Open Innovation Solutions for Public Transportation Issues

Published Sep-21-19

Breakthrough:
An innovative solution to tackle the global issue of food waste that involves powering vehicles in a clean, sustainable way.

Company:
Youth for Public Transport, Belgium

The Story:

Bursting with enthusiasm, ideas and creativity, 13 teams of young innovators, aged from 16 to 37 turned up to the final of the Y4PT (Youth for Public Transport) Global Transport Hackathon in Stockholm, Sweden, in June 2019. They had all won through from local hackathons all over the world and were ready to spend three days further developing their products and ideas before pitching them to the jury. Some of the concepts were completely new while others built on previous ideas.

This was the third edition of the open innovation contest which took place at the UITP Summit, the biggest global platform for urban mobility professionals. The competition's purpose was to uncover ground-breaking transport solutions.

Following the pitch event, three winners were chosen. They were:

Tres received the grand prize for a mobility issue that tackles food waste. Because organic waste can be recycled to power vehicles in a clean and sustainable way, the team is looking to add food waste receptacles inside buses as well as work with local restaurants and supermarkets to collect their food waste. If there is food that is still edible, it is given away to those who are in need.

In second place was team BLI for their safety vest which provides cyclists and those traveling on e-scooters with navigation assistance. Users connect their smartphones to their vests, and it will guide them to their destinations as well as use signal lights so that other road users are aware of where they're going. The vest is also helpful in an emergency situation. If the rider has an accident the vest sets off an audio and visual alarm.

The third place prize went to Compal, an on-demand ride-sharing system to help people travel from airports in foreign countries. Users put their details and requirements into the app, including how many people they want to share their ride with as well as their final destination, and are then provided with the solutions. The app matches a user's profile with similar users to share the ride. Payment is made through blockchain.

Creating a Sustainable Transport Future

The hackathon is an excellent platform for young innovators and their ideas, exposing them to public transportation stakeholders around the world.

Youth for Public Transport is a Belgium-based non-profit organization that stimulates the active participation of young people in transport planning, innovation and policy making. It promotes joint initiatives with stakeholders, providing young innovators with valuable support that can help get their ideas off the ground and moving.

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