The benefits of urban mobility solutions
Although it has sometimes stagnated in the face of the economic development of cities, urban mobility is once again on the agenda for cities, but also for companies. For some years now, city dwellers have been looking for a more comfortable way to live their daily lives, where mobility is easy, fast, pleasant and also more sustainable. For a long time, the car was the envy of city dwellers. Today, it causes long hours of traffic jams in the city and on the ring roads. This changes the expectations of city dwellers, but also of the government, they now make room for a fluid and sustainable mobility. Today, there are many solutions and they are adapted to the needs of each person: public or private offer, per-minute or yearly rate, individual or collective transport, electric or gasoline, in "sport" mode or more relaxing, etc. Each offer corresponds to each city dweller and this is what cities now like: (almost) tailor-made urban mobility. Many cities also offer a wide variety of services to improve the daily life of their inhabitants, whether the economy is thriving or not. Find out more in our article on The state of the art for urban mobility.
Easier travel
The challenge for cities is to provide transportation solutions that fit the largest number of people while meeting the needs of every city dweller. This is a headache for cities as well as for the private companies that provide transportation services. Offering the right number of services, at the right time and in the right place is a real challenge for everyone. The car must be replaced without too much strain. Urban mobility is adapting to the evolution of city dwellers, to economic changes and to the environmental requirements imposed by global warming. This makes it possible to move towards sustainable and flexible mobility and to guarantee ease of travel for city dwellers.
Each inhabitant chooses the mode of travel that suits him or her. This can be public transport such as metro, streetcar and bus. The metro is suitable for very large cities, as it allows for speed and the transport of many passengers along the main travel routes (business areas, company centres, universities and schools, public establishments, etc.). The tramway serves less frequented areas and is more dependent on ground traffic. Buses are dependent on traffic, but they provide access to more remote locations.
As for individual transportation, there are cabs and chauffeur-driven transportation services and private or shared cars. Recently, it has become possible to enjoy the benefits of a "smart city", a city where mobility is connected and flexible. This is made possible by offers of rental services for scooters, classic and electric bicycles, scooters, and even cars. Everything is possible in urban mobility these days and it makes travel easier. For the most invested in urban mobility, there is even the possibility of buying different technological means of getting around:
- bicycles (classic, electric, folding) ;
- gyropods ;
- scooters.
Improving the quality of life
Thanks to all these possibilities offered by urban mobility, the quality of life of city dwellers is improved. In the past, getting around the city required a great deal of organization in order to keep up with schedules and travel times. There was also the stress of having an unforeseen event related to the means of transport or other passengers: anything was possible and a large amount of time had to be planned. This had a direct impact on the lives of city dwellers: sleep time, stress, organization, and long travel times.
Although the risk of unforeseen events always exists and a minimum of organization is required when traveling in the city, many solutions exist today that allow for less worry and a better quality of life. Being able to move from one place to another easily, on time and in the desired conditions, while always having the possibility of another solution is a considerable advantage of today's urban mobility. This new mobility is becoming sustainable and this has a great impact on the quality of life of the inhabitants.
Indeed, the old urban space arrangements favored individual mobility by car and generated pollution, but also poor traffic flow. These developments are being modified or are in the process of being modified toinclude the environmental variable in their construction. This is equally beneficial for city dwellers who benefit from less polluted air, a clearer, greener landscape and less noise. Heavy and polluting vehicles are also less and less tolerated in downtown. All these facts allow city dwellers toimprove the quality of life in the city thanks to urban mobility.
Safety first
Urban mobility and its development bring many concerns. Older urban structures were designed for cars. In the past, the car was a fast mode of individual transportation. It is now being pushed aside by city dwellers who prefer a less stressful, less time-consuming and less polluting journey. Safety is also an important issue in this transformation.
Indeed, the new urban mobility brings better safety at different levels. By increasing the number of transport options and restricting the types of cars allowed in the city, it reduces the number of cars on the road. This urban mobility policy makes traffic flow more smoothly and reduces the risk of traffic accidents for the remaining motorists who still prefer the freedom offered by the car or carpooling.
The other side of this urban mobility is that city dwellers can now circulate safely, whether on foot, on a scooter or on a bicycle. Everyone has a dedicated area, the rules are clear and everything is fluid. The safety of the metro or tramway is very good compared to that of car traffic. These changes guarantee better road safety through urban mobility and preserve the safety of all city dwellers for confident travel.
Economic and social development
The final benefit of urban mobility is economic and social development. By making cities more pleasant and safer, travel easier and life better, urban mobility scores many points. But what about its socio-economic impacts? There are also numerous socio-economic impacts, which are particularly beneficial to the inhabitants of medium and large cities: opening up the mobility market to private companies, developing local businesses or settling families in the city center for a good balance between quality of life and professional opportunities.
This urban mobility opens the mobility market to private companies for the provision of services. For example, electric scooters are owned by private sector companies that develop an application allowing them to be rented freely but also to be located for the next user. These same companies offer to take the scooters home to recharge them with financial compensation for the electricity costs. This model of example is beneficial for all economically and socially.
Urban mobility also allows for the development of businesses that are more centrally located. This contributes to the socio-economic development of the area concerned. This development then offers the possibility for families to establish a better work-life balance, including shorter commuting times and a good quality of life. There are fewer job opportunities outside developed cities, but the quality of life is generally better. Urban mobility has a socio-economic impact on cities and allows the best of both work and personal life to be taken advantage of.
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