SIS 40 Rethinking the finance and governance of public mobility

28 April 2026

Special Interest Session, Multimodal mobility system management

Special Interest Session • SIS 40 • 16:45 > 17:45 • SIS 40 Rethinking the finance and governance of public mobility • EMIRGAN 1 Special Interest Session
Public transport is at structural crossroads. Although new technologies, digital platforms, and shared mobility services are expanding, governance and funding models remain centralised and focused on urban areas, designed for fixed routes, long concession contracts, and predictable demand. This leaves peri-urban and rural communities underserved, unable to benefit from these emerging solutions in the way as urban citizens. Meanwhile, cities are struggling with congestion, noise and declining air quality. This session explores how public mobility systems can evolve from being led by subsidies and inflexible procurement cycles to performance-driven and outcome-oriented. Integrating impact and innovation funding with traditional transport budgets enables cities and regions to transition to impactful services. This enables a broader range of solutions that align with real-world mobility patterns. This transition involves reassessing areas in which conventional public transport is effective, and identifying where resources could be reallocated to flexible, complementary, or 'nice-to-have' services that deliver measurable societal value. The Mobility Impact Market, e.g., is trying to drive this shift: rather than lengthy tenders, small-scale, impact-based contracts reward verified low-carbon journeys and behavioural change. This gives public authorities a dynamic, transparent, and inclusive way of allocating funding to mobility solutions that demonstrably improve accessibility, sustainability, and equity.

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