DRIVING MOBILITY FORWARD The public health crisis brought upon by the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified the focus on safe, sustainable and accessible mobility and tourism. FIA Secretary General for Mobility ad interim Onika Miller has been tasked with guiding FIA Member Organisations through the uncertainty of these challenging times.
What impact did COVID-19 have on Mobility and Clubs activities worldwide? Since the COVID-19 outbreak in early 2020, the various waves have affected all FIA Clubs with varying degrees of intensity and at different times, depending on their size, mobility services mix and location. Mobility itself has been impacted by the pandemic, with the livelihoods and travel habits of more than 80 million road users being interrupted in an unprecedented way.
COVID-19 has not stopped us from connecting and learning from each other, it is just forcing us to find new ways of doing that." Onika Miller FIA Secretary General for Automobile Mobility and Tourism ad interim
We have seen significant changes to commuting patterns due to social distancing measures including remote working and home schooling. These changes are evident in the general reduction in the frequency and usage across all modes of transport whether by trains, metros, buses, or taxis in cities around the world. Reduced demand also affected micro-mobility and car-pooling services. The general shift from shared mobility and public transit modes toward car usage and cycling reflects consumers’ paramount concern for safety and to reduce their risk of infection. This is borne out by increased usage of individual mobility modes especially private vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrian activity.
As our ‘normal’ ways to connect physically were disrupted, we had to find new ways to network and engage, relying on virtual meetings, greater use of technology and temporarily foregoing physical gatherings and in-person interactions. Our accelerated digital immersion has translated into new, more efficient ways of learning and collaboration. Last year we strengthened our engagement with FIA Clubs and provided outreach through the ‘Stay Tuned’ series. In lieu of our traditional on-site FIA University Programmes, we launched an extensive online digital learning offer through Coursera. This world-class digital learning platform provided FIA Clubs with online learning opportunities to build critical job-relevant skills for their teams, develop their skill proficiency and achieve mastery. This year, in response to the strong demand, we are pleased to offer an expanded catalogue of Coursera courses, providing even greater flexibility, access to more classes from top universities, with more content, for more participants.
Under Membership and Services, one of the most significant club development initiatives recently implemented is the ‘FIA Mobility Worldwide’ programme. Originally conceived to provide mentoring support to new and existing FIA Member Clubs, the Mobility Worldwide project was re-framed to help Clubs recover from the direct impact of the pandemic and build back stronger. Mobility Worldwide Part I was rolled out in June 2020 to help Clubs that were facing the greatest threats. A best practice toolkit was also developed to provide practical business guidance and assist Mobility Clubs address emerging challenges. At the end of 2020 we launched Part II of the Mobility Worldwide project placing specific focus and attention on business resilience and diversification.
We also launched the FIA University Alumni webinars to promote wider exchange of experiences and collaboration among Clubs.
Experts from EY-Parthenon are working with us to implement Part II in each region taking into account the market dynamics and regional characteristics for Member Clubs.
Tourism and travel have not been immune to the negative impact of the crisis.
We are pleased to be starting with FIA Region IV Clubs and look forward to organising sessions with other FIA regions in the coming months.
There has been an 87% drop in international tourist arrivals in January 2021 compared to 2020 for all regions around the world. Many of our touring clubs have been hard hit by reductions in tourism activities because of travel restrictions and heightened safety concerns. But COVID-19 has not stopped us from finding more creative and innovative ways to adapt. We are continuing to invest in digitalisation and relying on greater use of technology to prepare for a new postCOVID-19 future. With the support of the FIA Innovation Fund, we have upgraded and rebooted the ‘Organisation Mondiale du Tourisme et de l'Automobile (OTA)’ database to a modern new platform, VIAFIA, that provides Member Clubs with country-specific, cross-border mobility information as well as updates on tourism developments across the world. Through VIAFIA we are also strengthening the data analysis capabilities within FIA Clubs. The United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) global outlook for 2021 contemplates a possible rebound in international travel in either July or September which would see international arrivals moving to 55%-67% below 2019 levels. Looking ahead VIAFIA will be the one-stop shop for cross-border mobility information to our member clubs, providing timely and relevant health and travel protocols to facilitate safe and hassle-free travel.
We are continuing to invest in digitalisation and relying on greater use of technology to prepare for a post-COVID-19 future.
With relation to the current context, how is the FIA supporting its Member Clubs? In an effort to be more responsive to the needs and priorities of our Member Clubs, the FIA has expanded its offerings with more effective tools and resources to help Clubs navigate the successive waves of the COVID-19 crisis. Since 2012, the FIA Road Safety Grants Programme (FIA RSGP) has been funding Member Club projects designed to reduce the number of fatalities and injuries on the world’s roads. In response to the pressing health and safety imperatives in 2020, the FIA RSGP project criterion was expanded to include Club projects designed in partnership with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) to address COVID-19.
The Club Development Programme is another important member-focused initiative which supports club projects in areas of “Events and Learning”, “Exchange and Mentoring”, “Communication and Marketing”, “Regional Strengthening” and “Seed Funding”. However, in 2020, many projects were negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and a significant number of events were cancelled. Consequently, FIA Mobility Regions decided to reallocate unutilised funds to support Member Club development through a range of existing initiatives. Among the beneficiaries are FIA Member Clubs selected through the FIA Mobility Worldwide Programme, especially Clubs in the hard-hit Region IV. Other initiatives which received support included the Region I Digital Marketing and Business Development Workshop, Region II’s Innovation Hub and other webbased programmes, as well as, the FIA University support (Emerging Leaders Programme) for Region III.
FIA has expanded its offerings with more effective tools and resources to help Clubs navigate the successive waves of the COVID-19 crisis.
How important is club-to-club cooperation to deliver global impact projects that can benefit the whole community? During the last year we have seen the power and resilience of the FIA network in strengthening and leveraging club-to-club cooperation. Exciting Club-led initiatives such as ‘Drone Academy’, ‘City Trips App’, MIDAS and ‘One Road’ are being funded by the FIA Innovation Fund to deliver technology-driven projects on a global scale involving and benefiting Mobility Clubs across the entire FIA network. Through these projects FIA is leveraging the skills, capabilities, and experience of Clubs for the benefit of all Clubs. The ‘Drone Academy’ project, developed by the Touring Club Suisse (TCS), is establishing a Drone Academy as a centre of excellence that will position FIA Mobility Clubs as leaders in drone technology, urban air mobility and even personal airborne mobility. TCS has examined several drone use cases and identified 16 drone-related business models. More than 30 Clubs have already expressed an interest in benefiting from the next phase of this project recognising that this mobility trend offers a mobility solution of the future. Another Club-led initiative that is leveraging new technology for the benefit of other Clubs is the ‘City Trips’ app, created by the Spanish Club RACC. City Trips is a Mobility as a Service (MaaS) platform which offers access to a full suite of mobility and transport options and range of value-added services through the ease and convenience of a single application. This digital mobility assistant will aggregate all your mobility options in a seamless customer experience covering multimodal journey planning, booking, purchase and travel. FIA Innovation Fund support is helping RACC scale up the app development to roll out City Trips Mobility as a Service with participating Mobility Clubs across the globe. Responding to the needs of Mobility Clubs and its members who travel beyond local borders, the Austrian Mobility Club ÖAMTC conceptualised a shared database that facilitates the provision of cross-border roadside assistance and other mobility services to members traveling abroad. Known as ‘MIDAS’ (Members Identity & Data Assisted Services), this project uses blockchain technology for data processing and creates an interconnected and secure data hub
for Club members that can operate across different countries using a digital wallet. An Android app has been developed for the Proof of Concept and a web service is used to authorise verified membership credentials. FIA Mobility and FIA Marketing, in collaboration with the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA), are developing 'One Road', a global rewards system for the benefit of FIA Clubs. This project seeks to leverage the collective strength of the FIA network - representing 80 million road users and their families - to negotiate rewards and benefits with leading global brands that participating Clubs will be able to offer to their own members. One Road is currently at the feasibility study stage and has great promise for our network. This is yet another initiative that has emerged from and whose success is dependent on strong Club-to-Club collaboration.
We are resolved to emerge stronger together, increasing business resilience, accelerating our efforts through new technologies and finding new ways of supporting Member Clubs.
What specific message would you like to send to Mobility Clubs? Faced with this global health pandemic, adaptability and creativity have been our watchwords. Many Clubs have implemented inspiring and innovative projects that remind us that though disruptions are inevitable the power of a vision of a better world is unequalled. We celebrate the unyielding spirit of our Member Clubs as they redouble efforts to survive this pandemic, imagine the future and transform their business models. COVID-19 will not stop us from connecting and engaging. We are even more resolved to emerge stronger together, increasing business resilience, accelerating our efforts through new technologies and finding new ways of supporting Member Clubs. I am honoured to be part of this journey with you. Looking ahead, I am confident that, by drawing on the wealth of experience and resources across our entire network, we will be able to reimagine the future and create a lasting legacy.
For any comments or questions, please contact us at mobility@fia.com