Google and Toyota Are Mapping Transport Across The World

Transportation across the world is rapidly improving, but there are still certain parts of the world where up to 80% of the population rely on informally-run public transport to get around. This is especially true in emerging world markets, where vast, informally-run transport networks that often operate in unsafe areas remain a critical stumbling block for billions of people living without reliable access to formal public transport services.

In these markets, it is difficult to keep track and plan your journey. While journey-planning apps like Google Trips and TripCase work very well for commuters in developed markets like New York or London, the same cannot be said for countries like Malaysia, where these apps don’t necessarily help with journey planning. Furthermore, as mobility is a fundamental driver of social, political, and economic growth, it’s very important for these emerging economies to at least have a rudimentary guide map on their transportation services.

As of today, the startup has mapped 34 cities in Africa and are mapping cities in India, Southeast Asia and Latin America. Its integrated mobility API includes proprietary algorithms, features and capabilities designed for complex transit networks in these emerging markets.

Google and Toyota, via its Toyota Tsusho Corporation (TTC) arm, are among some of the backers of a startup company, WhereIsMyTransport, which specialises in mapping these formal and informal public transport networks in developing countries.

“Our division’s global network, that covers 146 countries, is primarily focused on new emerging countries where people rely on informal public transport. Through strategic collaboration with WhereIsMyTransport, we will develop better and more efficient mobility services that help to resolve social challenges and contribute to the overall economic development of nations, primarily emerging nations,” said Mr. Masato Yamanami, Automotive Division’s CEO of Toyota Tsusho Corporation.

WhereIsMyTransport now has more than 750,000 km of routes in 39 cities and with the new strategic investment by Google and Toyota, are looking to further their international expansion.

“We make the invisible visible, by collecting all kinds of data related to public transport and turning the data into information that can be shared with the people who need it most,” WhereIsMyTransport CEO Devin de Vries said.

“In emerging markets, the mobility ecosystem is complex; informal public transport doesn’t behave like formal public transport. Data and technology solutions that work well in London or San Francisco wouldn’t make anything like the same impact, if any at all, in the cities where we work. Our solutions are designed specifically to overcome these contextual challenges.”

We understand that transportation is crucial in the growth of a country, and hope that WhereIsMyTransport will be the front runners in coming up with a sustainable and simple way of connecting us to easy access transportation, especially in Malaysia.