Whilst there was no California sunshine at the launch, Bausch's unveiling of the new app had a hint of a Silicon Valley-style mini keynote - with a Luxembourgish twist. The minister revealed the new technological 'revolution', namely the updated Mobiliteit.lu application.
The app was relaunched officially in Kirchberg on Wednesday and has a redefined mission: to help residents make the best choice for their public transport journeys. The app now acts as a missing link between all the resources already on the net, such as bus timetables, the CFL app, the Copilote carsharing scheme, road traffic in real time, and more. The app now also shows how full car parks are and local Vél'oh availability.
Specifically, the new version of the app will allow users to combine different types of transport in real time. For instance, searching for the best travel options between Kinepolis in Kirchberg and the Luxembourg City train station will see the app calculate the different transport option, the journey time, and the cost. The user only needs to choose their preferred mode of transport, whether it be be a combination of a train and a bus, a bike, tram, and the train, by car, or more.
Equally, users will be able to create accounts and select their preferred mix so they only need to put the information in once. One small critique, however, is that searching a journey by points of interest works well in Luxembourg but has space for improvement beyond the borders.
The new app's purpose, which is by far obviously promoted, is to encourage residents to prioritise multimodality, a concept close to Bausch's heart. It remains to be seen how the app will compete with an already-saturated market occupied by giants like Google Maps and Waze, or even the CFL app. Mobiliteit.lu will have an advantage against Google Maps, it should be noted, as the latter's public transport section in Luxembourg has much to be desired [editor's note]...
The application can be downloaded on the App Store and Play Store.
