A proliferation of mobility options may be reshaping public transport but leaders from Vienna and VIA say the true measure of progress lies in meeting everyday passenger needs, not chasing the latest innovation.
Speaking at the UITP Summit in Hamburg, during a session entitled Let’s talk strategy: a shared and automated future for your customers and companies, Wiener Linien CEO Alexandra Reinagl and VIA’s Jan Luedtke offered a grounded yet forward-thinking view on how technology can enhance public mobility.
Reinagl emphasised that Vienna’s success lies in its commitment to open access, customer trust, and service reliability. With 1.3 million annual pass holders in a city of two million, Wiener Linien has become a mobility mainstay. But as technology opens up new modes of travel, she warned against overcomplicating things. “We don’t want to overload people with complex apps,” she said. “Technology must enhance our open access model, not burden the user.”
