IAA MOBILITY Voices: Interview City of Munich

An Interview with Clemens Baumgärtner, advisor for labour and economy of the City of Munich, about the IAA MOBILITY 2023.

What does "Experience Connected Mobility" mean to you?

For us, "Experience Connected Mobility" means mobility that can be experienced, that connects and that creates multiple benefits through mobility. Under the motto "Mobility for all", we are expanding the range of services offered by the city of Munich for people with reduced mobility with our mobility projects "Electric Car Rental" and "Bus and Train Escort Service". At the same time, we are using these projects to train long-term unemployed people and integrate them into the labour market. In short, the projects implement social, inclusive and sustainable goals with publicly funded employment and make a crucial contribution to micro-mobility and local tourism.

What do you hope to achieve at IAA MOBILITY 2023?

We hope to draw attention to our "Mobility for All" model, with the free services offered by the city of Munich for handicapped people, and to attract as many imitators as possible in other cities. The "Mobility for All" projects of the Munich Employment and Qualification Programme (MBQ) will be presented at IAA on a joint booth of the Department of Labour and Economic Affairs of the City of Munich with the Disabled Persons' Advisory Council of the City of Munich, Anderwerk gGmbH and the Catholic Men's Welfare Association of Munich e.V..

Which essential topic of the future receives too little attention from the public?

For us, mobility and inclusion are key issues for the future which are not receiving enough public attention right now. Mobility creates quality of life. Progress and technology should be inclusive, not exclusive to certain target groups. The free municipal services are aimed at all those who, because of a disability, need assistance with public transport, or who cannot walk to the zoo or the Olympiapark. In other words, to those who have special needs and often receive too little public attention with respect to mobility.

In which area of mobility do you see the greatest potential and where do you see the greatest need to catch up?

We see the greatest need for improvement in the full implementation of accessibility in rail-based public transport. This starts with boarding and alighting. There is also great potential in electric-driven mobility aids for individual transport, especially in all types of electric vehicles. Here we are trying to fill a gap with electric car rental.

IAA MOBILITY is the leading global mobility platform. It connects innovators from all spectrums of mobility. Who do you want to network with in September and why?

Our booth at IAA is aimed primarily at potential users, but also at potential partners for expanding the service. Now, electric car rental is only available in Munich at the Tierpark and the Olympiapark, and during IAA also in the city centre.

The world is fundamentally changing. Innovation and the endeavours in the mobility sector are bigger than ever before. What is your vision of the world in 20 years?

A mix of collective and individual means of transport will be available for optimal, energy- and time-efficient mobility in urban and rural areas. Also, for people with special needs. Switching between modes will be barrier-free and uninterrupted thanks to uniform fares. Transport to the doorstep will be sustainable, barrier-free and available with assistance, if required.