While it's known as a particularly fragmented sector, ground transportation is working toward interoperability.
During an executive panel at Phocuswright Europe, leaders from Omio, BlaBlaCar and Rail Europe discussed the ongoing transformation of rail, bus and car travel, accomplishments in recent years and what needs to happen to achieve the elusive “seamless journey.”
According to Veronica Diquattro, president of B2C Europe at Omio, industry standards are due for an update, and collaboration with “like-minded partners” is key. In addition, she highlighted the importance of data access for operators.
This means operators can access “all fares, all options, all details to offer to the user the optimal choices,” she said, noting the need for standardization of regulatory framework, too.
Björn Bender, CEO of Rail Europe, said standardization is the most pressing need, and according to Florent Bannwarth, BlaBlaCar Iberia manager, in Spain, the challenge is having different conversations with operators.
“I think in Europe, overall, there are still a lot of operators that need to be convinced that they need technology, that they need platforms like us, that they need a marketplace and that we can bring incremental passengers and incremental activity,” Bannwarth said.
“It should be easy, and it’s actually not that easy when you speak to a lot of them, so the change also needs to come from operators, carriers, and we as platforms need to be able to convince them and show them the value we can bring.”
The executives also discussed how to increase the use of ground transportation, the role of larger online travel agencies and consolidation.
Below, watch the full discussion, moderated by Lorraine Sileo, founder of Phocuswright research and senior analyst at Phocuswright:
The Great Ground Shift at Phocuswright Europe 2025