Connecting Towns in Depopulated Spain
The story of bideON ARRATIAN: when technology becomes company and roads reunite people.
Location
Arratia – Basque Country
Sector
Public Administration
Services
Shared mobility
+23K
Trips made
–92 %
Reduction in transport costs
+1.32M
Kg of CO₂ avoided
87%
Budget invested in the valley
The challenge
A Dispersed Region, with No Real Alternatives to the Private Car
The Arratia Valley, in Bizkaia, is made up of small municipalities and scattered farmhouses, which makes it difficult to connect between centers and access essential services such as medical centers, shops or banks. This situation especially affects the elderly, young people or those without their own vehicle.
The main alternative was the occasional use of taxis, a useful solution in some cases, but limited in terms of efficiency, planning and cost. There were no shared routes or an adapted system that easily connected with other means of public transport.
Faced with this reality, the Association of Municipalities detected an urgent need: to rethink the transport model in terms of equity, sustainability and efficiency, guaranteeing access to basic services and territorial cohesion.
The solution
The Solution: a Transport System Designed Together with Citizens
With BideON Arratian, the Arratia Association of Municipalities and the Bizkaia Provincial Council, in collaboration with Celering, have launched a pioneering model of shared on-demand transport: a human, efficient and scalable service.
The project was developed with a participatory approach adapted to the particularities of the territory. In the initial phase, a survey was launched that received more than 400 responses to learn first-hand about the real mobility needs of the population. This was accompanied by a technical analysis of existing services (bus lines, taxis and municipal resources), with the aim of designing a solution that would complement and optimize them.
The result was a flexible system, made up of two large service blocks:
- Shared taxi service for the elderly.
- Shared taxi service + Virtual line for university, FP and CEPA students.
The entire system is managed using Celering technology: a comprehensive platform with apps for users and drivers, a control panel for administration and algorithms that optimize routes and resources in real time.
To guarantee universal access, a face-to-face office and telephone assistance were also enabled.
The impact
Beyond Transport: Inclusion, Efficiency and Social Cohesion
Since its launch, the system has had a tangible impact:
- More than 23,000 journeys made in less than a year.
- Reduction of empty kilometers and better use of vehicles.
- High citizen satisfaction: rating of 4.9/5 and strong “word of mouth” effect in the region.
- Real accessibility for the elderly, people with disabilities or without their own car.
- Direct economic impact: 87% of the budget is reinvested in the valley, supporting local employment.
In addition, thanks to Celering’s technology, the Association of Municipalities can monitor use in real time, adjust routes and plan with data. This has turned the system into a more efficient management tool for the administration, optimizing spending per journey and adapting the service to the real needs of each town or group.
The model has proven to be not only effective, but also scalable and adaptable to other territories with similar challenges.
“What you can take with bideON in 40 minutes, the bus costs you 3 hours. The drivers are lovely. Everything very easy.”
Sara Egileor, user
