CARAVEL is the largest pilot project undertaken so far in the framework of the CiViTAS II Initiative, the EC instrument implemented to help European cities to introduce and evaluate innovative measures and policies aimed at achieving a more sustainable, clean and energy efficient mobility.

THE PROJECT

CARAVEL federated four cities – Genoa (I), Krakow (PL), Burgos (E) and Stuttgart (D) – whose political leaders agreed to establish a new culture for clean mobility in support of sustainable development, citizens’ well being and safe access for all. The CARAVEL measures in the four cities represent a package of coordinated measures addressing several key areas of urban mobility, including traffic management, new types of public transport schemes, city freight distribution, traffic and travel information services just to name a few.

We played a key role in CARAVEL as a main technology and innovative solutions provider, implementing advanced ICT solutions that enable the operation of various mobility services in Genoa – in the area of public transport and collective mobility schemes, sustainable city logistics services, travel and traffic information services – as a well as the take up of a Flexible Public Transport scheme in Krakow.

The political decision makers of the cities involved in the pilot agreed to the following mission statement for CARAVEL:

“Burgos, Genoa, Krakow and Stuttgart intend to establish a new culture for clean mobility in European cities in support of sustainable development, citizens well being and safe access for all.”

Such high-level project aims reflect the priorities on the political agenda of most medium-sized cities in Europe for an integrated transport policy in response to major urban policy challenges.

Genoa has been active in all the CiViTAS policy fields and the measure foreseen by the project have been designed to spread all over the target areas, harmonising them into the different urban realities.

Specifically, the following mobility management measures have been implemented in Genoa during CARAVEL:

• Transition towards clean vehicle fleets
• Integrated access control strategy and road charging scheme
• Clean high mobility corridor
• Agency for flexible transport services
• Car sharing service
• New leisure related mobility services
• Enlarged goods distribution scheme
• Sustainable mobility marketing and Ecopoints
• Mobility Forum
• Integrated mobility plan for the San Martino Hospital
• Integrated mobility strategy for trade fairs
• Monitoring Centre for Road Safety and Accident Prevention
• Decision support tool for environmental impact assessment of traffic planning measures
• Intermodal infomobility platform
• Bus lane control system

The measures developed within the CiViTAS project address mainly in the central and the eastern part of the city, with a particular attention to the old historical town and the city centre, the area of the San Martino Hospital and Nervi. In the central Genoa (including the old historical centre) the problem of the non-sustainable number of circulating (and pollutant) private cars was faced with a mix of measures regarding both access restrictions and new forms of mobility for both passengers and freight.

We took part in CARAVEL as a core technical project partner, providing ICT solutions and technology innovation in the following project activities:

• WP8 Stimulation of Collective Transport Modes, whose main goal was the development of advanced technical solutions to support (1) the implementation of an Agency for Flexible Transport Services – coordinating, among others, the DrinBus Demand Responsive Transport schemes operated in 3 peri-urban areas in Genoa (Pegli, Quinto and Bolzaneto) and (2) piloting of Demand Responsive Transport services in a peri-urban area of Krakow, based on experience and technology transfer from Genoa;
• WP10 New Concepts for Goods Distribution, which lead to the implementation and piloting of an enlarged goods distribution scheme in Genoa, based on access control and a “mobility credits” scheme;
• WP12 Telematics and Infomobility, resulting in new travel and traffic information services aimed at achieving a more efficient and sustainable travelling in Genoa.

CONSORTIUM

A consolidated research group with a renowned academic and industrial profile.

• Comune di Genova (IT)
• Azienda Mobilità e Infrastrutture di Genova S.p.A. – AMI (IT)
• algoWatt SpA (IT)
• D’Appolonia S.p.A. (IT)
• IIC Istituto Internazionale Delle Comunicazioni – International Institute of Communications (IT)
• University of Genoa – Department of Economics and Quantitative Methods DIEM (IT)
• Agenzia Regionale per la Protezione dell’ Ambiente Ligure – Environmental Protection Agency of the Regione Liguria, ARPAL (IT)
• Agenzia Regionale per l’Energia della Liguria S.p.A. – Liguria Regional Energy Agency, ARE (IT)
• QN Financial Services S.p.A. (IT)
• Municipality of Krakow (PL)
• Miejskie Przedsiebiosrstwo Komunikacyjne SA w Krakowie (PL)
• Politechnika Krakowska im.Tadeusza Kosciuszki – Krakow University of Technology (PL)
• Municipal Development Agency – Agencja Rozwoju Miasta S. A (PL)
• City of Burgos (ES)
• Strategic Bureau for Burgos (ES)
• Castilla-Leon Institute of Technology (ES)
• City of Stuttgart (DE)
• SSP Consult Beratende Ingenieure GmbH (DE)
• University of Stuttgart – Department for Transportation Planning and Traffic Engineering (DE)
• Institute for Road and Transportation Science (DE)
• Verband Region Stuttgart (DE)
• Rupprecht Consult – Forschung & Beratung GmbH (DE)