With 10% of NRW's population, Münsterland is a typically rural region with the associated mobility challenges. With the regional centre of Münster, it has an urban area with all its typical challenges - particularly with regard to the very pronounced commuter links. The suburban areas have major commuter links to Münster, but also to the northern Ruhr region, for example.
The "Bürgerlabor Mobiles Münsterland" project launched in 2020 by the district of Coesfeld, BüLaMo for short, is the largest innovation project for road-based public transport in rural areas in NRW. The aim of the project is to offer citizens a climate-friendly and holistic alternative to private cars. For many people in the Münsterland region, this is their preferred means of transport, both professionally and privately.
The district of Coesfeld is working with various project partners to test how local public transport should be designed in order to be sustainable and used by citizens. Various project modules are being developed and "put on the road". BüLaMo differs from other mobility projects in that it does not test and implement individual mobility services in isolation, but instead tests the overall system consisting of various services and accompanying fare measures along the Olfen-Lüdinghausen-Senden-Münster express bus route, which is the bus route with the highest demand in Münsterland. Another special feature is the intensive participation of citizens, who are continuously involved in the (further) development of the individual services in BüLaMo.
As many of the project modules could not be implemented in this form without the possibilities of digitalisation, the BüLaMo project is a central component of the digitalisation strategy for the district of Coesfeld.
ExpressBus X90
A supplement to the express bus line S90 on the Olfen-Münster axis, which serves fewer stops on a straightened route and thus enables significant time savings.
Kommit-Shuttle
Hybrid vehicles that can be booked via app or telephone and can transport up to six people from different households from the front door to the bus stop and vice versa at the same time (on demand), thus opening up the area along the axis of the express Bus line X90.
Mobile station
A stop made from upcycled sea freight containers, which, in addition to increased waiting and transfer comfort, also provides other services such as packing stations or coworking facilities and serves as a meeting point for various modes of transport such as bicycles, e-scooters, car sharing, buses or on-demand transport.
Flexible tariff variants and subscription
Discounted tickets with a 20-25% price advantage depending on the price level for occasional travellers and the kommit subscription with a price advantage of up to 44% compared to the standard monthly subscription for frequent travellers.
Kommit-App
Development of a MaaS app (Mobility as a Service) under the leadership of a mobility app provider, with which entire route chains (e.g. on-demand transport - bus - e-scooter) can be booked and paid for centrally.
Permanent e-scooter hire
Unlike the free-floating system, these e-scooters can be rented permanently or on a monthly basis as an integral part of a public transport subscription. They are well suited to being taken on buses and trains or stored safely at the mobile station. This makes it easy to cover the first and last mile of a journey without using your own car.
Supplementary sharing offers
Supplementary sharing services at residential neighbourhood level are intended to motivate citizens to replace second cars with alternative services such as car or bike sharing close to their homes, as this will enable them to reach surrounding communities without their own car without any problems, even independently of bus and rail services.
In order to make the model project more tangible for people in the region, the mobility brand "kommit - NEU LAND ERFAHREN" was created, which invites citizens to help shape their future local transport. Citizens are actively involved in the development process, can provide feedback and vote on which measures should be implemented or in which direction they should be further developed. This integration of citizens is important, because who knows better what is needed for attractive, modern public transport than those who are supposed to use it?
If you would like to contribute to the further development of the BüLaMo project, why not take part in the "Bürgerlabor" online panel? These surveys are scientifically monitored, subsequently evaluated and the results published on an ongoing basis.
If you would like to find out more about the project, you can find further information on the kommit-Projekt-Website.
Sven Schulz
Zweckverband Mobilität Münsterland Bus Department
Project Management
Phone 0251 41 34-49
Mail kommit@zvmbus.info