ZED Digital (ZED) launched a new Mobility as a Service (MaaS) platform called ZIG™. The unique smart mobility platform eases the journey for transit customers, public transit agencies, and smart cities toward a future with more sustainable mobility.

ZIG takes a wholistic approach to transit system from the collection of data to how it is used to increase ridership. The solution streams transportation data to mobile devices much in the same way Netflix streams entertainment. It enables transit customers to view multimodal transportation options that combine bus, rail, ride-share, bike-share, taxis, parking availability, entertainment, landmarks, and other points of interest in one single interface, thereby greatly reducing finger fatigue for customers. It combines a unique Internet of Things (IoT) technology to pay for these multiple services with just a few clicks.

“ZIG is the premier tool to bring a complete MaaS solution that includes multimodal trip planning, hands-free ticketing, and payment as well as deep analytics capability to the North American Market. The transit customer can now find real-time transportation options, pay, and board the transit vehicles with their phone in their pocket” said to Sumithra Jagannath, president of ZED Digital.

The public launch of ZIG has been a journey in the making for the past 18 months which began with ZED stumbling into the public transportation by winning a competitive bid to redesign the Central Ohio Transit Authority’s (COTA) website. Following the successful public launch of the website in September 2017, ZED made it possible for COTA users to view the position of buses, service delays, and alerts in real-time through their mobile devices. This was made possible by ZED’s data aggregation platform, which aggregates and presents data in a personalized manner from multiple data sources that don’t talk to each other.

Since the COTA launch, ZIG has found a much larger use for this data platform, the opportunity to power a larger transformational shift that is just beginning in North America. The company expanded its platform into a full-fledged MaaS platform with multimodal trip planning and integrated payment. Greater Cleveland RTA and TARC in Louisville have since become clients and have started using the MaaS solution and analytics, Jagannath added.

ZIG provides the numerous benefits to riders:

• Provides seamless payment and travel options for first- and last-mile connections.

• Streams real-time availability for public transit and shared ride services in a unified interface.

• Provides options for least cost, minimal connections, fastest, or green transportation modes.

• Enhanced customer experience when transferring across multiple transportation services.

• Reduced on-boarding time and ticket validation through hands-free payment process.

ZED Digital is a Digital Software Enterprise with offices in Columbus, Cleveland, Jacksonville, and Los Angeles, providing Smart Mobility platforms and apps for transit agencies, smart cities, and transportation companies.