With almost half a million inhabitants (exactly 471,891 on 31 December 2021), the Rhein-Erft district – located south-west of the metropolis cologne – ranks ninth among the largest districts in Germany.. The largest town belonging to the district is Kerpen with 66,294 citizens, the smallest is Elsdorf, where “only” 21,745 people live.
Erftstadt had 49,667 inhabitants as of 31 December 2021. Erftstadt was created on 1 July 1969, when it still belonged to the district of Euskirchen. At that time, the towns of Lechenich and Liblar and a number of municipalities were merged to form the town of Erftstadt, and as such it has belonged to the district of Bergheim since 1 January 1975.
Many inhabitants in a relatively large area were the reason for introducing the on-demand service “mobie” on 01 September as a supplement to the bus network in Erftstadt. “mobie” replaces the previous offer with call-sharing taxis (AST). Its task is to reinforce the bus service when needed. “mobie” serves the entire city area of Erftstadt as well as the Hermülheim district of the neighbouring town of Hürth, where there is a connection to the Cologne-Bonn light rail line 18.
Anyone who wants to travel with “mobie” orders via app or by calling 02237 / 69 69 269 and specifying the destination of their journey. They will be told at which “stop” and at what time “mobie” will pick them up. There is no fixed timetable.
“mobie” not only uses existing bus stops. Rather, a multitude of virtual stops have been set up over the urban area, and none of these more than 250 metres away from any address in town.
The system is programmed to combine journeys at the same time with the same or a similar route, called “ridepooling”. The system was developed by the district-owned Rhein-Erft Verkehrs Gesellschaft (REVG), which operates bus transport in the district, together with the system provider “door2door”.
The journey is paid for via app or cashless (!) in the vehicle. A single journey costs 4.20 euros. Those who already have a ticket from the Rhein – Sieg transport association only pay 3.20 euros.
At the start of “mobie”, three fully electric Mercedes minibuses of the type eVito were available. Two more cars of the same type were still expected. The vehicles are owned by REVG and are painted in bright orange. This clearly distinguishes them from the REVG buses, which are white with blue applications. The eVito can carry five passengers and are also equipped to carry wheelchairs. If a wheelchair is actually on board, however, only three more passengers can be carried.
The drivers for “mobie” come from REVG. At peak times, however, the Erftstadt taxi industry will also provide drivers.
Finally, let’s take a look at “mobie’s” operating times: The orange electric minibuses can be booked from Monday to Thursday between 5.30 am and 0.30 am. On Fridays, they are offered from 5.30 a.m. to 2.30 a.m. on Saturday night, on Saturdays from 6.30 a.m. to 2.30 a.m. And on Sundays, “mobie” operates from 6.30 a.m. to 1.30 a.m.
