Urban transport planning in developing cities is nowadays a key political and technical issue, requiring alternative approaches and solutions aimed to effectively face the phenomena of rapid and often unplanned growth of urban areas with high concentration of motor vehicles. Congestion, energy consumption, air pollution, and traffic crashes strongly affect society and environment in such settings, thus lowering quality of life and urban productivity.

The course addresses in particular urban and transportation planners, decision-makers from local governments as well as representatives of service providers (national governments, private sector, NGOs) and international organizations involved in the transport sector worldwide.

It aims to enhance the capacity to formulate and implement appropriate policies that contribute to sustainability in urban transport in developing countries, dealing with issues such as transport demand management, improved public and non-motorized transport, environmental protection, road safety, and gender in transport. It also provides information on economic and financial instruments, institutional improvements, capacity building, regulation of markets and environmental standards.

The course is web-based and it consists of 6 modules. Learning materials will be distributed and all learning activities will be moderated by a high level transportation expert. Participation in collaborative activities for about 2 hours/week as well as a study time of about 3 hours/week are required. A certificate of successful completion will be issued to participants to the course that will achieve a minimum total score of 70% in the assessment activities. The others will receive a certificate of participation.

UNITAR offers reduced fees (US$ 400) for participants from least developed countries/low income economies, lower-middle-income economies, and upper-middle income economies. Full fees (US$ 800) apply to participants from high-income countries.

Further information is available in the web site.

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Finland has recently unveiled the plan to build the world’s first “green highway”, which would be endowed with electric charge stations and pumps filled with local biofuels. In charge of the project is the town of Loviisa, at the east of Helsinki.

The highway, intended to be carbon neutral, thanks to these facilities would hopefully stimulate the adoption of next-gen auto technologies. Moreover, it would serve as a blueprint for other ecological highways across the world.

The green highway, completing a stretch of exiting highway, would link Turku, on the Finland’s southwestern coast with Vaalimaa near the Russian border, measuring almost 130 kilometers (81 miles).

Loviisa municipality also plans to involve the local economy, using ethanol production from waste and other local resources to make the biofuel and the electricity that would power both the cars and infrastructure along the way. Of course, there will be normal petrol stations on the highway for the rest of the cars.

The plan includes the installation of geothermal heat pumps and users may be provided with information about their emission levels and the impact they are having on the environment.

The environmental-friendly highway would include a “smart” lighting system along the way, automatically switching off the light at entry points where there are no cars and adjusting illumination levels depending on the weather and other factors.

Officials are drafting a study examining the project’s feasibility and cost. They hope to finish the study in March and believe the project could start in the second half of next year and be completed by 2016, at a cost of 700 million Euros (about $900 million). Finland is hoping to get the EU financial support, and Loviisa municipality official Aki Marjasvaara said that he expects large companies such as Fortum, Neste Oil and Ensto to help finance the project.

Though Wired, has defined the project as an ambitious idea, in blisstree.com users are asked to suggest further eco-friendly elements that could be incorporated into the highway. Other proposals come from popsci.com: what about solar and vibration harvesting road surfaces generating electricity for the grid, or self-sufficient solar-powered roadway lighting? Even if these technologies still need to be perfected to be launched in the market, the preparation works for this cutting-edge project could see research world and private industry combining their efforts and getting to innovative solutions.

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Google has launched Open Spot, a new app aimed at helping “driving users” to find and share parking spots.

How does it work? It is very easy: users update a map when they are leaving their parking spots, thus enabling other drivers who are looking for a parking spot in the same area to quickly find one.

You just need to use your phone. The app pulls up a Google map close to the user’s location and displays open parking spots within an area of 1.5km/0.9 mile radius. You could signal as available your parking spot when you are leaving… And when you are hopelessly looking for a spot to get to the shopping mall before the closing or to be on time with your dentist… you can hope that available spots have been signaled in the map by other users!

Spots are differently colored according to how much time has passed since they have been signaled…  You could thereby choose the “fresher” one. However, after twenty minutes they disappear off the map. Indeed, it was already suggested that the system would be even more helpful if there was a way for users to confirm that they have “taken” a spot.

Open Spot is a great idea: a system relying on cooperation to save time and avoiding stress of driving users. It also has a great environmental value as it could help in saving gas and thus reducing pollution.

The only problem is that the contribution of this app to improve the parking process within an area would be really effective only whether the system will gain widespread adoption. Otherwise, if you’re one of the only person in the area who uses the app, it will likely be useless.

Let’s start to download the app and try it.. Then we could convince others to join it!

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Freiburg im Breisgau, historic town in South-Western Germany, is known as an ecocity for its strong commitment to the environment. The city has nowadays reached high performances in cutting down the CO2 emissions, and today its solar, energy efficiency and transport programs are among the best in the world.

With reference to mobility policies, the municipality set long time ago consistent measures aiming at favouring means of transport other than cars, as making the old town centre car-free in 1973. Since 1991 there is a low cost “Environment ticket” for the regional bus service, and tramway lines were recently implemented. Pedestrians and cyclists have the primacy, car speeds is kept below 25 km/h and parking is possible away from the centres, or underground. There are over 500 km of bicycle paths and more than 5.000 bicycle parking spaces in the city, also at tram stops for commuters shifting from a means to another. As a consequence, motor vehicles’ use fell from 38% to 32% between 1982 and 1999, and around 30 – 35% of the residents have chosen to live without a car, while the trend in the other central European cities is opposite. Public transport use sees a 100% increase since 1980 and a third of all journeys are by bicycle.

Since the 80s Freiburg has developed a long-term and innovative vision on energy supply, seeking solutions to save energy, secure energy efficiency and develop renewable sources of energy. In particular following the resolution ‘Climate Protection Concept‘ passed in 1996, significative steps has been done to reduce CO2 emissions to 25% below the 1992 level by 2010.

Freiburg’s excellence is due to vanguard policy makers’ choices – a leading authority is Wulf Daseking, director of the city planning office who carried out relevant activities for the last twenty years – and also to a ‘bottom up’ approach, which involved the citizens’ participation through the large use of cooperatives in the design of communal spaces.

Other interesting initiatives in the field of energy include a Solar Institute, established in 1981, and a co-generation CHP steam and gas plant supplying almost 50% of the electricity. Concerning energy efficiency, since the 90s, municipal regulations request buildings to have a low energetic impact (in particular residential buildings are required to consume a third less than the standards set by German law). Housing is at relatively high densities, with mostly town houses & small shops, walkable neighbourhoods & high proportion of public space given over to nature.

As a result, over 10 years of CO2 emission have been reduced by more than 10% per capita. Furthermore, in 2003 34.1 million kWh p.a. of electricity from renewable sources replaced the same amount of climate-damaging electricity. Finally, with almost 700 people employed in the solar energy related activities, Freiburg is also at the forefront in shifting towards the ‘green economy’.

Related Links

• freiburg.de
• freiburg.de_GreenCity
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The Joint Session was organized to coincide with the partners’ meetings of the two projects related to the European Programme Alpine Space. Main organizers were the Italian Ministry for the Environment and the Mountain Partnership Secretariat (FAO), which also benefitted of the support from other relevant institutions and organizations. The audience included participants in the projects coming from several countries of the Alpine arch such as Italy, Austria, Germany, France, Slovenia, as well as further institutional representatives from the Italian Ministry of Transport and UNEP.

Most of them came to take part in the two day working meeting of the TRANSITECTS Project, held on the 12 and 13 July 2010. The 6th Transnational Working Meeting of the TRANSITECTS Project’s Partners focused mainly on activities currently on schedule under the Project Work Packages, achieving the expected results. The project, promoted by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), focuses on the sustainability of transport in the Alps, addressing in particular the issue of freight and passengers’ displacements by railway.

On 13 July, also a Technical Meeting of the European Project AlpCheck 2 was held in FAO. AlpCheck 2 Project aims at improving sustainable mobility within the Alpine area and it is being co-financed as TRANSITECTS in the framework of the Alpine Space Programme. Partners responsible of some Working Packages met on 13 July in FAO to discuss further developments, and they continued working on 14 July in the EURAC Representing Office in Rome.

The Coordinator of the Mountain Partnership Secretariat, Mr. Douglas McGuire introduced the Joint Session with a speech regarding “Sustainable Mobility in Mountain Areas”. Mr. McGuire stressed the importance of multilateral projects focusing on mountain areas through different perspectives, such as TRANSITECTS and AlpCheck 2 are doing in the Alps. Projects or experiences focusing on transportation related to the mountain environment are welcomed by the Mountain Partnership Secretariat, which may facilitate exchanges and contribute to widening it from a European to a global scope.

Mr. McGuire also spoke about the SWOMM Side Event at the CSD18 (Commission on Sustainable Development) at the UN Headquarters in New York last May, describing it a successful experience of dissemination of the outcomes of research and activities carried out within the Alpine Space. The Side Event arose within the framework of the existing cooperation between the Italian Ministry for the Environment and the Mountain Partnership Secretariat.

After Mr. McGuire’s presentation, the partners from the two projects and other experts carried on working jointly in the Ethiopia Room, discussing common synergies and they engaging in the preparation of the upcoming WP7 cross-fertilization workshop.

Agenda of the Joint Session of the TRANSITECTS & AlpCheck 2 Projects

List of involved institutions and organizations
A Technical Study and Engineering Centre: CETE Méditerranée – France
A.L.O.T. s.c.a r.l. – Agency of East Lombardy for Transports and Logistics – Italy
Austrian Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology, Department I/K7 Combined Transport - Austria
Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia – Central Directorate for mobility, energy and transport infrastructure – Italy
Board of Building and Public Works within the Bavarian Ministry of the Interior - Germany
Carinthian Regional Government – Department 7 – Economic Law and Infrastructure – Austria
European Academy of Bolzano Bozen – Institute for Regional Development and Location Management – Italy
German Association for Housing, Urban and Spatial Development – Germany
Government of Carinthia – Department of economic law and infrastructure – Austria
Governmental Office of Land Salzburg, Dept.of traffic engineering and public transportation – Austria
Governmental Office of the Land of Tyrol, Dept. of traffic engineering – Austria
Joint State Planning Department of Berlin and Brandenburg – Germany
Logistic Kompetenz Zentrum – Germany
Lombardy Region, Directorate General Handicraft and Services – Italy
Ministry for the Environment, Land and Sea – Italy
Ministry of Transport – Italy
Ministry of Transport Slovenia – Slovenia
Mountain Partnership Secretariat (FAO) – UN
Regional Association Donau-Iller – Germany
Regional Union of Veneto Chambers of Commerce – Italy
Republic of Slovenia, Ministry of Transport, Slovene Roads Agency – Slovenia
Research Institute for Ecology and Economy Applied to Alpine Areas – Italy
Stuttgart Region Economic Development Corporation – Germany
TCI Röhling – Transport Consulting International – Germany
UNEP - UN
Valle d’Aosta Region – Italy
Veneto Region – Italy
Venice Port Authority – Italy

On 13 July 2010, the Coordinator of the Mountain Partnership Mr. Douglas McGuire will give a speech at 12:45 on “Sustainable Mobility in Mountain Areas”, at FAO Headquarters in Rome. The speech will introduce the Joint Session of the Partners Meetings of two European projects, TRANSITECTS and AlpCheck2.

Both the projects address transport issues and aim to improve sustainability within mountain areas. They have been co-financed with European funds in the framework of the Alpine Space Programme.

Agenda of the Joint Session of the TRANSITECTS & AlpCheck 2 Projects

Rome – Tuesday, 13 July 2010 – FAO Headquarters, Nigeria & Ethiopia Room

For further information on the meeting send an email to: sara.maulo@fao.org.

With this regard, we thereby signal the 5th edition of East Forum 2010, which will specifically focus on sustainability, being entitled “Re-thinking the present in order to design the future: choosing sustainability”. Co-organized by UniCredit Group, the forum will be held on 8 July 2010 at Luiss, in Rome.

The panelist includes several eminent speakers from relevant companies, national and European institutions as well as prestigious international organizations which are involved in environmental, economic and political issues.

The speakers’ investigations aim to analyse the international scenario on sustainability, to conceive innovative proposals for the future, which may result important also for the SWOMM goals, in particular improving sustainable transport in mountain areas. They will define a new model of sustainable development, to face current challenges and exploit present opportunities such as the green economy. The distinct roles and tasks held by institutions, governments, companies and civil society in shaping this model will also be investigated, as well as the possible policies to be implemented to make good progress towards qualitative and human development. In the website you can find the electronic edition of many relevant international papers concerning sustainable development guidelines, as well as links with related initiatives, including SWOMM.

A further tidbit on the Conference: the organizing team (together with the group of students LUISS Sostenibile) seems to be really devoted to green economy and sustainability. Indeed, all the printed matters are made of recycled paper, speakers will travel by electric cars, the event will be powered as much as possible by means of renewable energy and the buffet is at zero kilometers. Furthermore, emissions credits are being purchased from a carbon reduction project in Chicago.

Enjoy the East Forum 2010 and – above all – the cause of sustainable development!

The Land Glider concept vehicle was designed by the R&D Nissan department and was firstly presented in the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show. The radical idea was to combine together the points of strength of both cars and motorcycles to give birth to a new way of conceiving private urban – but not only – mobility. The result was an ultra lightweight two-seats electric vehicle, which moves on four wheels but can be driven as a motorcycle, leaning in curves to a tilt of 17 degrees. Furthermore, Land Glider’s dimensions are ideal for urban mobility: 3,00 metres of length, 1,41 metres of height and only 1,1 metres of width.

What can actually be interesting under a SWOMM perspective is that Land Glider is completely electric. In fact, the vehicle is fuelled by two electric motors powered by lithium-ion batteries placed in the rear beneath the floor. Moreover, Nissan’s engineers invented a revolutionary wireless charging system, directly recharging batteries by electromagnetic induction and without need of any contact, while shopping at supermarket or stopping at a motorway service station.

With Land Glider, researchers offered a serious set of solutions to tackle the complex issue of the eco-friendly private urban mobility. In this case (as well as with regard to other new electric vehicles) the main variable to be considered is the price, and the concrete possibility to meet the customers’ demand and needs with this product. Market mechanisms will determine whether this zero-emission “half-a-car half-a-motorcycle” will be a viable future way of driving clean in this century busy cities.

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The Representative for the Italian Ministry for Infrastructures and Transport announced the intention to create a working table involving different stakeholders from the business sector, public administration and larger audiences aiming at developing a shared national plan, policy guidelines and concrete measures. The mayor of Milano, Letizia Moratti, explained that 200 columns will be installed in Milan by 2010, under an agreement with the public utility providing energy to the city. 70 columns will be installed in Brescia as well.

Within the automotive sector, Renault joined the cause for electric vehicles, and so did Mercedes-Benz Italia which was represented by Marco Ruiz, explaining the international project E-mobility as well as other on going projects developed in partneship with Enel, foreseing the immission of 100 electric Smart and the setting of proper recharging points in 3 cities (Milano, Roma e Pisa).

A interesting survey on the perception of the Italians on electric cars («Gli Italiani e l’auto elettrica») was carried out by the Magazine Espansione together with the Interactive Market Research company. The survey, available for free download in the website newspapermilano.it/Espansione, also stressed the positive attitude of the italians towards the electric vehicles, as a possible solution to the problems of urban pollution – confirming the growing interest of citizen for sustainable mobility and a healthy urban environment.

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Founding NuRide, Rick Steele aimed to address the many-sided problem of traffic congestion by encouraging carpooling or greener trips. Face to a decreasing trend in sharing the car to get to work, NuRide has offered since the 2005 discounts and rewards to the members which have registered on line for free and traced their routes travelled by carpool, public transportation, walking or biking. NuRide, at present developing its market, has already achieved great results, counting more than 47,700 members and having reduced 4 million car trips saving 4,763,000 gallons of gas in the past six years.

Jodie Wu conceived the core business idea which is leading Global Cycle Solutions while a student at MIT’s D-Lab. The company aims at improving developing countries technological endowments, by creating small devices such as mobile phone charger or other more curios objetcs – for farmers powered in an inexpensive manner. The particular feature of these tools which are attached to the back of a bicycle is that only the pedalling power is exploited, without need to rely on electricity or fuel. The production was launched in Tanzania and now they intend to address the China or India markets, also creating further bike-powered attachments, including one to grind corn into flour.

The company Mobis Transport has born in 2008 from a long–term non profit company. As a consultancy, it helps clients in conceiving, developing and managing bike stations for favouring multimodal transportation systems. The bike Station are usually build near public transit hubs, offering services for bicycles such as secure parking, repairs, changing rooms, and storage lockers. Mobis by now has helped develop 14 Bikestations in the U.S., mostly located in California, and it intends to install from 15 to 20 this year.

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