#Public Transport

The picture shows the average development of the liveability per household in residential neighborhoods in the Netherlands from 2014 (source: Leefbaarheid in Nederland, 2020)
 
This is the 14th episode of a series 25 building blocks to create better streets, neighbourhoods, and cities. This post discusses how to improve the liveability of neighbourhoods. Liveability is defined as the extent to which the living environment meets the requirements and wishes set by residents.

Differences in liveability between Dutch neighbourhoods

From the image above can be concluded that more than half of all households live in neighborhoods to be qualified as at least 'good'. On the other hand, about 1 million households live in neighborhoods where liveability is weak or even less.
These differences are mainly caused by nuisance, insecurity, and lack of social cohesion. Locally, the quality of the houses stays behind.
The neighborhoods with a weak or poorer liveability are mainly located in the large cities. Besides the fact that many residents are unemployed and have financial problems, there is also a relatively high concentration of (mental) health problems, loneliness, abuse of alcohol and drugs and crime. However, many people with similar problems also live outside these neighbourhoods, spread across the entire city.

Integration through differentiation: limited success

The Netherlands look back on a 75 years period in which urban renewal was high on the agenda of the national and municipal government. Over the years, housing different income groups within each neighbourhood has played a major role in policy. To achieve this goal, part of the housing stock was demolished to be replaced by more expensive houses. This also happened if the structural condition of the houses involved gave no reason to demolishment.
Most studies show that the differentiation of the housing stock has rarely had a positive impact on social cohesion in a neighborhood and often even a negative one. The problems, on the other hand, were spread over a wider area.

Ensuring a liveable existence of the poor

Reinout Kleinhans justly states: <em>Poor neighborhoods are the location of deprivation, but by no means always the cause of it.</em> A twofold focus is therefore required: First and foremost, tackling poverty and a structural improvement of the quality of life of people in disadvantaged positions, and furthermore an integrated neighborhood-oriented approach in places where many disadvantaged people live together.
I have already listed measures to improve the quality of life of disadvantaged groups in an earlier post that dealt with social security. I will therefore focus here on the characteristics of an integrated neighbourhood-oriented approach.
• Strengthening of the remaining social cohesion in neighborhoods by supporting bottom-up initiatives that result in new connections and feed feelings of hope and recognition.
• Improvement of the quality of the housing stock and public space where necessary to stimulate mobility within the neighborhood, instead of attracting 'import' from outside.
• Allowing residents to continue living in their own neighborhood in the event of necessary improvements in the housing stock.
• Abstaining from large-scale demolition to make room for better-off residents from outside the neighborhood if there are sufficient candidates from within.
• In new neighborhoods, strive for social, cultural, and ethnic diversity at neighborhood level so that children and adults can meet each other. On 'block level', being 'among us' can contribute to feeling at home, liveability, and self-confidence.
• Curative approach to nuisance-causing residents and repressive approach to subversive crime through the prominent presence of community police officers who operate right into the capillaries of neighbourhoods, without inciting aggression.
• Offering small-scale assisted living programs to people for whom independent living is still too much of a task. This also applies to housing-first for the homeless.
• Strengthening the possibilities for identification and proudness of inhabitants by establishing top-quality play and park facilities, a multifunctional cultural center with a cross-district function and the choice of beautiful architecture.
• Improving the involvement of residents of neighbourhoods by trusting them and giving them actual say, laid down in neighborhood law.
 
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This is the 9th episode of a series 25 building blocks to create better streets, neighbourhoods, and cities. Casualties in traffic are main threats to the quality of the living environment. ‘Vision zero’ might change this.
Any human activity that annually causes 1.35 million deaths worldwide, more than 20 million serious injuries, damage of $1,600 billion and is a major cause of global warming would be banned immediately. Except for the use of the car. This post describes how changes in road design will improve safety.

The more public transport, the safer the traffic

Researchers from various universities in the US, Australia and Europe have studied the relationship between road pattern, other infrastructure features and road safety or its lack. They compared the road pattern in nearly 1,700 cities around the world with data on the number of accidents, injuries, and fatalities. Lead researcher Jason Thompsonconcluded: <em>It is quite clear that places with more public transport, especially rail, have fewer accidents</em>. Therefore, on roads too public transport must prioritized.

The growing risk of pedestrians and cyclists

Most accidents occur in developing and emerging countries. Road deaths in developed countries are declining. In the US from 55,000 in 1970 to 40,000 in 2017. The main reason is that cars always better protect their passengers. This decrease in fatalities does not apply to collisions between cars and pedestrians and cyclists, many of which are children. Their numbers are increasing significantly, in the US more than in any other developed country. In this country, the number of bicycle lanes has increased, but adjustments to the layout of the rest of the roads and to the speed of motorized traffic have lagged, exposing cyclists to the proximity of speeding or parking cars. SUVs appear to be 'killers'and their number is growing rapidly.

Safe cycling routes

In many American cities, paint is the primary material for the construction of bike lanes. Due to the proximity of car traffic, this type of cycle routes contributes to the increasing number of road deaths rather than increasing safety. The Canadian city of Vancouver, which doubled the number of bicycle lanes in five years to 11.9% of all downtown streets, has the ambition to upgrade 100% of its cycling infrastructure to an AAA level, which means safe and comfortable for all ages and abilities. Cycle paths must technically safe: at least 3 meters wide for two-way traffic; separated from other traffic, which would otherwise have to reduce speed to less than 30 km/h).  In addition, users also need to feel safe.

Street design

Vision Zero Cities such as Oslo and Helsinki are committed to reducing road fatalities to zero over the next ten years. They are successful already now: There were no fatalities in either city in 2019. These and other cities use the Vision Zero Street Design Standard, a guide to planning, designing, and building streets that save lives.
Accidents are often the result of fast driving but are facilized by roads that allow and encourage fast driving. Therefore, a Vision Zero design meets three conditions:
• Discouraging speed through design.
• Stimulating walking, cycling and use of public transport.
• Ensure accessibility for all, regardless of age and physical ability (AAA).
The image above shows a street that meets these requirements. Here is an explanation of the numbers: (1) accessible sidewalks, (2) opportunity to rest, (3) protected cycle routes, (4) single lane roads, (5) lanes between road halves, (6) wide sidewalks, (7) public transport facilities, (8) protected pedestrian crossings, (9) loading and unloading bays, (10) adaptive traffic lights.

Enforcement

Strict rules regarding speed limits require compliance and law enforcement and neither are obvious. The Netherlands is a forerunner with respect to the infrastructure for bikes and pedestrians, but with respect to enforcement the country is negligent: on average, a driver of a passenger car is fined once every 20,000 kilometers for a speeding offense (2017 data). In addition, drivers use apps that warn of approaching speed traps. Given the risks of speeding and the frequency with which it happens, this remissing law enforcement approach is unacceptable.
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The Mobility Sphere Forum is scheduled to take place in Amsterdam on October 4th, 2023 - a gathering of high-level experts across the public and private sectors aimed at rethinking mobility to disrupt the status quo, foster new perspectives, and craft innovative solutions.

Created in 2023, The Mobility Sphere by Transdev is a European think tank aimed at envisioning and providing a comprehensive outlook on the future of mobility. Our approach to mobility is firmly rooted in the concept of transition — whether environmental, social, economic, or territorial. We champion mobility as the cornerstone of inclusive, sustainable, and resilient cities and society.

Centered around the theme ‘Decarbonized mobility, mobility for all: transforming the way we move’, the upcoming Forum will gather approximately 100 mobility stakeholders from various European countries (France, Spain, Portugal, United Kingdom, Sweden, etc.) for a half-day in the heart of Amsterdam. The discussion will be moderated in English by François Gemenne, Scientific Advisor of The Mobility Sphere.

Panel 1 - Desirable and decarbonized mobility: How to anticipate and adapt to uses?

• Karima Delli, Member of the European Parliament, Chair of the Committee on Transport and Tourism (EU)
• Katarína Cséfalvayová, Director of the Institute for Central Europe & Executive Lead of the Danube Tech Valley Initiative, Former Member of Parliament (Slovakia)
• Zeina Nazer, Co-Founder of Cities Forum (United Kingdom)

Panel 2 - Desirable mobility for all: How to foster an inclusive shift towards decarbonization?

• Charlotte Halpern, Researcher at Sciences Po’s Centre for European Studies and Comparative Politics (France)
• Madeleine Masse, Architect Urban Planner, Founding President of Atelier SOIL (France)
• Brian Caulfield, Professor in Transportation & Head of Department at Trinity College Dublin, Expert to the Irish National Transport Authority (Ireland)

Three keynotes:

• Antoine Grange, CEO Europe of Transdev, Chairman of The Mobility Sphere
• Elke Van den Brandt, Minister of the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, responsible for Mobility, Public Works and Road Safety (Belgium)
• Samah Karaki, Neuroscientist – Transitioning towards Sustainable Mobility: Cognitive Biases and the Impact of Social Environment.

To find out more about the forum and the programme, follow this link.

Places at the forum are limited, you can register by sending an e-mail before 25 September 2023 to themobilitysphere@transdev.com.

This is the 8th episode of a series 25 building blocks to create better streets, neighbourhoods, and cities. The question is whether a distribution of services over the whole area contributes to the quality of the urban environment.
 
The central parts of cities like Siena, Amsterdam and Barcelona are overrun by visitors and tourists. Partly because Airbnb has increased its overnight capacity by withdrawing homes from their actual destination. As a result, these cities see their real estate prices rise ans residents leave, making room for expensive apartments, boutique hotels and corporate headquarters. Eventually, old city centers will become amusement parks that offer twenty-four hours of entertainment.

The need for distributed centers

There are no objections against visiting nice cities. The underlying problem is that many of these cities have few other places of interest left, partly due to destruction in the Second World War and their rapid expansion afterwards. Therefore, some cities are in urgent need to create additional attractive places and become polycentric. This aligns with the intention of cities to become a 15-minute city. The figure above is a model developed for this purpose by the council of Portland (USA).
Because of this policy, the prospect is that residents can buy their daily necessities close to home. At the other hand, tourists will be spread. What attractive neighborhood centers look like will be discussed in a subsequent post.

Ancillary centers

Cities without an inordinate number of tourists and visitors also observe a steady grow in the number of events, all competing for the same locations. For this reason, it is advisable that cities have a few ancillary centers each with one or two crowd pullers that divide the stream of visitors. An example is the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao and its newly developed public space around. In world cities such as London and New York, such centers have existed for years, but they are sometimes difficult to find because they are spread over a large area.
Amsterdam too urgently needs one or more ancillary centers. The area between Leidseplein and the Rijksmuseum has potential but lacks unity due to the chaotic intersections of roads and tram lines. The presence of a train or metro station is an advantage, that is why the area near Station Zuid also has potential.

Peripheral centers

Next decade, many visitors will still arrive by car and the best policy is to seduce them to leave their cars at safe transfer points to continue their journey by public transport. For visitors who intend to stay longer, this solution is not optimal. Many will dismiss the perspective of carrying their luggage to the hotel by public transport, although taking a cab is an alternative, albeit expensive. The alternative is the presence of a couple of affordable hotels next to the car park and the development of these areas into attractive public space, with shops, cafes, and restaurants, as a starting point to visit places of interest in the city. These centers can also accommodate major events, such as a football stadium, a music hall, cinemas and open-air festivities, because of the presence of large scale parking facilities. The Amsterdam Arena district is developing in this direction. It used to be a desolate place, but it's getting better. There are excellent train and metro links.

And what about the old 'old' city center?

The public spaces in the old city centers must meet the same requirements as the whole city to prevent becoming an amusement park for tourists. Aside from its carefully maintained and functionally integrated cultural legacy, centers should provide a mix of functions, including housing, offices, spaces for craft and light industry and plenty of greenery dedicated to its inhabitants. The number of hotels should be limited and renting out by Airbnb prohibited. There will be shops for both residents and tourists, rents must be frozen, and the speculative sale of houses curbed. Space over shops must be repurposed for apartments.
 
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This article is part of the series 25 building blocks to create better streets, neighbourhoods, and cities. Read whether Increasing density of cities complies with the quality of the urban environment.

There is widespread agreement to use the available space more thoughtful than during the last decades. In the Nationale Omgevingsvisie (NOVI), the Dutch government has unambiguously expressed its preference for housing locations within existing built-up areas or in the vicinity of stations.

The need for density

Frequently, references are made to ‘urban sprawl' in the USA to illustrate the disadvantages of low density. However, but The Netherlands is also familiar with extensive growth of the urban area. The maps above show the growth of the Amsterdam area. Between 1900 and 2000, the population of Amsterdam grew from 317,000 to 727,000 inhabitants. Its surface from 560 to 11,500 hectares.
The spread of urban activities over an ever-increasing surface and the associated traffic movements have led to vast monotonous areas, car dependence, expansion of the road network, increasing congestion, impoverishment of social life, air pollution, emissions of greenhouse gases and decline of nature.
A summary of 300 OECD research projects shows that compactness results in more efficient use of facilities, but that there are also disadvantages in terms of health and well-being, usually as results of air pollution and traffic.

Advantages of density

Denser development is generally associated with the availability of amenities within walking distance, creating support for better public transport accessibility, and leading to more efficient use of utilities. Moreover - corrected for the composition of the population - CO2 emissions in urban areas are at least 30% lower than in the suburbs. An advantage that disappears in case of high-rises.

No necessity to expand building outside urban areas

According to many urban planners, there is no reason to divert to locations outside the existing built-up area. They claim that there is sufficient space in every city for new residential locations, for instance disused office buildings and factory locations. Many new homes can also come available through the division of oversized single-family homes and the renovation and raising of older (porch) homes.
These arguments only hold if at the same time the nuisance by densification is limited. For example, by reducing car useto prevent the roads from becoming even more crowded and the streets even more filled with parked cars. I don't see that happening yet.

Competing claims on urban land use

There is another important objection to further densification and that is the fact that other forms of land use also appeal to available land within the urban space. For example, the expansion of industry, trade, research etcetera. preferably in the vicinity of living areas to reduce the length of trips.
The most important claim on the available space is the need to expand the city’s greenery. Research into the development of 'green' in Amsterdam and Brussels since 2010 shows that the open space ratio (OSR) in both cities has decreased. In Amsterdam this was 3.68 km2 (4.7%) and in Brussels 9.17 km2 (11.9%). This is in line with a recent study by Arcadis, which shows that the four major cities in the Netherlands score very poorly on healthy outdoor space, greenery, air quality, noise nuisance, heat stress and safety.

Inner- and outer-urban development revisited

The report therefore concludes that extension of the use of urban space for housing must be weighed up against other claims for the use of space, such as urban greening, urban agriculture, and the maintenance and expansion of business activities. At the same time, the objections to ecologically responsive building activities outside the already urbanized areas must be reconsidered. Three-quarters of the agricultural land is used for intensive livestock farming, not exactly creating valuable nature. I will come back to it later.
 
In the 'Dossier leefbaar wonen' (in Dutch)' I wrote extensively about the subject of providing affordable housing. You can download this e-book using the link below:

This article is part of the series 25 building blocks to create better streets, neighbourhoods, and cities. Read how the design of high-rises might comply with the quality of the urban environment.
High-rises are under scrutiny in two respects. First, its necessity or desirability. Secondly, their integration in the urban fabric. This post is about the latter.

Options for high-rises

Suppose you want to achieve a density of 200 housing equivalents in a newly to build area of one hectare. A first option is the way in which Paris and Barcelona have been built: Contiguous buildings from five to eight floors along the streets, with attractive plinths. In addition, or as an addition, others prefer high-rises because of their capacity of enhancing the metropolitan appearance of the area. Not to increase the density in the first place.

Integrative solution

Almost all urban planners who opt for the latter option take as starting point rectangular blocks, which height along the streets is limited to 4-6 storeys, including attractive plinths. The high-rise will then be realized backwards, to keep its massiveness out of sight. The image at top left gives an impression of the reduced visibility of high-rises at street level on Amsterdam's Sluisbuurt. According to many, this is a successful example of the integration of high-rises, just like the Schinkelkwartier under development, also in Amsterdam(picture top right).

Separate towers

The last option is also recognisable in all urban plans with a metropolitan character in Utrecht and Rotterdamand more or less in The Hague too. This represents a turnaround from the past. Research by Marlies de Nijsshowed that only 20% of all high-rises built before 2015 met this condition. These buildings consist of separate towers without an attractive plinth. What you see at ground floor-level are blank walls hiding technical, storage or parking areas. The Zalmtoren in Rotterdam, the tallest building in the Netherlands, exemplifies this (picture below right). This kind of edifices is mostly surrounded by a relatively large space of limited use. Other disadvantages of detached high-rises are the contrast with adjacent buildings, their windy environment, the intense shadows, its ecological footprint, and the costs.

Paris

Two extreme examples of disproportionate high-rises can be found in Paris. Paris has always applied a limitation of the building height to 37 meters within the zone of the Périférique. The exception is the Eiffel Tower, but it was only meant to be temporary. In the two short periods that this provision was cancelled, two buildings have risen: The first is the 210-meter-high Tour Montparnasse, which most Parisians would like to demolish immediately. Instead, the building will be renovated at a cost of €300 million in preparation for the Olympic Games. After 10 years of struggle, construction of the second has started in 2021. It is the 180-meter-high Tour Triangle, designed by Herzog & de Meuron, so-called star architects. The photos at the bottom left and centre show the consequences for the cityscape.

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This article is part of the series 25 building blocks to create better streets, neighbourhoods, and cities. Read how design, starting from the physical aspects of the streetscape en -pattern contributes to the quality of the urban environment. Follow the link below to find an overview of all articles.
 
Streets and squares are appreciated best if there is cohesion between several elements, such as the block height, the number of floors, the type of houses, the building line and the colour. When some elements work together, others can vary. Uniformity without variation results in people avoiding a street.

Coherence and variation in balance

Variation creates liveliness and will extend the time visitors spend on a street. This principle is applied almost everywhere in the world. Walls are fitted with arches, pillars, porches, porches, pitched roofs, windowsills, canopies, balustrades, cornices, dormer windows, linear and vertical elements, see the bottom-centre image of a Paris’ building. At the same time, the attributes of separate buildings that provide variety are most effective against a coherent background. The Parisian avenues illustrate this too, because most edifices are built according to the same principles while the ornamentation of each facade differs. The attractive streetscape in Sicily (top right) and in the Alsace (bottom right) demonstrate an almost perfect balance between similarity and difference.

Use of colour

A good example are the painted houses in the Canadian settlement of Lunenburg, which was founded in the 18th century by German woodworkers and is a UNESCO world heritage site today (top centre). The nature of the construction and the type of buildings ensure cohesion; the colour provides the variation.

Street pattern

A manageable pattern of similarly important streets contributes to the spread of visitors and provides a level playing field for shops and restaurants. A mesh, which does not necessarily have to be rectangular, facilitates orientation. A rectangular street pattern is at the expense of the element of surprise and detracts from the feeling that there is something to discover. Squares will often be found at street intersections.

Landmarks

Understanding of the pattern of the streets is reinforced by providing intersections with landmarks, such as statues, fountains, or distinguishing buildings (photo, top right). These elements help visitors developing a mental map. Maps every here and there are more helpful than signposts. The fewer poles in the ground, the better.

Canals and moats

Canals and moats also contribute to the attractivity of the streetscape. They restore the human dimension in too wide streets, also in new parts of the city. The images on the left show a central street in Zaandam (top) and a 'waterway' in the Amsterdam Houthavens quarter (bottom). The edges of waterways should never be used as parking spaces. Definitely not in Amsterdam, because its unique streetscape.  

This article is the first in the series 25 building blocks to create better streets, neighbourhoods, and cities.Read how lively places contribute to the quality of streets and squares. Follow the link below to find an overview of all articles.
 
The public space is like a stage. The Dutch architect and urban planner Sjoerd Soeters, known for the Amsterdam Houthavens, likes to say that. He meant that it is the inhabitants and visitors of cities who provide the liveliness, but that streets and squares must ensure that they come. This apparently worked out well on the Rue Sainte-Catherine in Bordeaux (photo above right).

Shopping facilities and catering

Research shows that the quality of the shopping facilities, also for 'fun shoppers', is still the main driver to visit the center of cities. A varied catering offer follows in second place (photo bottom left). A welcome addition are spaces with a non-commercial purpose, such as museums, galleries, art lending, information centers of municipalities or companies, etcetera.

Sidewalks

Sidewalks use to be too narrow, due to the perceived need to accommodate motorized traffic. A sidewalk in central parts of the city must be at least 20 feet wide, such as that of Fillmore Street, San Francisco (top left photo). In that case, sufficient space is offered for greenery, free passage for passers-by and tables or chairs, billboards, and street vendors, who make a welcome contribution to the liveliness of the street.

Opportunity to rest

Places that invite you to linger increase the attractiveness of the area and the chance of unforeseen encounters (collision spaces). These can be terraces, but also non-commercial places such as tree-lined squares with benches, games, buskers (acoustic), an ice cream cart etcetera. One of the most famous examples is the Spanish Steps in Rome. Such spaces usually arise 'by themselves', but they can also be designed as such, for instance, squares in Barcelona and Shanghai (photos bottom center and bottom right). By no means it is certain that they will also be used as such.

Minimize traffic noise

In the more centrally located parts of a city, a certain level of sound is part of the experience, but traffic noise is a source of nuisance and drives away visitors. Through traffic is not compatible with all other (inner) urban functions; destination traffic must be reduced, channeled and its speed limited. Noise at events must also be reduced to an acceptable level for visitors, residents, and passers-by, knowing that events attract many people, but can also repel others as well.

Places with a different character

In an atmospheric city center you will find quiet places and others where it is bustling at the same time. Those quiet places can be small parks with playgrounds and benches to rest, but also publicly accessible courtyards of residential blocks.

Exploiting iconic places

Most cities have places with special characteristics. These are often historic or modern buildings, monuments, fountains etcetera. Sometimes it is a well-known square, such as the Vrijthof in Maastricht. Sometimes it is also the boulevard along a river or special viewpoints (photo top middle) that both city dwellers and visitors like to include in their route and where they linger for a while.

Art

All parts of a city with a central function should be amply supplied with art. For this purpose, also (temporarily) empty shops can be used, which also serve as an information center. Think of art objects on the street (possibly replica’s) and fascinating paintings on blind walls, which number must be limited by the way. In the evening, light art can be imagined on the facades of buildings surrounding streets and squares.

This article is the introduction to the series 25 building blocks for better streets, neighbourhoods and cities, which you can read every Tuesday and Friday starting next week. The link below refers to an overview of all upcoming posts.

It often strikes me how much people agree about the quality of the living environment. Many, especially younger ones, prefer a house built in the '30s. Older neighbourhoods almost always score higher than modern ones, due to the alleged lack of atmosphere, sociability, and intimacy in the latter. Urban planners, architects and politicians would like to change this, and they are doing so. Slowly.

In urban planning a breeze of fresh air comes in.

How cities in Europe currently look stems largely from the ideas of Le Corbusier through his role in the Congrès Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne (CIAM). The Dutch architect and urban planner Cornelis van Eesteren was also a prominent representative. The influence of the Congress is visible in the spacious post-war residential areas with their long rows of single-family houses and medium-rise buildings. The underlying idea was to design a functional city in which living, working, shopping and recreation all have their own separated places.

Slowly, the voice of a new generation of urban planners in which Jane Jacobs and Jan Gehl (pictures above) play a prominent role became louder. They detest post-war urban expansion and advocate mixing urban functions.  70 years after the publication of her book The Death and Life of Great American Cities, Planetizen magazine predicated urban activist Jane Jacobs as the most influential urban planner ever, even though she never studied this field. Jan Gehl, who did, follows in second place. By the way, Anne Hidalgo, the mayor of Paris, is in 7th place; not because of what she studied but of what she put into practice.

Many others, including representatives of New Urbanism, play an important role in further developing the ideas of Jacobs and Gehl. For instance, they put back on the agenda the return to the 15-minute city. ‘New urbanists’ also top the list: Andres Duany, the author of Suburban Nation at four and Jeff Speck, who authored Walkable City, at ten.

The concept of high-quality living environment

Many contemporary ideas about urban development come together in the concept of high-quality living environment. A compact definition of this concept is improving human well-being in a condensing city. I have collected and clustered references to characteristics of high-quality living environments in many recent publications into 25 building blocks. Each block deals with one aspect of the quality of the living environment, or in other words the creation of better streets, neighbourhoods, and cities. Consider this a tribute to the mission of the Amsterdam Smart City community, of which I was a curator for several years.

I hope you get inspired and support the use of these building blocks.

While our mobility system and its options are continuously expanding, there’s a growing number of people who feel excluded from the mobility system and experience a lack of access to services like public transport and shared mobility options. The concept of Mobility Poverty shows there are a variety of reasons for this exclusion, ranging from economic and geographical reasons, to falling behind on digital skills. If we want to move towards ‘Mobility Justice’, we would need a detailed image of the groups experiencing this exclusion and we would need a variety of actors to come up with -and implement- creative solutions to this emerging problem.

For the past months, Chris de Veer and I have been busy setting up a regional coalition and program on this subject. Because it’s becoming clear we’re discussing a problem we, a pool of mobility specialists, are not experiencing ourselves, we decided to critically look at what parties have a seat at the table. During the Amsterdam Smart City Transition Day on June 6th, we gathered input and reflections on the power structures in play and considerations when involving your target group in decision making.  

Understanding power relations and structures when working on transitions

When designing solutions and innovative policies, it’s important to understand and be aware of the power structures in play. Our partner Kennisland is concerned with the topic and introduced this discussion within our network during on of our ‘Kennissessies’ earlier this year. Together with this session’s participants, we used their method to evaluate which parties have been involved in the initial phase of our Mobility Justice challenge.

It became clear that it had been mostly governmental parties which were involved in exploring the topic and initiating the design of a cooperation program. While this is of importance for practical matters like funding  and political support, the group should have been diversified when we started exploring the problem and its solutions. The (target) group we’re talking about is currently lacking the power to help design both the collaboration process itself and the initiatives that should help fight Mobility Poverty.

Considerations when engaging with your target group

There was a general consensus in the group that we should now make more of an effort to engage with our target group. But how exactly? The group discussed different existing forms of involving a target group in decision making and advised us on matters to consider, namely;

• Decide in what stage(s) of the process collaboration or input is needed. Exploring the problem will require a completely different conversation and method compared to the stage of co-designing solutions.
• Be very clear about what you’ll use the outcomes for. If you decide to gather input from - and collaborate with your target group, you’ll need to actually incorporate the outcomes within your process. This is necessary to maintain the groups trust and validate their efforts.
• Besides defining problems and exploring its solutions, evaluation of the initiatives that follow will be equally important. Special efforts need to be put into place to keep the dialogue going with the target group during and after testing initiatives.

Next steps: Harnessing the power of community centres

When discussing potential next steps for the group, one of the session’s participants reminded us of the power of community centres. She mentioned an example in her own neighbourhood, where a group of neighbours initiated a sharing vehicle for elderly/disabled people. This example illustrated how local communities know best what specific problems or needs are at play, and how to set up solutions in a quick manner.

This conversation inspired us to now look for relevant local initiatives and community centres in the Amsterdam region. With their help, we hope to better understand problems related to Mobility Poverty and what specific solutions people need within their local context.  

A call to the community

I’m now wondering if there is anyone in our Amsterdam Smart City community who could link us to local initiatives and community centres in the Amsterdam region? Mobility-related topics are a plus, but this is certainly not necessarily. Any advice or tips to share? Send me an email at pelle@amsterdamsmartcity.com. This summer, we’ll design the continuation of this project.

The climate is changing and Amsterdam is getting busier and busier. We are faced with the task of keeping the city, including Southeast, liveable, safe and accessible at the same time.Various events, concerts, sports competitions attract millions of visitors to Southeast every year. To bring all these visitors to the city in a more sustainable way, the municipality of Amsterdam, Johan Cruijff ArenA, Ajax, NS, GVB, Transdev, Transport Region Amsterdam and Amsterdam Smart City have joined forces. Their ambition is to make CO2 neutral travelling to and from large events the norm by the end of 2023.

Alternating travelbehaviour requires a diverse coalition
The car is currently still the most widely used means of transport in Southeast. The transition to sustainable mobility requires cooperation between (semi)public and private parties and the strengthening of sustainable alternatives to the private car. While reducing car- and parking accessibility, and placing bycicle parking options lays within the power of the municipality, the public transport providers posess all travel data and have the power to expand their transportcapacity. Moreover, to convince the supporters and fans to change their behaviour, you need the direct communication power from Ajax (Football Club) and the Johan Cruijff ArenA. Hence, you could say the challenge within the challenge is to find new forms of collaboration, data sharing, and fine-tuning the alignment of measures.

Short and long-term measures
The coalition of partners have developed an action plan and analysed crowd-and travel behaviour. During 2023, these findings initiated the shaping of first measures to influence the mobility choices of visitors. During the first pilot event at the end of May, bike parking facilities will be expanded and group transportation will be aranged for those living in so called 'public transport desserts'.

When speaking of long(er)-term measures, one could think of time-adjusted public transport supply, personal (digital) travel advice, and campaigns through Ajax and its supportersbase to raise awareness and appreciation of car-alternatives.

Hi everyone,

I am currently in my Final year of of a BSc in City Planning and Environmental Policy in University College Dublin. I am also planning on doing a masters in Urban design and Planning.

I want to pursue an internship opportunity for the summer months of 2023 (June-August). Does anyone have any information on any companies/ projects that are willing to take interns within Europe?

I am super passionate about sustainable development and the urban environment and would love to gain experience in my feild!

Thanks so much in advance!

Are you already familiar with the technology developments and challenges towards sustainable mobility and you are ready to take a next step deepening or broadening your expertise? Does the idea of alternating between research and consultancy work appeal to you? Then be sure to read on!

YOUR ROLE
The world of mobility is changing fast. Not only is electric and hydrogen becoming part of the transport and energy landscape, but cities and companies are also exploring topics such as vehicle-to-grid, shared mobility and hubs for transporting goods and people. Should you join the team as our new colleague, you will be providing expertise for research & demonstration projects as well as consultancy projects. Depending on your level of experience, skills and specialisms, your daily activities could vary from:

• Analysing and evaluating (technical, economic, social and environmental) performance of zeroemission vehicles (e.g., BEVs, FCEVs, light- and heavy-duty) and related energy infrastructures(e.g. charging/refuelling)
• Developing zero emission mobility strategies for public and private sector clients (such as local authorities and logistics fleets etc.)
• Evaluating and/or contributing to the development of best practices, policy guidelines and recommendations for sustainable mobility
• Engaging with and maintain relations with clients and partners (industry parties, public sector, knowledge institutes, etc)
• Attending and presenting at conferences and organising workshops
• Writing of customer and public-facing reports and other forms of publications

YOUR PROFILE
The role of ‘Specialist & Consultant – ‘Zero-Emission Mobility’ with Cenex NL can cover a range of specialisms at different experience levels. Do the following personal qualities and skills match with you:

• Relevant master’s degree (such as Technology, Engineering, Business and Innovation)
• Expertise and experience in zero or low-emission transport, vehicles and/or related energy infrastructures
• Knowledge and experience with analysing and/or modelling of quantitative of qualitative data
• Comfortable self-starter and completer of assignments * Fluent in English, both written and spoken; additional language skills (NL or other) are a plus
• Enjoy working with/in (internal/external) teams, an integral part of many of our projects
• Able to deliver value and quality to our customers and partners (verbally and written) • Excellent communicator (in person, presentations, writing reports)
• Existing work-permit to work in NL (currently we are unable to be a visa sponsor) • Willing and able to travel (inter)nationally with some regularity
• An analytical and curious mind with a passion for environmental technology and people
• Driving licence

And do you have certain additional expertise and skills that are highly valuable in the everchanging world of mobility and transport that you want to bring to our team?

CONTACT DETAILS
Do send us your CV and a letter where you motivate the above to hello@cenexgroup.nl (CC, jobs@cenex.co.uk). We look forward to hearing from you!

Closing date is extended

Rising petrol and electricity prices; increasing digitalisation and declining public transport supply, among other things, are causing more and more people to have problems getting around. Sustainability and shared mobility do not seem to be for everyone, and measures to encourage them may even exacerbate the problem. This increases the risk of social exclusion.

The province of North Holland and DRIFT are concerned about mobility poverty and wonder what we can do about it to keep everyone in our society mobile. However, little is still known about the extent of the problem, the exact target groups and what instruments work (and what, above all, do not). We are therefore keen to engage with partners to reach a shared understanding and an aligned approach.

Since mid 2022, we have been working on this challenge with network partners in various working group sessions. Would you like to think along and be part of the solution? Contact me at pelle@amsterdamsmartcity.com.

Groeien?! Hoe doe je dat in de Metropoolregio Amsterdam, de drukste regio van Nederland? Hoe kunnen we ruimte geven aan meer woningen, terwijl de ruimte beperkt is? Hoe houden we de stad duurzaam bereikbaar én leefbaar, terwijl de verkeersstromen alleen maar toenemen in aantal en omvang? En ook: hoe zorgen we voor aansluiting tussen stad en platteland, terwijl de ov-opties hier steeds minder worden?

Om deze opgaven waar te kunnen maken, moeten we grenzen verleggen. Tijdens ons smart mobility congres op dinsdagmiddag 8 november zoeken we samen die grenzen op, en kijken we waar en hoe we deze kunnen verleggen. Met een afwisselend en interactief programma met inspirerende deelsessies zoeken we antwoord op de vragen: Waar wrikt en schuurt het? En waar liggen kansen voor slimme mobiliteitsoplossingen?

Ontmoet het MRA-netwerk

Dit congres ‘voor en door’ overheden, kennisinstellingen en de markt is dé plek om kennis op te halen en het smart mobility-netwerk te ontmoeten. Grensverleggend groeien kunnen we namelijk alleen samen, hand in hand met vernieuwende technologie, slimme organisatie en mobiliteitsoplossingen. Waarbij we met nieuwe ogen kijken naar onszelf, de processen en de opgaven die voor ons liggen. Jouw perspectief en expertise zijn daarbij van harte welkom!

Laat je inspireren door bevlogen sprekers

Ons congres wordt ingeluid door twee inspirerende en bevlogen sprekers. Zij benaderen smart mobility vanuit twee verschillende invalshoeken. Marja Ruigrok, bestuurslid Vervoerregio Amsterdam en wethouder gemeente Haarlemmermeer, vanuit de bestuurlijke kant en Bas Kodden, schrijver, spreker en onderzoeker, vanuit een meer menselijk perspectief. Dat belooft een vliegende start van het congres. De dagvoorzitter is Meindert Schut, journalist en radiopresentator bij BNR Nieuwsradio. Wacht dus niet langer en meld je aan!

Aanmelden

Wil je je aanmelden voor het MRA-congres smart mobility op dinsdagmiddag 8 november in het BIMHUIS in hartje Amsterdam? Ga dan naar onze congreswebsite. Hier vind je alle informatie over het thema Grensverleggend Groeien, het programma en de verschillende deelsessies.

We hopen je te zien tijdens ons smart mobility congres op 8 november!

Duurzaam reisgedrag kun je niet stimuleren zonder écht te luisteren naar de afwegingen die mensen maken bij hun keuze voor een vervoermiddel. En daar schort het nu nog regelmatig aan, stelt gedragswetenschapper Reint Jan Renes.
-> Lees dit artikel op NEMO Kennislink

Dit artikel is onderdeel van het project ''Wat mensen beweegt'. Waarin NEMO Kennislink, in samenwerking met lectoraat Creative Media for Social Change van de Hogeschool voor Amsterdam, het reisgedrag in het ArenA-gebied onderzoekt. NEMO Kennislink bevroeg hiervoor een aantal reguliere bezoekers.

• Concertganger Josina (58) reist al haar hele leven met het openbaar vervoer
• Activiste Jeanette Chedda (38) over inclusie voor duurzame mobiliteit
• Ondernemer en voetbalfanaat Gerco laat zijn auto niet staan
• Student Sander (24) komt (bijna) overal met ov en fiets

Slotbijeenkomst 'Wat mensen beweegt' in NEMO op 8 september om 14.30
In samenwerking met VU-onderzoeker en theatermaker Frank Kupper én theatermaker Bartelijn Ouweltjes gaan we de verhalen van bezoekers met u delen, door middel van improvisatietheater. Improvisatietheater is een mooie manier om emoties, dilemma’s en persoonlijke waarden uit te lichten, goed te beluisteren en misschien nog eens te hernemen. Zo leren we de bezoekers goed kennen – wat weer te vertalen is naar beleid en communicatie. -> Lees meer

Partners
In dit project werken we nauw samen met Johan Cruijff Arena, AFAS Live, Ziggo Dome , Platform Smart Mobility Amsterdam, ZO Bereikbaar, het Amsterdam Smart City netwerk, CTO Gemeente Amsterdam.

De trend van het elektrisch fietsen brengt wonderlijke innovaties met zich mee. Van onzichtbare accu’s tot usb-poorten en Spotify op je fietsdisplay. Het laadproces van de e-bike blijft hierin niet achter met de nieuwste innovatie van TILER: draadloos opladen via een stoeptegel. Een product dat naadloos toe te passen is in de MOBIHUBS van MOBIAN: een nieuwe samenwerking is geboren.

TILER heeft de handeling om e-bikes te laden eigenlijk volledig weggenomen. Parkeren is laden en er hoeft verder niks voor gedaan te worden. Het enige wat hiervoor nodig is, is een Laadtegel en de standaard van de fiets moet vervangen worden door TILERs Laadstandaard. Dit is ideaal voor onbeheerde deelfietsvloten, hier wordt het laden nog wel eens vergeten door de gebruiker en zijn standaard laders erg fragiel en niet gemaakt voor dergelijk intensief gebruik. 

‘Een te gekke, nieuwe en toegankelijke manier om de e-bike op te laden’, aldus Sven Snel, oprichter van MOBIAN. ‘De trend van de e-bike is ons de laatste jaren niet ontgaan, maar om op onze MOBIHUBS elektrische deelfietsen op een goede manier aan te kunnen bieden blijkt een behoorlijke uitdaging. We hebben ons eerder aan e-bikes gewaagd, maar stuitten te vaak op vernieling van onze laadproducten. In TILER zien we een toffe huterproof-oplossing en gaan dus graag samen de uitdaging om opnieuw e-bikes toe te voegen aan de deelmobiliteiten op onze MOBIHUBS.’ 

MOBIAN is niet de eerste die samenwerkt met TILER, ook met andere deelfiets concepten is TILER al actief. Voorbeelden zijn huurfietsen bij hotels en pool e-bikes voor personeel. Ook zijn ze onlangs een project gestart met een deelfiets hub bij Arnhem Centraal. ‘Wij zijn erg enthousiast om dit project met MOBIAN te starten, MOBIAN past perfect in deze doelgroep, ook vooral omdat zij zelf hebben ondervonden dat er een laadoplossing moet zijn als je in autonome hubs e-bikes aan wilt bieden. TILER’s visie is om steden te veranderen, meer gericht op mens en natuur - MOBIAN’s park & ride concept past daar natuurlijk perfect in. Auto buiten de stad en binnen de stad verder op licht elektrisch vervoer.’ aldus Christiaan van Nispen, oprichter van TILER.

Vanaf deze week kunnen er e-bikes gehuurd worden bij de MOBIHUB Ijsbaanpad en later deze maand ook bij MOBIHUB Amsterdam West. Wanneer het project succesvol verloopt hopen de bedrijven verder uit te kunnen rollen in de verschillende Nederlandse steden.

tilercharge.com

Het klimaat verandert en het wordt steeds drukker in Amsterdam. Jaarlijks komen er alleen al miljoenen bezoekers op Zuidoost af voor het grootste entertainment gebied van Nederland. We staan voor de opgave om de stad, waaronder Zuidoost, leefbaar, veilig en tegelijkertijd bereikbaar te houden. Verschillende partners slaan daarom nu de handen ineen om bezoekers van en naar evenementen in 2023 CO2 neutraal te laten reizen

De auto is op dit moment het meest gebruikte vervoersmiddel in Zuidoost. Amsterdam heeft ervoor gekozen om de privé auto minder ruimte te geven in de stad en de uitstoot van fossiele brandstof terug te dringen om de luchtkwaliteit in de stad te verbeteren en bij te dragen aan de klimaatdoelstellingen.

De transitie van mobiliteit vraagt om een samenwerking tussen (semi) publieke en private partijen en het verstevigen van duurzame alternatieven voor de privé auto. Op 11 mei hebben de gemeente Amsterdam, Johan Cruijff ArenA, Ajax, NS, GVB, Transdev, VRA en Amsterdam Smart City getekend voor een samenwerking rondom CO2 neutraal reizen. Het doel: in 2023 bezoekers CO2 neutraal te laten reizen van en naar één of meerdere evenementen in de Johan Cruijff ArenA. Zodat we samen leren hoe we CO2 neutraal reizen naar evenementen de norm maken

Op de Amsterdam Smart City Demodag op 14 juni zullen de bovenstaande organisaties bij elkaar komen in één van de werksessies, om verder na te denken over het proces. Wat hebben we nodig? Wat wordt de werkwijze? Wat kunnen de grootste hobbels zijn?

Ben je werkzaam bij één van onze partnerorganisaties en lijkt het je interessant om hierover mee te denken? Stuur een mail naar trisha@amsterdamsmartcity.com voor verdere informatie over deelname aan de werksessie.

On 2 & 3 June, EIT Urban Mobility is organizing a learning and networking event with inspiring mobility thought leaders at AMS Institute in Amsterdam. During the Mobility Solutions Cities' Showcase, urban mobility innovations from across Europe will be demonstrated.

EIT Urban Mobility has evaluated several applications from innovation-to-market projects and compiled a catalogue with Mobility Solutions from which some will be presented on June 2nd. Amongst others the projects SmartHubs (presentation by AMS Institute's innovation director Stephan van Dijk) and Code the Streets, in which Amsterdam and AMS Institute collaborate will have the stage. This will be followed by a keynote speech from Prof. Dr. Marco te Brommelstroet, co-author of Het Recht van de Snelste

June 3rd, on the United Nations World Bicycle Day, content-driven sessions on Active Mobility will take place with influential mobility thought leaders such as Melissa Bruntlett and Danny Nelissen, all moderated by Carlo van de Weijer

Do you want to join and learn more about our mobility solutions and content-driven sessions on active mobility? Register in the link attached! https://bit.ly/3xp2X4A

Op bepaalde plekken in de Metropoolregio Amsterdam (MRA) kan het behoorlijk druk zijn. Denk aan toeristische trekpleisters, het strand en recreatie- en winkelgebieden. Als teveel mensen op hetzelfde moment naar dezelfde plek gaan, heeft dat een negatief effect op de bereikbaarheid, leefbaarheid en veiligheid. Dat moet anders, dachten de partners van het MRA-platform Smart Mobility.

De provincies Noord-Holland en Flevoland, Gemeente Amsterdam en Vervoerregio Amsterdam werkten het afgelopen jaar samen met marktpartijen in het project ‘Scale Up | Bezoekersstromen<b>’</b>. De inzet: innovatieve oplossingen om bezoekersstromen te voorspellen en met gerichte acties te spreiden in tijd, route en vervoersmiddel. En dat is gelukt! Sterker nog: de innovaties zijn zo goed dat alle gemeenten binnen de MRA de oplossingen bij de marktpartijen kunnen inkopen en inzetten.

De oplossingen zijn getest op het strand van Zandvoort, in de Kalverstraat in Amsterdam en tijdens Koningsdag in Amsterdam. Deze testlocaties hebben genoeg informatie opgeleverd om de oplossingen in de hele regio in te kunnen zetten. De resultaten, successen en lessen van deze tests bespreken we op 19 mei tijdens een nieuwe #SmartThursday.

#SmartThursday

Op donderdag 19 mei van 16.00 tot 17.00 presenteren we de resultaten van het project ‘Scale Up | Bezoekersstromen’ tijdens een digitale bijeenkomst. Wil je meer weten over de sessie en sprekers? Of wil je je direct aanmelden? Ga dan naar deze pagina!