Sustainable, Smart and Safe Mobility at the Core of Sustainable Tourism in Six European Islands

Transport and tourism are rising economic sectors based on their mutual growth on reliable technological tools, affordable energy sources in relatively peaceful decades. This growing trend, faced along years of sudden slowdown caused mainly by the financial and health crisis;one of the most severe and recent episodes was theCOVID-19 pandemic.The pandemic outbreak is representing a global turning point for both international markets of tourism and transport which can be addressed with innovative solutions looking to retake the growing trends. In such a changing framework CIVITAS DESTINATIONS European project addressed the main challenges of tourism and resident mobility at local (rural, urban area, large city) and regional levels, focusing on six European islands (Malta, Cyprus, Elba, Crete, Gran Canaria, Madeira) aiming to implement and evaluate 83 different sustainablemobility measures. The project proves to have a cumulative relevant impact on environmental indicators such as CO2 emission avoided, fossil fuel saved and energy saved. Additionally, the project findings focus on the quality of life and economic development to grant long-run environmental and financial sustainability of tourism and transport at the local and regional levels. The main aspects observed were related to public participation and governance models in touristic mobility integrated with the residents' needs, touristic mobility the island, role of technologies to focus on final user needs, growing trends of elder and disabled people, new integrated and innovative business in tourism and mobility markets, health at the core of future trends. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2022.

Analysis of the effects of the first phase of COVID-19 pandemic on mobility choices in Italy by a multi-criteria approach

COVID-19 pandemic has caused changes in logistics and mobility. Concerning Italian road mobility, between March and April 2020, there has been a reduction in traffic for both light vehicles and heavy goods vehicles. Italy was the first European country to implement a total lockdown, starting on March 9th, causing a deep contraction in road traffic. This paper explores the main differences in mobility choices before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. A multi-criteria decision-making method was selected for the analysis of questionnaire survey data. The fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process was applied, considering eight mobility types: bus, tram, taxi, train, shared vehicles, multiple modes, walking and car. An evaluation process was adopted for the modal mobility choices of the residents of Sicily, Italy. The results show a significant decline in mobility demand during the first phase of the pandemic, especially in public transport mode. The findings provide a deeper understanding of the need to implement strategies to respect the constraints generated by the pandemic and revive the penalised transport and mobility-related sectors. Furthermore, the study's findings provide valuable insights for the policymakers, both national and local, about the mobility results of the lockdown and can be used as a forecast benchmark for planning the restrictions in the future, in case of another unexpected phenomenon, e.g., pandemic. © 2022 The Author(s).

Moving Toward Gender-Equitable Transportation in Post-COVID-19 Urban South Asia.

This research examines the impacts of COVID-19 on the mobility of resource-poor women and its linkage with livelihoods in urban South Asia, and how gender-responsive transport measures could be adopted. The study, conducted in Delhi between October 2020 and May 2021, used a mixed methods, multi-stakeholder, and reflexive approach. A literature review was conducted on the gender and mobility context in Delhi, India. Quantitative data were collected through surveys with resource-poor women, while qualitative research methods consisted of in-depth interviews with them. Different stakeholders were engaged through round tables and key informant interviews before and after data collection to share the findings and recommendations. The sample survey (n = 800) revealed that only 1.8% of working resource-poor women have access to a personal vehicle, making them dependent on public transport. While 81% of their trips are by bus, 57% of their peak hour trips are by paratransit, despite free travel on buses. Only 10% of the sample have access to a smart phone, which restricts their access to digital initiatives based on smart phone applications. The women expressed concerns such as poor bus frequencies and buses not stopping for them under the free ride scheme. These were consistent with issues faced before the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings highlight the need for targeted strategies for resource-poor women to achieve equity in gender-responsive transport. These include a multimodal subsidy, short messaging service to obtain real-time information, increased awareness on filing complaints, and an effective grievance redressal system.

The Role of Stakeholders in Creating Mobility in Logistics Systems of Polish Cities

The basis for developing logistics solutions in cities is to know the requirements and expectations of current and potential transport users and for decision makers to strive to meet them. In building an urban logistics strategy, it is therefore necessary to take into account different stakeholder groups. Building stakeholder relations should be aimed at involving them in the development of a sustainable transport policy for the city. It should be noted, however, that the importance of stakeholders in transport policy is diverse. This assumption was made in the paper, which aimed to identify the role of the various groups of urban logistics stakeholders in the sustainable movement of people. This challenge is subordinated to the methodology proposed in the paper, which combines the analysis of urban logistics stakeholders and the assignment of roles to them in the pursuit of sustainable flows of people in the city with the identification of tasks in which stakeholders characterized by a particular role should be involved. Achieving the stated goal required collaboration with experts. Research on the roles of stakeholders, as well as the tasks in which they should be involved, was conducted in Polish cities. Infrastructure managers, small mobility organisers, public safety organisations and public transport organisations turned out to be the development leaders who, as a result, were recommended to be included in most tasks by local government units of Polish cities. What deserves special attention in the results obtained, on the other hand, is the role of the unpredictable main player, which is other cities.

Post-pandemic urban mobility in a medium-sized Latin American city. Is sustainable micro-mobility gaining ground?

This work analyses changes in traffic flow and vehicle fleet segmentation from Jul-2020 to Dec-2021 in Bahía Blanca, a medium-sized Argentinian city. We obtained the data by manual counting watching videos provided by the city's security cameras. During the different stages and restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic, fluctuations appeared in the traffic flow. The motorized vehicle flow was gradually increasing during pandemic, reaching in Nov-2021 levels close to those reported in Mar-2020 (pre-pandemic). Moreover, an increase in sustainable micro-mobility (bicycles and e-scooters) was detected, as well as changes in the city's peak hours. This study provides relevant information on how urban mobility is changing. In consequence, new policies that could lead us to a people-centred and more sustainable city could be created. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of International Journal of Environmental Studies is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

'2022 – the first year of the EV era in Japan?' The COVID crisis and its impact on the Japanese automobile industry

Has the COVID pandemic just been another crisis that had hit the Japanese automobile industry over the past three decades or has it been a watershed moment with respect to the shift to electric cars (EVs)? After presenting data regarding the development of Japanese industry and the evolution of policies for ecological friendly cars, the paper argues that, given that all major automobile markets and most foreign competitors are shifting towards battery electric vehicles (BEVs), the Japanese automobile producers have no choice other than abandoning conventional combustion engines including hybrid technologies and changing their strategies as well to BEVs. They do so, not because of government carbon neutral policies or out of conviction of the ecological superiority of BEVs, but just out of pure pragmatism in order to maintain their international competitiveness regarding products and production. COVID did not trigger but accelerated these developments.

Bicycle tourism, from pandemic to sustainability: "Terre di Casole Bike Hub” project

The outbreak of COVID-19 and the subsequent lockdowns have impelled us to question and reconsider our standards, schedules and lifestyle. One of the market sectors that was most affected by the mobility reduction was tourism. Its demand in 2020 showed indeed a significant change: tourists opted for unusual destinations, presumably less crowded, favouring smaller villages and mountain areas. Moreover, tourists have chosen destinations that feature the possibility to do sports, especially trekking and cycling. Considering these trends, this paper focuses on the bicycle tourism in Italy and analyses its development potential. More specifically, it analyses the "Terre di Casole Bike Hub” project as an example of best practices to promote the territory through cycling, aiming to support the territory recovery in the post-pandemic tourism. © 2022 Societe Belge de Geographie. All rights reserved.

Sensing Technologies for Crowd Management, Adaptation, and Information Dissemination in Public Transportation Systems: A Review

Management of crowd information in public transportation (PT) systems is crucial, both to foster sustainable mobility, by increasing the user's comfort and satisfaction during normal operation, as well as to cope with emergency situations, such as pandemic crises, as recently experienced with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) limitations. This article presents a taxonomy and review of sensing technologies based on the Internet of Things (IoT) for real-time crowd analysis, which can be adopted in the different segments of the PT system (buses/trams/trains, railway/metro stations, and bus/tram stops). To discuss such technologies in a clear systematic perspective, we introduce a reference architecture for crowd management, which employs modern information and communication technologies (ICTs) in order to: 1) monitor and predict crowding events;2) implement crowd-aware policies for real-time and adaptive operation control in intelligent transportation systems (ITSs);and 3) inform in real time the users of the crowding status of the PT system, by means of electronic displays installed inside vehicles or at bus/tram stops/stations and/or by mobile transport applications. It is envisioned that the innovative crowd management functionalities enabled by ICT/IoT sensing technologies can be incrementally implemented as an add-on to state-of-the-art ITS platforms, which are already in use by major PT companies operating in urban areas. Moreover, it is argued that, in this new framework, additional services can be delivered to the passengers, such as online ticketing, vehicle access control and reservation in severely crowded situations, and evolved crowd-aware route planning. © 2001-2012 IEEE.

The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Airport: An Empirical Study of Service Quality, Customer Satisfaction, and Travel Intention for Sustainable Airport Operations

Delivering a high service quality under the safety protocol of COVID-19 is very essential for the sustainable airport operations. The study was intended to determine the impact of COVID-19 on Airport Service Quality (ASQ), customer satisfaction, and travel intention by utilizing a structural equation modeling (SEM) approach. A total of 517 Filipinos voluntarily answered an online questionnaire that consists of 92 questions. SEM indicated that the security check, terminal facilities, and services had significant effects on perceived value which subsequently led to customer satisfaction. In addition, travel safety measures had direct effects on Filipinos' travel intention and customer satisfaction. Interestingly, service innovations had no significant impact on customer satisfaction but directly affected travel intention. By understanding the relationship between these factors, airport management could have better decision-making while efficiently and effectively utilizing the resources in these times of uncertainty. © 2022 IEEE.

Who is returning to public transport for non-work trips after COVID-19? Evidence from older citizens' smart cards in the UK's second largest city region.

Harnessing a unique data source - longitudinal travel smartcard data linked to passenger demographics from 2019 to 2022 - we use methods of survival analysis to model the recovery of public transport patronage among 183,891 senior citizens resident in the West Midlands metropolitan region in the United Kingdom. Comparing pre and peri-pandemic patronage, we identify pronounced social and spatial inequalities in the speed of return to public transport. We find that male, younger and non-White passengers are more likely to return to public transport as soon as movement restrictions were lifted, whereas passengers from White ethnic background and affluent areas do not return to public transport within the first year after the outbreak. Pronounced social inequalities persist into the middle of 2021, and only thence they began to attenuate as part of a wider return to public transport among passengers post retirement age. In 2022, 80% of these passengers have returned to public transport but the frequency of use has remained lower than prior to the pandemic. We discuss implications for transport policy and planning.

Sensing Technologies for Crowd Management, Adaptation, and Information Dissemination in Public Transportation Systems: A Review

Management of crowd information in public transportation (PT) systems is crucial, both to foster sustainable mobility, by increasing the user’s comfort and satisfaction during normal operation, as well as to cope with emergency situations, such as pandemic crises, as recently experienced with COVID-19 limitations. This paper presents a taxonomy and review of sensing technologies based on Internet of Things (IoT) for real-time crowd analysis, which can be adopted in the different segments of the PT system (buses/trams/trains, railway/metro stations, and bus/tram stops). To discuss such technologies in a clear systematic perspective, we introduce a reference architecture for crowd management, which employs modern information and communication technologies (ICT) in order to: (i) monitor and predict crowding events;(ii) implement crowd-aware policies for real-time and adaptive operation control in intelligent transportation systems (ITSs);(iii) inform in real-time the users of the crowding status of the PT system, by means of electronic displays installed inside vehicles or at bus/tram stops/stations, and/or by mobile transport applications. It is envisioned that the innovative crowd management functionalities enabled by ICT/IoT sensing technologies can be incrementally implemented as an add-on to state-of-the-art ITS platforms, which are already in use by major PT companies operating in urban areas. Moreover, it is argued that, in this new framework, additional services can be delivered to the passengers, such as, e.g., on-line ticketing, vehicle access control and reservation in severely crowded situations, and evolved crowd-aware route planning. Author

The potential of changing habitual car user travel modes: The case of Czech towns

With the constant and ever-growing pressure from governing bodies for increased sustainability of transportation systems, the need for changes in the travel behaviours of the inhabitants of suburban and urban areas seems inevitable. Thus a shift from cars to vehicles with higher occupancy rates or other more environmental friendly travel modes needs to be a priority. This requires understanding the reasons why people choose cars as their preferred mode of travel for commutes in order to make informed decisions about how to encourage changes in commuter travel behaviors. This paper presents a case study of four medium-sized Czech towns, including a survey concerning pre- and post-COVID-19 travel habits focused on identifying and understanding the willingness of car-dependent commuters to change their mode of travel choice. This three-stage survey revealed a small, COVID pandemia -based effect on the habits of respondents and helped to identify sensitivities survey participants had to particular travel parameters and characteristics that might be used by municipalities to implement informed policies that could lead to changes in travel behaviours. © 2022 Tongji University and Tongji University Press

The microsimulation modeling as a tool for transport policies assessment: An application to a real case study

Nowadays, alongside the traditional statistical and semi-probabilistic methods, through which it is possible to obtain an estimate of the road network performances whatever its geometric-functional configuration, the use of microscopic traffic simulation techniques is widespread, allowing a "dynamic"approach to the problem (e.g. evaluation of infrastructural interventions, traffic management, etc.). The traffic micro-simulation models are able to analyze and process, instant by instant, the movement of single vehicles on the network, on the basis of laws related to the vehicle movement and the driving behavior. Based on this premise, this study proposes an overview of traffic simulation models, with a focus on the advantages of microsimulation. In this direction, the paper presents an application to a real case study in the city of Catania (Italy), in order to evaluate the impact of different traffic regulation strategies in terms of level of service (LoS), road emissions and fuel consuption through scenario evaluations. First results demonstrates that traffic modeling and the implementation of microsimulation tools represent a valid support for the transport policies assessment, providing a basis for future research steps that will address the simulation of larger areas, through before and after analysis and the evaluation of different key performance indicators. © 2022 Author(s).

Optimal urban planning through the best–worst method: bicycle lanes in Palermo, Sicily

Since 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, planners and designers have proposed numerous changes for urban spaces and mobility concepts to comply with governments' anti-contamination restrictions. Several European cities have implemented strategies for developing cycling, favouring the design of temporary (pop-up) or permanent cycle lanes and state incentives to purchase bicycles and electric micro-mobility vehicles. However, existing research suggests that design optimisation must pursue specific geometric, functional and safety standards for cyclists and space sharers (pedestrians/cars). It is thus necessary to analyse the perceptions of citizens and commuters for optimisation of the planning and design of these infrastructures. A multi-criteria evaluation was used to determine optimal infrastructure schemes (temporary and permanent) for the metropolis of Palermo in Sicily, Italy. First, three groups of cyclists (citizens, technicians and commuters) were selected. Then, applying the best-worst method, a series of design alternatives were evaluated by the target groups. The results showed a correlation between different types of users in terms of those who live in the city compared with commuters in the city for the first time. The results of this work lay the foundation for improved planning and design strategies in sustainable urban mobility plans and the Italian Biciplan guidelines.

Beyond fear and abandonment: Public transport resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic challenged urban public transport systems to maintain accessibility and service for daily users while adapting to local health and safety regulations. Developing sustainable and resilient urban policies under such crisis conditions requires understanding the different feelings, experiences and expectations of passengers and how these relate to socio-economic inequalities. Drawing on a mixed-method study in Berlin (Germany), Brussels (Belgium), Stockholm (Sweden) and Tallinn (Estonia), we show how the pandemic outbreak has changed both who uses public transport and how users experience their journeys. Challenging the narratives that portray public transport as a place of fear, we find that remaining passengers assess the risk of contagion lower than those who avoided it completely. We argue that promoting resilient public transport requires policies that address the needs of passengers relying on public transport services. Therefore, we question the current policies under the sustainable mobility paradigm for not taking sufficient account of the feelings, experiences and emotions and particularly of transport-dependent users.

Towards sustainable mobility – Transformative scenarios for 2034

Increasing the share of walking and cycling is one of the building blocks of sustainable mobility transformation. Fundamental changes are needed in society and urban structure to support the integration of walking and cycling into everyday routines. We conducted an online Delphi study with 30 walking and cycling experts during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Finland in the spring of 2020. The aim was to explore transport experts’ views on the future and derive scenarios of walking and cycling with the broader context of the urban mobility system. The scenarios were created using a combination of cluster analysis and qualitative content analysis. In addition, a methodological elaboration of the Disaggregative Delphi analysis was introduced, systematising the analysis of qualitative data. The analysis resulted in five scenarios depicting walking and cycling in 2034: 1. Business as Usual Plus, 2. The Demise of Bus-Transport, 3. The Era of Soft Modes, 4. Public Transport Serving All, and 5. Car-dependent Lifestyles Persist. The scenario set can be used as a basis for strategic transport planning and policy as well as a more practical tool for identifying measures for walking and cycling promotion in urban areas.

The Perspective Projects Promoting Sustainable Mobility by Active Travel to School on the Example of the Southern Poland Region

The paper presents a discussion concerning the development of projects regarding active travel with the policy of sustainable mobility, with active school transport in southern Poland being taken into special consideration. The implementation of the idea of sustainable school travel planning involves linking several social groups, including traffic planners and organizers, school administrators, governments, parents, and children. This, in turn, requires considering the criteria reported by all parties when choosing a scenario for the region’s development in terms of transport solutions. The following study was based on the methodological foundations of multicriteria decision-making analysis. The research purpose of this paper is to identify and classify the actions, policies, and scenarios of active travel projects for the sustainable development of mobility based on the cities of southern Poland. The evaluation was carried out through expert methods with multicriteria decision-making tools based on the MULTIPOL (MULTI-criteria and POLicy) prospective analysis technique. It allowed for the selection of the most probable policy, which covered the six actions considered by the experts to be the most significant for the development of the active school transport system in the analyzed region. Such actions are as follows: identification of walking school bus routes, modernization of crosswalk lines, planning of walking and cycling routes to schools, promoting safety educational programs, distribution of active school transport booklets and cycling, and pedestrian skills training workshops. The paper presents a new method to evaluate the policies and actions regarding promoting sustainable (active) travel to school. The innovative approach results from assembling a mixed group of people (stakeholders) as experts. The mix of experts consisting of users (pupils and parents), practitioners, and scientist experts in this field allowed us to score policies, actions, and scenarios, enabling a wider spectrum of assessment than before.

A Holistic Approach to SUMP Strategies and Actions in the Post-pandemic and Energy Crisis Era

Since its first appearance, the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted urban mobility in cities. Governments around the world have tried to implement various actions to limit the spread of this virus. As a result, a significant amount of research on sustainable urban mobility has been published since 2020. The spread of the virus has led to changes in transport supply and demand, which is represented by policy makers and users. In fact, the literature reviewed is classified into two broad categories: (i)User studies: analysis of modal choice before and after the pandemic.(ii)Policy makers’ studies: analysis of government actions to promote public transport (bus, train), soft mobility (cycling, walking) and micro-mobility (especially electric scooters) and rationalization of private car use. Therefore, this manuscript analyses the relationship between urban mobility and COVID-19 through a holistic review of the literature published from 2020 until 2022. The main objective of the research aims at identifying new trends in research and recommendations in the field of sustainable urban mobility. While the COVID-19 pandemic represents an opportunity for governments to rethink the mobility system, this synthesis helps to clarify the vision of policy makers in developing post-pandemic urban mobility recovery plans and developing or updating Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMPs) in line with sustainable development goals and also taking into account the recent energy crisis. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Evaluating the public acceptance of sustainable mobility interventions responding to Covid-19: The case of the Great Walk of Athens and the importance of citizen engagement.

COVID-19, the most wide-spread and disruptive pandemic in over a century, enforced emergency urban design responses meaning to recalibrate transport provision globally. This is the first work that systematically evaluates the 'public acceptance' as a proxy for 'policy success' and 'potential for longer-term viability' of the high-profile sustainable transport intervention package introduced in 2020 in the capital city of Greece known as the Great Walk of Athens (GWA). This is achieved through a twin statistical analysis of an e-survey that looked into the attitudes and urban mobility experiences of Athenians accessing the area of the trial daily. The research enabled a comparison between the pre- and post-implementation traffic situations and provided details about specific measures packaged in the GWA project. Our results suggest that walking and cycling uptake were only marginally improved. Traffic delays for car users were considerable. Car usage declined somewhat, with the exception of ride-sharing. Public transport ridership numbers suffered a lot because of concerns about sharing closed space with many others during a pandemic. Men and people on low income were more likely to agree with the 'change'. Naturally this was the case for people identified as primarily cyclists and pedestrians. The most impactful package elements in terms of car lane sacrifices (i.e., the redevelopment of Panepistimiou Street) had the lowest acceptability rates. A key reason that underpinned people's hesitation to approve the GWA initiative was the lack of public consultation in the decision-making that shaped the project. Our study provides evidence-based generalisable lessons for similar metropolitan environments looking to implement more or evaluate for possibly making permanent 'rushed' anti-Covid street redevelopment measures.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tourist public transportation use and on its determinants: Evidence from a Catalan coastal destination.

Despite the key importance of public transportation for the accessibility, attractiveness, and sustainability of tourist areas, little is known about how the COVID-19 pandemic may have impacted its use among tourists. In response, we compared the likelihood of using transit among visitors in a Catalan coastal area based on surveys conducted in 2019 (n = 1493) and 2020 (n = 1465). The pandemic caused a significant decline in tourists' use of public transportation, from 54.5% in 2019 to 34.6% in 2020, and in mobility at the destination. Results from a set of bivariate probabilistic models revealed that though most of the traditional determinants of visitors' use of transit remained unaltered, pandemic-related factors were associated with its decline. For the tourism sector and for local authorities and transit agencies, those results characterize the crucial challenge of ensuring the use of public transit among visitors in consideration of its many environmental and social benefits.