Rafiqul Haque, University of Galway

A Trusted and Interoperable Mobility as a Service Ecosystem for Ireland (MaaS4IRL) is a collaboration between Insight Research Ireland Centre for Data Analytics at University of Galway and Future Mobility Campus Ireland (FMCI) with funding from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and the Department of Transport.

The goal is to carry out a feasibility study for establishing a Common Irish Mobility Data Space (CIMDS), which will support trusted data sharing between data space participants (data providers and data consumers) while ensuring data sovereignty and regulatory compliance.

MaaS4IRL aims to identify best practices for setting up the necessary data-sharing infrastructure and governance systems to facilitate innovations such as Mobility as a Service (MaaS). This includes investigating any enabling legislation relevant to the process.

The project will conduct a comprehensive review of Ireland’s current transport landscape, identifying key transport data holders and exploring the opportunities and challenges associated with various data-sharing models. A special focus will be placed on integrating services from public transport operators, as defined by the Dublin Transport Authority (DTA) Act 2008, with mobility providers outside of this definition.

The project will also investigate all potential data sources needed for MaaS and evaluate options for creating a repository to house the necessary data points. This could ultimately lead to the establishment of a central repository. Finally, the project will provide recommendations on the optimal approaches to enable MaaS in Ireland, considering business, user experience, technology and policy perspectives, while identifying potential barriers to implementation.

‘As part of the MaaS4IRL project, we’re excited to explore how a trusted and interoperable mobility data space can transform transport in Ireland,’ says project lead Rafiqul Haque By establishing a secure and compliant infrastructure for data sharing, we can unlock the potential of Mobility as a Service, allowing both public and private mobility providers to work together more efficiently. Our goal is to deliver practical recommendations that will not only improve the user experience for commuters but also support innovation, sustainability, and future-proof policy decisions.’

Research team:

Edward Curry, Professor of Data Science at University of Galway and Director of the Insight Research Ireland Centre for Data Analytics.

Fatemeh Ahmadi Zeleti, Research Fellow

Rafiqul Haque , Research Fellow

Muhammed Asif Razzak, Post-doctoral Researcher

Majjed Alqatf , Post-doctoral Researcher