Verso una rivoluzione del trasporto urbano tra nuova mobilità, guida autonoma, digitalizzazione ed elettrificazione. Corrono San Francisco e Stoccolma.
Si moltiplicano i progetti di città costruite a tavolino, da Nuova Cairo alla futura capitale dell'Indonesia. Non sempre, però, gli obiettivi vengono raggiunti.
As the world enters a new era after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Covid-19 pandemic is still upsetting our daily lives. And as 75% of EU citizens live in urban areas, cities are the most prominent stage both for responding to the health crisis, and for seizing opportunities to recover and move forward. In 2020, EU countries agreed to Next Generation EU, a €750 billion recovery package that represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity.
Mobility is a constantly evolving field. Until today, the success of Global Cities around the world was highly dependent on the efficiency of their infrastructures, as well as on their ability to maintain them. However, over the last two years, the coronavirus pandemic seized control of our lives, leading to substantial social and economic changes.
Nothing will ever be the same. It’s hard not to share such a clear yet simple assessment of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the short span of a few weeks, indeed a few days, ordinary human activities were disrupted. The impact was immediate and particularly visible in cities where traffic frenzy and traffic jams were suddenly replaced by deserted streets and unreal silence.
When cities reopened following months of lockdowns, they were no longer the same; or perhaps their citizens were different. Restaurants, bars, and clubs flooded outdoors, invading sidewalks and even streets or parking spaces at times. Outdoor activities increased exponentially while parks were filled with all sorts of events: yoga classes, political meetings, and actual outdoor education. Similar phenomena have occurred, at different times and in different ways, in almost every city across Europe and the world.
Introduction
Smart mobility, defined for the sake of simplicity as a personalized ‘service’ available ‘on demand’, providing individuals instant access to a seamless system of clean, green, efficient, and flexible transport to meet all their needs, is a transition affecting the mobility sector, though we cannot call it a revolution yet.
Up until not long ago, research and development efforts around autonomous driving focused on the vehicle. Automobile and technology companies disseminated their vision for futuristically designed vehicles wherein passengers could even sleep during their trips, and which would make mobility fully efficient, safe, clean, and equitable. Over time, following the involvement of other actors (researchers from different fields, administrations, traffic management centres, etc.) in autonomous mobility, this idealistic vision was discarded.
At the international climate change conference, COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021, the British organisers pushed for greater recognition of the impact of road transport on greenhouse gas emissions – and to present the electrification of the automotive market as the solution. Over 100 governments, businesses, investors, and civic organisations signed a declaration committing to accelerating the transition to zero-emissions vehicles.
After a decade of rapid growth, shared mobility has confronted new challenges with COVID-19. Shared mobility refers to transportation modes in which services and vehicles are shared among users. This includes app-based ride-hailing, carpooling, and car-sharing, as well as micro-mobility services such as bikes, e-bikes, and electric scooter fleets.
I comuni rivestono un ruolo determinante nell’attuazione del Piano Nazionale di Ripresa e Resilienza (PNRR). A questi spetta l’attuazione di investimenti per una contropartita di almeno 30 miliardi (e fino a 50, dipendentemente dalle modalità di attuazione decise dalle amministrazioni centrali).
