top of page

Capacity belongs in the fleet – not in the vehicle

6 days ago
3 min read

In public transport, capacity has so far been planned through vehicle size: a bus with 40 seats, a midibus with 10, 12 or 16 seats. But more seats do not necessarily mean better connections or better service. INYO Mobility takes a different view of capacity: it is created in the fleet, not in the individual vehicle, because several small (autonomous) vehicles in on-demand operation offer a more flexible, higher-quality

service than one large vehicle.


two INYO-Cabs at a Busstop

More seats, not more passengers

According to Destatis, the German Federal Statistical Office, scheduled buses in Germany run at an average occupancy of only around 20 percent. In on-demand transport the picture is even clearer: research on German ridepooling services shows that, as with taxis, trips carry fewer than two passengers on average. This applies regardless of vehicle size. In on-demand operation, a midibus with, say, 15 seats therefore carries the same one or two people as a four-seat vehicle. Every additional seat is paid for at purchase, travels along on every trip and adds weight, energy consumption and wear.


Same capacity, better service

Conversely, three INYO Cabs together offer twelve seats, as many as a small midibus. The difference lies in how that capacity is distributed:

  • Midibus: one vehicle, one route, one place at a time. The more passengers are pooled, the longer the detours. Like larger buses, these vehicles are therefore better suited to scheduled line services.

  • 3 INYO Cabs: three vehicles in three places at once, direct point-to-point connections, shorter waiting times and therefore better service for passengers. They can also serve the same location together, with a combined capacity of 12 seats.


infographic comparing 1 midibus vs 3 INYO cabs, showing seats, routes, and text about same capacity, better service.

Further advantages:

  • Scalability: When demand rises, more vehicles are added.

  • Resilience: If one vehicle fails, the rest of the fleet keeps running.

  • Fine-grained coverage: At around 3 m long and 1.5 m wide, with a low-floor entry and wide doors for inclusive transport, the INYO Cab also reaches narrow neighbourhoods and village centres. The front door becomes the bus stop.


Smaller vehicles, lower costs

Small vehicles in a fleet are not only more flexible, they are also cheaper to purchase, maintain and operate:

  • Purchase: A four-seat L7e-class vehicle costs significantly less than a standard bus or a midibus. Operators pay only for the capacity actually needed in on-demand operation.

  • Maintenance: The vehicle’s low complexity reduces maintenance work and downtime.

  • Operation: Averaged over the day, a standard bus moves around 850 kilograms of vehicle mass per passenger; the INYO Cab weighs 450 kilograms unladen. This reduces wear and the load on road infrastructure.

The key metric is not the price per vehicle but the cost per passenger carried. On this measure, a fleet of small vehicles comes out ahead.


Automation makes small vehicles economically viable

There was a reason small vehicles have rarely been used in public transport so far: every vehicle needs a driver. Drivers account for 40 to 65 percent of bus operating costs, and they are increasingly hard to find. According to the IRU, Europe will be short of more than 275,000 bus drivers by 2028. Level 4 automation removes this link between staffing and vehicle size. For the first time, vehicle size can follow real-world demand. And the economic gains do not stop with the driver: small, lightweight vehicles require fewer resources to produce and use less energy per kilometre than a heavy bus running below capacity.


One system, the right vehicle for every job

INYO stands for a system approach. Bus and rail lines carry the main corridors and peak demand. INYO Cabs strengthen and extend this network with on-demand services and direct point-to-point connections, as feeders and across the wider service area.

“Capacity belongs in the fleet, not in the vehicle. Three INYO Cabs offer as many seats as a small midibus, but can provide a service that is far more flexible in both space and time.”

– Rauno Fuchs, Chief Business Officer, INYO Mobility

The INYO Cab is currently being tested in Paderborn and at INYO’s own test site in Grafing-Schammach near Munich.



Sources: Destatis, VDV, IRU Bus Driver Shortage Report, KIT/TUM accompanying research on MOIA

 
 
bottom of page