Promises, pathways, and pitfalls: Tracing a decade of Mobility as a Service research

Over the past decade, Mobility as a Service (MaaS) has emerged as one of the most debated concepts in the field of urban mobility. MaaS is a potential alternative to car-centric systems, and promises integrated, user-oriented transport that could shift everyday travel patterns toward more sustainable forms. This promise has generated a rapidly expanding and diverse academic conversation. But how has this conversation evolved? Which ideas, studies, and turning points have shaped the development of this strand of literature? This paper takes a retrospective look at ten years of MaaS research, using main path analysis to trace the knowledge pathways that have defined the field. The analysis identifies the conceptual roots of MaaS, maps its consolidation through visionary proposals and pilot evaluations, and follows its diversification into governance debates, adoption studies, and systemic critiques. In doing so, the study highlights both the promises that animated MaaS, the pathways that structured its scholarly development, and the pitfalls that continue to limit its translation into practice, offering a more reflexive basis for future research. • MaaS research grew rapidly but developed through fragmented and uneven debates. • Main Path Analysis identifies five phases structuring the field’s intellectual development. • Citation flows highlight the influence of frameworks, governance models, and pilot evidence. • Recurring pitfalls expose limits in behavioral understanding, institutional capacity, and bundle utility.