A brand new 'Uber-style' shared-ride service led by Mercedes-Benz and Via is set to launch in Milton Keynes soon.
Milton Keynes will be the fourth city globally to have the scheme launch, following on from Amsterdam and London.
Passengers will be able to share vehicles with others who are heading in the same direction.
Chris Snyder, CEO of ViaVan, told Fleet News: “Milton Keynes is an innovation-forward city and we’re delighted to launch this ground-breaking on-demand service, providing residents with a convenient, affordable, and congestion-reducing dynamic transportation alternative.”
“Over the next few years, we’re increasingly going to see cities and towns asking how they can provide their residents with transportation that provides the same ease and convenience as private car ownership, and yet still achieves the same environmental and congestion-reducing benefits mass transit.
“ViaVan is the solution, a platform that integrates with existing transit infrastructure and enables residents to seamlessly travel within the greater London-Milton Keynes area.”
Steve Hayes, Head of Transport at Milton Keynes Council, told Fleet News: “Milton Keynes is a great place for transport initiatives with its fast moving grid roads, unique Redway network and a history of trialling new technologies like the driverless pods."
“MK Council is very proactive towards transport innovation and working in partnership with innovative, commercial companies so ViaVan fits in perfectly with our aims to offer a wide range of travel options to everyone."
“Sharing journeys is something we fully support as one of our key objectives is to reduce our carbon footprint and reduce traffic growth so that MK remains easy and quick to travel around as it continues to grow rapidly.”
