now turn our attention to where we can improve to optimize the product further.
Based on these lessons learned, we are exploring opportunities to continue the project, including strategic partnerships, modifications for our customers and expanding the service to other areas.
