Urban Mobility Beyond the Car

As part of the MaHS/MaUSP programme at KU Leuven, ecourb was involved in a project looking at 'Urban Mobility Beyond the Car'. We decided to create a comic book, in the style of the 'Yes is More' archicomic published last year by BIG. The results of this comic are shown here.

Peak Travel

A new study of trend in passenger transport in 8 industrialized countries recently published points to the possible existence of peak travel. Historically as GNP rose, so too did travel activity among the population. However, new evidence has come to light that suggests once a certain GNP level is reached, the passenger kilometers travelled per year per capita stagnates and in some instances, begins to fall. This prediction is completely at odds with government predictions which point to continuing growth in passenger travel well beyond 2030.

Green Highways?

photo: conor o'brien

Ok, I have to admit, I'm pretty bored at this stage hearing the same thing over and over again about how hydrogen and electric cars are going to change our lives forever. It's not that I'm skeptical, because I'm not, but move on people, these technologies need to be mainstreamed. In the meantime we have to fill the gap. How do we make our existing highways into green highways?

Transport Innovations in China

Breaking High-Speed Train Speed records, Planning routes to Europe, and the development of radical new concepts for futuristic urban trains, China is trailblazing its way to the top of the race to build low carbon alternatives to air transport. Here are some recent developments on transport innovation in China.

Transit Score

San Francisco Transit Heat Map

Covering more than 40 US cities, Transit Score is a web utility that assesses how well a neighbourhood is served by public transport. Transit Scores are based on schedule data released in a standard format by public transit agencies. To calculate a Transit Score, WalkScore.com assign a "usefulness" value to nearby transit routes based on the frequency, type of route (rail, bus, etc.), and distance to the nearest stop on the route. The "usefulness" of all nearby routes is summed and they normalize this to a score between 0 - 100.

High Speed Rail in the USA

Promising signs are coming from the United States that the country who gave the world the post-war car-dependent suburban dream is finally dreaming about a future based on sustainable development practices and with high-speed rail at the core. The exhibition invites locals and visitors alike to discover new ideas for establishing sustainable public transportation in LA.

10 principles for livable transportation

Last week, the Institute of Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) released 'Our Cities Ourselves: 10 Principles for Transport in Urban Life', a publication co-authored by Jan Gehl outlining “ten keys to building successful cities” and “show[ing] how cities from New York to Nairobi can meet the challenges of rapid population growth and climate change while improving their competitiveness.”

Dublin Pedal Project

Presenting the 'Pedal Project',  a three part absolutely fantastic documentary series from Dublin City TV. The Pedal project is not a documentary – it is an ongoing debate emerging into public view in all its complexity and variety for the first time.

The Cities of China

image: chinographics

It is often quite difficult to come to terms with the scale of China, it's continuing growth and the mass urbanization of it's population. The graph above, created by Chinographics, is a fantastic resource to come to grips with the country's  60 cities with a population of 1million or more. In comparison to this, Europe has just 35 cities with a population of 1 million or more.

And the numbers are only growing. According to the McKinsey Global Institute, Chinese cities are expected to add more than 350 million people by 2030 - that's the entire population of the United States today - which will bring their urban-dwelling population to more than a billion. By then, China will have more than 220 cities with populations of more than a million, and 24 megacities with more than five million inhabitants.

More at worldchanging

Designated Driving

Last week, we had an terrible tragedy in Ireland with the loss of 8 people in a head-on collision on the Inisowen peninsula in Northern Donegal. While it appears that the driver may have been driving too fast, what was even more worrying was that 7 out of the 8 young men who piled into that one car were killed instantly, with just the driver surviving. They had been watching the world cup final in a local pub after which they took, seemingly the wise decision to leave their cars at the pub and take a lift home. However, in the seemingly absence of an adequate taxi service, what are the alternatives? How could this tragedy have been avoided, and more importantly, not repeated in the future? Below are some examples of successful companies based in urban centers in the UK and the US who are offering an alternative service; the chauffeur driver who drives you and your car home.

Piano Stairs

”Take the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator and feel better” is something we often hear or read in the Sunday papers. Few people actually follow that advice. This Fun Theory initiative answers the question, Can we get more people to take the stairs over the escalator by making it fun to do? Yes we can! Lets make the stairs a giant piano and see what happens!

Rewarding Speed Limit Signs

Above is a video from Kevin Richardson (USA) who was the fun theory award winner for 2009/2010 with his initiative 'Rewarding Speed Limit Signs'. The initiative answers the question, how can we get more people to obey the speed limit by making it fun to do? The idea here is capture on camera the people who keep to the speed limit. They would have their photos taken and registration numbers recorded and entered into a lottery. Winners would recieve cash prizes and be notified by post. Better still, the winnig pot would come from the people who were caught speeding.

Subway slide

Here’s a cool video of a Berlin subway staircase that was transformed into a slide. Watch it above.

RAIL[WAYS] Series: Chicago's Bloomingdale Line

Over the next few weeks here at ecocity we will be documenting urban projects from around the world that transform redundant railway lines into leisure amenities. Often physical and social barriers in cities, redundant railway viaducts have the potential to bind communities together and create social cohesion in often very difficult neighbourhoods. Also being examined is how exactly the projects develop from conception through to completion; many of which are realized due to the hard work of volunteer community organisations with the courage and conviction to pursue what they passionately believe in.

Retrofitting existing cities infrastructure is a strategy widely accepted as one that can deliver low carbon cities quickly and at a low cost. In fact, Retrofitting cities is one of the key components of 'The Future We Want' project that I was introduced to by Bill Becker back in Copenhagen in December '09 at the Culture|Futures conference. Bill is an hugely enthusiastic and inspiring guy with great resolve from the University of Colorado, Denver and is the executive director of Obama's Presidential Climate Action Project.

Passengers buy bikes for ferry

Great Story via the Irish Times

A British businessman stranded in France said he was had to buy a women’s bicycle to board a ferry in a bid to get home.

Tom Noble (52) from Highgate in north London, said ferry operator Norfolkline had no foot passenger tickets left and would only allow him to make the journey if he was a genuine cyclist.

The managing director said ferry staff at Dunkirk even made him ride the “rustic” contraption, which he had just bought from a second-hand shop, up the ramp.

In fact, half a dozen people grounded by the volcanic ash had the same idea, and boarded the boat in a wobbling parade of two-wheelers.

One man, a British Airways gold card member, was riding a children’s bicycle.

Seoul Transforms Freeway Into a River (Video)

Cheonggyecheon stream in downtown Seoul

Below is an excellent 5 minute video from Fast Company describing why in 2003, city officials in Seoul decided to demolish a two-storey freeway feeding directly into the centre of the city...and replace it with a stream. I actually visited Cheonggyecheon when I was in Seoul last year and the river had seems like it was always there, and in fact it was. The demolished thoroughfare was built above the site of an ancient stream.

Cycling in Dublin

'preventing the bicycle's movement' is a beautiful photograph taken by my friend Sasa Grujic during her stay with us in Dublin. It is pretty apt for the way I feel about how the city is addressing the issue of lack of cycling infrastructure.

Fahrrad und Bahn

Translated from stuttgart.de

The Bicycle and train are highly complementary. The way to the train station or bus stop can be wonderful to travel by bicycle. Once there, stand under the bike and ride in the city of Stuttgart is often covered parking available. At the main station and the S-Bahn station Schwabstraße bike boxes can be rented. At stations in Möhringen Vaihingen and take the employees of the bike service stations at the good plays.
 

Those who want to cycle at the destination may take their bicycle in urban and suburban trains usually for free. Restrictions apply during peak periods. Thus, the carriage of bicycles in the light rail is permitted between 6 am and 8.30 clock and not in the evening between 16 and 18.30 clock. In S-Bahn, DB regional trains and the trains of the Württemberg railway company TRAIL may always bicycles are taken away. However, due in the morning peak period between 6 and 8.30 clock a child ticket.

A peculiarity of Stuttgart is the bike transport rack of the Marienplatz to Degerloch. With the help of special Vorstellwagens the "wave" brings you your bike comfortable, safe and free of charge from the valley to the Filderebene.

Photo: Stuttgart Department of City Planning and Urban Renewal

At stations in Möhringen and Vaihingen the staff of the bike service stations offer their services. Here bicycles can be parked safely. While the parking time from Monday to Fri from 7 am to 8pm you can clean his bike too, and wait. The bicycle service stations can also rent bicycles on offer. The donated and brought up to scratch bike can be rented for three to five euros a day.

The bicycle-service stations are open Monday to Fri from 7 20 clock. The prices for a "Bicycle Parking" as follows:
$ 0.50 per day
2 euros per week
5 Euro per month
50 euros per year 

Operated bicycle service stations from social enterprises "New Work". The employment project is helping young unemployed people on their way into a job on the first labor. Who his bicycle in a bicycle parked service station, so not only does his bike a good thing, but also helps in the integration of young unemployed.

Photo: Stuttgart Department of City Planning and Urban Renewal

Bike Boxes

Especially popular are the bike boxes at the central railway station at Schwabstraße. As in a mini-garage, the good pieces there are safe from thieves and protected from wind and weather. The bike boxes can be used for 5 euros or 50 euros a month in rent for the mobility counseling in the i-dot.

Photo: Stuttgart Department of City Planning and Urban Renewal

Streetcar launches UK's first plug-in Prius hire scheme

Car club firm Streetcar is to offer the Amberjac plug-in hybrid Prius from £5.95 an hour in London
Via guardian.co.uk


A plug-in version of the Toyota Prius hybrid, similar to the Amerbjac version being offered by Streetcar in London. Photograph: Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images

Car club firm Streetcar has this week launched the UK's first electric car hire scheme, offering Londoners the chance to hire a plug-in hybrid version of Toyota's popular Prius.

The modified version of the hybrid car is provided by UK firm Amberjac Projects and features a new lithium ion phosphate battery that can be charged from the mains, allowing the car to travel up to 30 miles without using the conventional engine.

According to reports from the Evening Standard, the Amberjac Prius will be available for Streetcar members to hire from £5.95 an hour.

Speaking to BusinessGreen.com, Streetcar's co-founder Brett Akker said the company's 58,000 car club members would be the first people in Europe to be able to hire a car with plug-in hybrid technology.

He added that if the trial, which is backed by Camden Council and Transport for London, proves popular the company will aim to roll out more plug-in hybrids across the capital.

"Plug-in hybrids have a lot of potential for car clubs," he said. "The Amberjac has a 30 mile range using the battery, which covers around two thirds of our members' journeys, but it can then also be used for any longer journeys. "

The news follows the launch last week of a new initiative that will see some of the capital's largest fleet operators work with City Hall to accelerate the rollout of electric commercial vehicles.

The group, which includes delivery firms DHL, TNT and UPS, as well as supermarkets M&S and Sainsbury's, pledged to increase their electric vehicle fleets and work with the mayor's office on plans to roll out 25,000 charging points across the city by 2015.

"Not only do electric vehicles save a large sum off fuel bills, helping businesses to remain lean in tough economic times, they are also great for London's environment," said Mayor Boris Johnson. "We are now going to work hand in hand with fleet owners to accelerate the take-up of electric vehicles, which are available to buy right now."

Swedish Airport Coaches