A Multi-Actor Mobility as a Service (MaaS) Framework: Modeling Interactions and System Performance

Abstract

Mobility as a Service (MaaS) integrates multiple transport modes into a unified platform but requires coordination among multiple actors, including users, transport service providers (TSPs), operators, and public authorities. While existing studies examine key aspects such as pricing, user behavior, and service integration, these elements are often analyzed separately, with limited attention to their combined effects under competition and policy intervention. This study develops an integrated bi-level optimization model to represent these interactions within a multimodal network. The upper level represents a network-level planner that determines user assignment, TSP wholesale pricing, and incentive-related constraints, while the lower level captures the MaaS operator’s profit-maximizing retail pricing response. Applied to an extended Sioux Falls network, results show that MaaS adoption increases from about 28% under static pricing to nearly 40% when dynamic pricing and coordinated incentives are introduced. Among the tested policies, performance-based incentives achieve adoption levels comparable to fixed per-trip subsidies while requiring lower public expenditure. Moreover, as total travel demand increases, performance-based incentives remain effective and sustain high MaaS adoption, whereas fixed subsidies become less efficient.