The mobility market is still segmented. On the one hand, historical players such as car manufacturers, short-term (Sixt, Europcar) or long-term (Arval, ALD) rental companies and private or public public transport operators (RATP, Keolis, Transdev, etc.). On the other, new automotive entrants (Tesla, Link & Co), mobility service and solution providers (Uber, BlaBlaCar) and software or artificial intelligence “tech companies” (Google Waymo, Microsoft) . They are still each “in their own lane” while the great decompartmentalization around the concept of mobility is underway.
In this major transformation to come, it will above all be necessary to meet consumer expectations. Getting around is and will remain an essential human need. It is therefore likely that any restrictions in this area will be overwhelmingly rejected. The development of so-called “collective” mobility is part of the response to economic and ecological challenges, but it is not sufficient to meet certain legitimate individual needs.
What, then, are the other essential issues in the equation? The mobility of the future will remain a mass concept that must provide safe, industrial, clean, efficient, flexible solutions at an acceptable cost for all. It will free itself from the principle of ownership to develop the concept of service and use adapted both to changes in purchasing behavior and to the optimal use of resources.
It will have to respond to global dynamics, ranging from the extreme urbanization of metropolises to the specific needs of rural territories, to the lever of emancipation that it represents for developing countries. It will be multimodal, particularly in urban areas where, paradoxically, congestion is increasing as individual vehicles are banned from city centres. This multimodality will require finding the “trusted third party” capable of proposing a comprehensive offer and ensuring a fair redistribution of value between operators. This issue is currently unresolved.
Compulsory electric car in 2035: “multiple constraints for the French”
The mobility of the future will have to pioneer several technological contributions (autonomous driving, hydrogen, solid batteries, etc.) to meet future constraints. Finally, it will have to be frugal with regard to the development of infrastructures. Faced with this multi-criteria equation, no single player can impose itself on this market. The winners will be the car manufacturers who will affirm their shift towards services and who will approach software and digital players.
Financial services will be the “shovel sellers” of this new gold rush. They indeed hold the key to transforming the cost of ownership of means of mobility into rent for use, or even into a subscription for users.
Finally, wouldn’t the trusted third party be, in territories with high mobility density, an organizing authority also making the link with the public transport offer? Recent market operations foreshadow this movement. Evidenced by the alliance of Stellantis with Amazon or its recent acquisition of the company aiMotive (autonomous vehicle), the alliance between Renault and Google, or that between Volkswagen and Microsoft. Luca de Meo, Renault’s chief executive, said his group would eventually become a “technology company that integrates vehicles”.
Major maneuvers between banks and manufacturers are also underway in financing: from the overhaul of partnerships at Stellantis, to Renault, which is renaming its bank “Mobilize Financial Services” to bring it closer to mobility services; from the takeover of LeasePlan by ALD Automotive, a subsidiary of Société Générale (number 2 and number 3 in long-term leasing), to the new ambitions of Crédit Agricole (joint venture on long-term leasing with Stellantis, buyout of Stellantis’ shares in Fiat Bank), via the effervescence around subscription offers (acquisition of specialized start-ups like Fleetpool by ALD or Bipi by Renault). And that’s just the beginning !
