Sprinti vehicle© Region Hannover
Sprinti is an on-demand bus service that runs in the Hannover region. The goal of the service is to increase the accessibility and attractiveness of public transport in the region and to achieve emission savings. Currently, the service is available in three municipalities in the Hannover region and provides a reliable and sustainable mobility solution to people in peripheral areas. The service will be expanded to the whole outer Hannover region, comprising eleven small towns and municipalities, throughout 2023-2024. Additionally, innovative concepts like a multi-purpose use of the Sprinti vehicles during times of low demand are explored in the project.
Duration 12/2021 - 12/2024
Website https://sprinti.gvh.de/
Coordinator Rupprecht Consult
The Region Hannover’s local transport plan envisages a three-tier public transport service. The third distribution level has so far been shaped by conventional public transport based on fixed lines with low service levels. Such services are often not perceived as attractive by users, leaving passenger potential untapped & customers unsatisfied. Hannover Region is therefore now planning a modernization by implementing a demand-oriented supplementary public transport service at the third distribution level called "Sprinti".
The aim of the project is to integrate an on-demand mobility solution, the “Sprinti”, into the existing public transport of the Hannover region and its various municipalities to increase the accessibility and attractiveness of the public transport service and to reduce emissions.
Sprinti has been developed by the Region Hannover in cooperation with the local public transport companies Üstra and Regiobus and is currently being operated by the service provider Via. Sprinti connects on-demand mobility solutions reliably with frequently operating bus and train services to provide a well-integrated last- and first-mile mobility solution. The service can be ordered through an app to an existing or a virtual stop that is usually no further than 150m away. Currently, the service is available in Wedemark, Sehnde and Springe. As Sprinti serves the demands of different user groups, the on-demand service is integrated in the existing tariff system and can be used without additional fares.
In 2023 Region Hannover plans to expand Sprinti throughout the whole Hannover region and build “the biggest on-demand network in Germany”. As one of 12 German public transport model regions, Hannover will be funded to implement an extensive on-demand service in all eleven municipalities of the wider region to connect peripheral areas with a flexible service to the existing bus and train lines.
As there is currently still a lack of knowledge and practical experiences regarding the adaptation of on-demand services to public transport systems, Rupprecht Consult supports the Region Hannover in this implementation process and systematically collects lessons learnt in order to expand the service in the coming years. After the initial phase of the project, the Region Hannover wants to improve the utilization of the service through innovative concepts and by filling times of low demand through a multipurpose use of the vehicles
To evaluate the Sprinti pilots, Rupprecht Consult develops a set of indicators to assess its effectiveness, attractiveness and sustainability. The goal is to identify success factors and barriers in the operation to prepare Hannover region for stage two, a region-wide implementation of an on-demand service. Rupprecht Consult will develop a transfer strategy so to ensure the sustainability of the service. Once the Sprinti is extended to the whole Hannover region, the main goal is to have an attractive and sustainable service, by keeping the utilization of every vehicle high, through a concept for the multipurpose use during times of low-demand and the conduction of corresponding pilots.
In the first stage of the project, Rupprecht Consult has ensured the exchange between the project management and the wider project team. We have coordinated the monthly review meetings between the various stakeholders that are involved in the process such as Region Hannover, Üstra, Regiobus, GVH and Via as the current service provider.
Rupprecht Consult has also coordinated the monitoring of Sprinti in the three pilot municipalities, ensuring that important goals and target values that were defined regarding quality & quantity of the service are being achieved. Furthermore, Rupprecht Consult supports the Region Hannover in the process evaluation and upcoming tendering processes. We will develop a transfer strategy assessing lessons learnt and identifying barriers and success factors from the three pilots.
In the second stage, that has started in August 2022, Rupprecht Consult develops together with the Klimaschutzagentur Region Hannover a concept for the multi-purpose use of the Sprinti vehicles and will coordinate and evaluate multi-purpose pilots. With regards to the results of the mobility concept VEP 2035+, an overview of the mobility needs of the Region will be derived and summarized in various use cases. These needs will be brought together with the current utilization of the Sprinti service to identify synergies and improvements for times of low-demand. Possible partners for a multi-purpose use of the vehicles will be identified and pilots will be conducted. To ensure a smooth implementation of the pilots, Rupprecht Consult and Klimaschutzagentur Region Hannover will work closely with the identified partners and the Sprinti service provider, as well as monitor the impact on sustainable mobility goals as set out by the VEP 2035+ of Region Hannover. The results from this first-of-its-kind project will show how on-demand services can be used more effectively by public transport operators in the future, thus improving their business case.
Henning Holdinghausen
+49 221 6060 55 13
h.guenter@rupprecht-consult.eu