The main objective of the ELBA project is the planning, implementation and demonstration of a number of advanced eco-sustainable integrated mobility schemes and services for people and goods, in and for the Elba Island (connected with Piombino, Livorno Province – Tuscany Region – Italy).

THE PROJECT

The ELBA project will:

• plan, implement, demonstrate and evaluate innovative models for flexible, collective mobility services for people (bus on demand and reservation) in order to provide eco-efficient solutions meeting the typical local mobility as well as the more demanding seasonal patterns (i.e. tourists flows);
• plan, implement, demonstrate and evaluate innovative logistics schemes and services to reduce the impacts of goods transport from Piombino (mainland side) to Elba and of freight distribution in different small urban areas of the island.

In order to enable this, the project will investigate and implement the appropriate organisational and operational models necessary to support the identified ELBA mobility and logistics schemes, and will implement and deploy the required ICT enabling solutions to support the newly designed services. Particularly, an innovative, service oriented ICT architecture will be implemented, based on advanced hw/sw and communication technologies, to ensure efficient and effective operation of both people and goods mobility processes.

Coordinated by means of the ICT platform and services, the range of implemented complementary services will provide an attractive, integrated, alternative mobility offer to Elba Island citizens, tourist, visitors and economic operators, thus allowing to achieve significant modal shift from private/individual transport to eco and energy efficient sustainable services and significant rationalisation of freight delivery services, thus reducing the environmental and energy impacts of both people and freight flows in the island. Overall, the aim of the proposed action is to:

1. reduce private traffic incoming flows from Piombino Port (in mainland) to the two main Elba “doors” (Portoferraio and Rio-Marina ports, under the Piombino Port Authority) by offering Elba visitors and tourists (particularly during the high season) flexible, personalised, attractive and yet collective transport schemes for Elba destinations;
2. reduce the impacts of local mobility of people (e.g. Elba residents) by rationalising the current offer and shifting part of traditional transport services to flexible, demand responsive services (improved offer, less empty runs, reduced impacts);
3. reduce the load of incoming freight flows on the island, by offering freight consolidation on the mainland side (Piombino port area) and reduction of the freight trips reaching Elba by ferry;
4. reduce the impacts of “last mile” freight delivery in Elba island by the use of clean vehicles (e.g. electrical, CNG), optimised delivery services (local freight consolidation, reduced/optimised number of trips) and the provision of value-added services;

Objectives 1, 2 and 3 are tightly interrelated and refer to three main sources of transport/traffic generated environmental issues for Elba: the high tourist flows accessing Elba (especially high during seasonal peaks); the internal insular mobility, related to both residents and economic activities (goods delivery, services, etc.); the freight flows from the mainland to Elba island (related to the local economy but increased during seasonal peaks, due to higher demand by tourists and visitors).

The environmental issues targeted refer to both the direct impacts of car traffic (both internal and incoming flows) and freight transport (incoming flows + local distribution + inner/reverse logistics). The core objectives of ELBA include providing an integrated set of measures (services) addressing the above problems by:

1. inducing a shift from private (car) mobility in the island by offering attractive public transport services operated by eco-friendly vehicles – flexible services dynamically responding to individual travel demand – to both residents (internal traffic) and tourists/visitors (incoming flows); i.e. less use of cars by residents, less needs to reach island destinations by own cars for tourists, thanks to the new demand-responsive services (demand-responsive transport from/to hotels and touristic destinations, personalised baggage delivery services, etc.);
2. reducing the impacts of incoming freight flows through rationalisation and optimisation of delivery services already on the mainland side (freight consolidation services, optimised freight transport schedules, optimised load capacity in short sea transport mainland-island);
3. rationalising freight distributions (“last mile” delivery) and logistics services e.g. inner logistics, outgoing freight flows) in Elba island by applying dynamic optimisation strategies that adapt freight transport to both current demand and traffic conditions.

The envisaged solutions are tightly interrelated and will be part of an integrated mobility management scheme delivering different measures (addressing the above mobility components) operated through a common Mobility Service Centre using flexible service provision, optimisation of transport and alternative, attractive services to private transport.

The adoption of such schemes will positively contribute to reducing the adverse effects of current mobility processes and practice in people and goods transport, and will lead to relevant improvements for the environment as well as for the quality of life in Elba island.

CONSORTIUM

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

• Autorità Portuale di Piombino (Piombino Port Authority) (IT)
• Municipality of Rio Marina (IT)
• Azienda Trasporti Livornesi (IT)
• algoWatt SpA (IT)
• MemEx Srl (IT)
• Municipality of Kalymnos (GR)