Deadline: 22-Sep-22
The State of Michigan is launching Michigan Mobility Wallet Challenge to explore a mobility wallet pilot program that could increase the interoperability of transit services and create greater access to personal mobility for Michigan residents.
The Challenge is a collaborative effort including the Office of Future Mobility and Electrification (OFME), Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO), and the Michigan Poverty Task Force (PTF). The goal of this program will be to simplify the transit payment process by allowing riders or third-party stakeholders to load funds and/or connect bank accounts to a single platform and create a streamlined mechanism for fare payment/collection, thereby increasing access to vital mobility services in Michigan.
By creating a mobility wallet, Michigan residents would have access to a single platform and/or app to process payments for public transit services. To ensure equity and accessibility, lower income residents would have access to income-based transit passes and/or prorated fares based on income level.
Objectives
The proposed pilot projects must meet the following objectives:
- Innovative: The pilot project should make use of existing mobility technologies and be designed to evolve over time to make use of emerging mobility technologies. The pilot project should also include innovative service models that enhance the existing transportation network.
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Coordinated: The proposal should be developed and submitted by a team that includes a diverse range of partners. Teams should include individuals or entities with demonstrated capacity, experience and knowledge in planning, delivering and evaluating the effectiveness of passenger transportation services, working with individuals who will be served by the proposed services, and developing mobility technologies. The teams would likely include:
- Mobility/technology companies
- Public transportation agencies in or near the service area
- Transportation planning agencies in the service region
- Social service agencies that provide services to seniors, persons with disabilities, veterans, or low-income residents
- Advocacy groups that have knowledge of the needs of seniors, persons with disabilities, veterans, or low-income residents
- Equitable & Accessible: Applicants must consider equity and accessibility in the design of their pilot project, and invest in associated community education, engagement, and outreach to better understand stakeholder needs. Applicants should consider users who are unbanked and may not have access to a mobile phone.
- Ease of Use: The pilot project(s) must be easy for users and transit providers, across multiple modes of transportation. Users must be able to load their own money (cash or access via a bank account, credit card, etc.) and other individuals/entities must be able to load funds into users’ wallets as well.
Proposal Instructions
Proposals must include the following information:
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Applicant Information:
- Name and contact information for project lead
- Information for each project partner including the software provider, financial service provider (payment processing), transportation providers, identified contributors of wallet funds (e.g., employers, medical facilities, human service agencies). Include agency/company name, their capacity/experience and their role in the project.
- Letter of commitment from each partner identified above ensuring understanding of their role and contributions to the project.
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Description of Proposed Service: Describe the service that will be provided to fill mobility gap(s), including the following elements:
- Details of the tool that will be implemented
- Method to recruit, manage and support beneficiaries of the mobility wallet (e.g., riders) and contributors to the mobility wallet (e.g., employers, medical facilities, human service agencies)
- Approach for coordination of services, collection of funds, payment of funds and all related reporting
- Approach to Equity and Accessibility: Describe how the proposed project will address equity and accessibility.
- Implementation Plan: Describe the process and timeframe for planning and implementing the project, including the recommended demonstration period.
- Sustainability Plan: Financial plan for sustaining the service beyond the demonstration period. Include letters of commitment if available.
- Evaluation plan: Criteria (metrics) that will be used to determine if the service is effective and successful, including the data needed and methods for collection.
- Project Budget: Separate budgets should be included for each element: planning/start-up, software/hardware costs, service delivery, evaluation. Please indicate which elements of your project are scalable.
For more information, visit State of Michigan.
For more information, visit https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/travel/mobility/initiatives/mobility-wallet-challenge/call-for-projects
