Newsletter N o 1 June 2013

Transcription

1 Newsletter N o 1 June 2013 Inside this issue Dear reader, Editorial The City-HUB project Aims and objectives Expected impact Pilot and validation case studies News 1 st Period technical work and progress 1 st Stakeholder Workshop City-HUB presence at conferences, workshops and events Future activities and events City-HUB presence at conferences Technical visit to the Finnish case study: Kamppi terminal, Helsinki, Finland, October nd Stakeholder Workshop, London, UK, February 2014 Interviews with Mr. Javier Aldecoa, Spain Dr. Eleni Zacharaki, Greece Urban transport interchanges play a key role as part of public transport networks. Time saving, urban integration, better use of waiting time and improvement of operational business models are some of the benefits that result from the development of efficient urban interchanges. City-HUB is a research project, supported by the European Commission under the 7 th Framework Cooperation Work Programme, aiming at contributing to the design and operation of seamless, smart, clean and safe intermodal public transport systems. The project started in September Developing a business model for urban interchanges from an integrated approach covering their different aspects in order to increase the use of public transport and improve the efficiency and accessibility to all users, is the challenge for the City-HUB consortium. We are delighted to present the 1 st City-HUB newsletter, which is created to inform you and keep you up to date with the project s activities. This issue will guide you through the aims and objectives of the project, and will give a first glance of the first semester results and also at the latest news on the forthcoming project activities and events. We hope you enjoy reading the City-HUB project news, and we encourage you to visit our website at: Prof. Andrés Monzón Project Coordinator Prof. Eftihia Nathanail Dissemination Manager Project supported by ectri.org

2 The City-HUB project A consortium of 9 European research centres from 9 different countries are involved in the City-HUB project, which is supported by the European Commission under the 7 th Framework Cooperation Work Programme. The project is coordinated by the Transport Research Center (TRANSyT) of the Universidad Politecnica de Madrid (UPM). City-HUB brings together leading experts of design and urban integration, transport operation and business, local and regional authorities and end-users associations. Within the project, an integrated business model will be developed and a comprehensive set of methodological guidelines will be proposed, addressing different aspects of an urban interchange and promoting public transport. The integrated model will be validated through a set of European case studies and the methodological guidelines will be fully exploited through a European transferability exercise and dissemination initiatives to target groups throughout Europe. At the same time, the project will investigate how interchanges should be designed in order to ensure that vulnerable target groups, i.e. the elderly, youth, physically and mentally handicapped people can adequately benefit from these interchanges. Objectives To test and validate the City-HUB model for the improvement of integrated management approaches to intermodality, monitoring and operations across European countries. To achieve efficient urban interchanges, reducing their carbon footprint, maximizing the value of new technologies for mobility, communications and virtual travel, reducing accidents and encouraging healthier lifestyles. To achieve the widespread implementation of integrated mobility policies for all providing more opportunities for citizens to access jobs, healthcare, education and training, retail opportunities as well as leisure facilities. To achieve widespread acceptance of public transport planning that meets social, environmental and mobility efficiency criteria in the most economical and effective way. To make a full contribution to the development of intermodality standards, minimum requirements, quality management, benchmark examples and a better public transport service in Europe. City-HUB expects to encourage: Complementarity between modes and operations, enhancing intermodality. Coordination between modes and operators. Creation of energy efficient journeys in the urban region catchment area. Energy efficient urban network performance, using footprint measurement methods. Increase in economic viability using public regulations and private funding. Creation of business that stimulates local economy. Pan-European transferability and achievement of land use and urban transport infrastructure integration. 2

3 The City-HUB project Pilot case studies: 5 case studies will be carried out in order to identify best practices, barriers and areas of improvement related to ITS solutions, efficient design and planning, and integrated management. Moncloa interchange, Madrid, Spain Moncloa Interchange is located in the city center of Madrid, offering several mobility options, such as: metro (2 lines), local buses (20 lines), regional buses (74 lines), long-distance buses (1 line) and taxis. The hub is furthermore easily accessed on foot and by bicycle. Ilford railway station, Redbridge, London, UK llford railway station is a suburban station located in the London Borough of Redbridge, United Kingdom. The station will be on the forthcoming 'Crossrail' route, which will link existing surface lines (stretching from Essex to Berkshire) into East and West London through new tunnels and stations under central London. New railway station, Thessaloniki, Greece The railway station is located in the suburban area of the city and provides several transportation services such as: commuter rail, interurban rail, metro (under construction), local buses, suburban buses, interurban buses, taxis, bicycle ways, park and ride, kiss and ride. Kamppi terminal, Helsinki, Finland Kamppi terminal, servicing the Western buses, the long-distance buses and the metro, is located in the central area of Helsinki and is part of the city interchange area having direct access to the main railway station, the city hub for all local railway lines, trams, city buses and two smaller bus terminals, terminals for Northern and Eastern buses. Kőbánya-Kispest intermodal terminal, Hungary Kőbánya-Kispest intermodal terminal in the south-eastern part of Budapest integrates a metro terminal (line No. 3), a terminal for local buses (17 lines), regional bus lines, suburban and national rail (approx. 300 trains/day) and a Park & Ride facility. Recently, the metro terminal has been modernised as part of the construction of a new shopping mall and a new bus terminal underneath. 3

4 The City-HUB project Validation case studies: The solutions that the project will propose for effective and smart design and integrated management will be validated through six case studies. The City-HUB model will also be simulated in the specific case studies. Cornella centre, Barcelona, Spain The Cornella centre is located in Plaça de l'estació, central Cornellà de Llobregat, which is a municipality in the southern half of the metropolitan area of Barcelona. The population is approximately 0.1 million citizens. The centre involves several transportation modes, such as metro, commuter train, tram, local and regional buses. Prague terminus Dejvicka, Prague, Czech Republic The Dejvicka terminal is the main interchange point for travellers coming from/to the Prague airport. The transportation modes involved in the terminal are metro/underground, interurban and urban buses, airport bus, tram/light rail, taxi, Kiss and Ride, walking and cycling. Cycles are allowed in the underground and trams, but not in buses. Utrecht Central, Utrecht, The Netherlands The Utrecht Central interchange is the central railway station of the city of Utrecht in the Netherlands, facilitating train, bus and tram transportation, and is connected to private, public and soft modes of transportation, such as cars, taxis and bikes. Cycling, as in all stations in the Netherlands is also integrated with other modes. Gare Lille Flandres-Europe, Lille, France The 2 stations are located at the north of the French TGV network, positioned at the crossroads of the Railteam network which is the European High Speed Network. The Lille Flandres Railway Station is an old station, comprising 17 platforms and having 17 million passengers per year (2008) and 80,000 daily passengers. The Lille Europe Railway station is a very modern railway station, which comprises 4 platforms with 2 railway lines for passing Eurostar trains coming from Paris and going directly to London. It connects Lille to Paris by TGV, and to Brussels and London with the Eurostar trains. Vaterland bus station, Oslo, Norway The Vaterland station is the main bus station in Oslo and is located next to the central rail station, while the metro station is accessed by five minutes walking. The station serves local buses as well as long distance buses to more than 500 towns across Europe. Budaörs interchanges, Budaors, Hungary Budaörs interchanges are a system of three interchanges and a rail feeder bus network located in the Budaörs region, in the suburbs of Budapest. The transportation modes involved in the hub are rail, regional and local buses, park and ride, and bike and ride. 4

5 News: 1 st Period technical work and progress Setting the scene in urban and interurban interchanges: Review of theory, policy and practice A state-of-the-art analysis of the theory, policy and practice in urban and interurban interchanges, has been conducted during the 1 st semester of the project s lifecycle. The analysis included an overview of the important elements that define the quality of interchanges, based on the results of a number of European research projects, policy documents, case studies and interviews with stakeholders. Taking into account that each interchange is different, and its success is dependent of the location in the network, the urban environment, the modes involved and the relevant legislative framework that is in effect, it was observed that the development and design of interchanges is a rather complex process, in which different stakeholders are involved in, with different perspectives and interests, and therefore different priorities. Key intermodality factors for the quality of interchanges were defined, and are briefly presented below: Process coordination and management: The involvement of different stakeholders in the development and design of an interchange makes the process complex and demanding. Careful coordination is required for the efficient operation of the interchange and the provision of a high level of service to passengers. The development of a business model from the start of the interchange project can enhance this coordination. Accessibility to all: Accessible interchange design has to foresee places that are easy to be used by all travelers, including disabled people, people in wheelchairs, older people, young children and their carers, people with heavy baggage and people with bicycles. An interchange travel plan can work as the necessary management tool for the improvement of the access to and from a station. Quality to travellers: Key elements that improve quality include short transfer times, integrated ticketing, barrier free accessibility, actual and reliable information, and easy way-finding with good access and egress facilities. Safety: This aspect encompasses both the design of the interchange in order to minimize the potential for accidents, conflicts and collisions, and the compliance with all the relevant safety and emergency standards. Interchange design is important and affects quality elements of policy makers, users and operators. High quality design should be met in buildings and the surrounding area enhancing the quality of the time spent and the perception of safety, while innovative design could address the sustainability of interchanges and fit within the urban environment. For more information, visit and check the presentation Policy review and best practices given at the 1 st City-HUB Stakeholder Workshop. 5

6 News: 1 st City-HUB Workshop The 1 st City-HUB Workshop took place in Budapest on March 21 st 2013, with approximately 40 attendees. The Workshop aimed at validating the findings of the state-of-the-art analysis of the theory, policy and practice in urban and interurban interchanges (see p. 5) and at identifying perceived gaps and further research and policy needs with respect to the practical delivery of good practice in interchanges. Selected key experts participated in the event and discussed with the City-HUB partners crucial issues related to interchange design and operations. The opening of the Workshop was made by the project coordinator, Prof. Andrés Monzón from TRANSyT- UPM, who introduced the City-HUB project along with the main targets and activities. Then, Mr Imre Keserű, Deputy Head of Division of the KTI Institute for Transport Sciences, presented intermodality planning in Hungary. During the first part of the Workshop, the main findings of the state-of-the-art analysis on transport policy, best practices and user s perceptions, were presented by Mr Derek Palmer (TRL), Dr. Barry Ubbels (PANTEIA) and Dr. Floridea Di Ciommo (TRANSyT-UPM), respectively. Photo 2: Mr Imre Keserű, KTI Photo 3: Mr Derek Palmer, TRL The participants were then split into three focus groups, based on their interests and expertise, thus, operators, policy stakeholders and users. Each focus group participated in the homonymous transport events, and the results that were revealed after their completion are presented below. An open discussion followed through a plenary session, where ideas were exchanged among the three groups. Full report and presentations at: Photo 4: Dr. Barry Ubbels, PANTEIA Photo 1: Prof. Andrés Monzón, TRANSyT-UPM Photo 5: Dr. Floridea Di Ciommo, TRANSyT-UPM 6

7 News: 1 st City-HUB Workshop Transport visioning events: Topics, areas of discussion and main findings Transport Visioning Event A: Transport operators and managers view: Design, integration and accessibility Transport Visioning Event (TVE) A was focused on operational and management issues of transport interchanges. Issues such as station operations, management and maintenance, safety and security, fares and ticketing, revenue generation, as well as real time information were discussed. The key findings of this TVE may be summarized to the following: Operators seem to focus on real time information provision. Such information should be shown on displays at the interchanges (so it is accessible by all users). In order to achieve a common information platform amongst all stakeholders at the interchange, centralized management is necessary. Information should increase the ease of use of the interchange by users. Businesses at the interchange are a main concern of the operators. There is a tradeoff between the objective of keeping passengers at the interchange the least possible time or making their waiting time at the interchange more productive. Transport visioning event B: Policy and governance: Intermodality and societal issues Transport Visioning Event (TVE) B was focused on policy and societal issues of transport interchanges. Issues such as policies concerning interchanges in different countries, questions related to costbenefit analysis, sustainability and safety were addressed. The key findings of this TVE may be summarized to the following: Governance is the key driver for interchange design and operation. Different models for governance should be considered: coordinator in processes required when multiple stakeholders, or one central authority (e.g. Helsinki). Responsibilities and jurisdictions among involved stakeholders have to be specified. Financing of interchanges is a main topic to be addressed when designing and renovating an interchange. Sustainability, especially in terms of environmental concerns, may be a barrier to the development of an interchange, attributed to the restrictions that may apply and the impacts of the interchange development in an urban area. Safety is an important topic that has to be considered when designing for an interchange. An action plan with clear responsibilities is required. Businesses should be expanded under an initial strategic business plan for the interchange. Photo 6: Prof. Eftihia Nathanail, CERTH, introducing TVEs Information protocols need to be established. For example, Northern countries have suggested that only digital information should be provided at the interchanges. Such a norm may be implemented in a few years. 7

8 News: 1 st City-HUB Conference Transport visioning events: Topics, areas of discussion and main findings Transport visioning event C: Travellers attitudinal and stated preference survey The discussion during Transport Visioning Event (TVE) C was basically orientated to two main issues for City- HUB project: a) How should the interchange be designed for all kind of users? b) How to define an effective questionnaire for detecting the users attitudes and perceptions about the interchange. The revision of a proposed questionnaire was an important objective of this TVE. Photo 7: Participants of the TVEs The key findings of this TVE may be summarized to the following: Information is also addressed by the users, however, such information should: Not to be complicated and dense (just right). Be accessible by all, especially by passengers with special needs. Provide information about the status of the interchange equipment, especially the ones that facilitate mobility of persons with special needs. Photo 8: Transport Visioning Event A Special care should be given by the operators for the maintenance of the equipment for persons with special needs (along with the proper information provision on the equipment status). When assessing passengers opinions through a questionnaire survey, simple words should be used, to be better comprehensible by all respondents. Photo 9: Transport Visioning Event B Following the above, a questionnaire survey should include special parts for persons with special needs. Some of their requirements could be collected through their organizations. Gender-related security issues should be taken into account. Photo 10: Transport Visioning Event C 8

9 News: 1 st City-HUB Conference Technical visit to the M4 Kelenföld intermodal terminal and the Érd intermodal terminal A technical visit took place on the second day of the Workshop to the M4 Kelenföld intermodal terminal, which is under construction and the Érd intermodal terminal. Photos 11-13: M4 Kelenföld intermodal terminal Photos 14-16: Érd intermodal terminal 9

10 News: City-HUB presence at conferences and other events City-HUB meeting with Passenger Focus, November 2012, United Kingdom Mr. Derek Palmer, Head of Sustainable Transport Planning of the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) met with Passenger Focus, in order to present the City-HUB project to senior staff and gather their initial views on key issues for interchange design. Among the issues that were discussed during the meeting were the provision of travel information, the importance of personal security and local environment, the ease of traveling with luggage, the lack of familiarity that passengers have with destinations, the need for personalized travel planning, the availability of assistance for those with special needs, the provision of information on connections, etc. It was agreed that TRL will keep Passenger Focus (PF) informed of the progress of City-HUB and will give PF an opportunity to comment on draft reports. PF will discuss internally whether there are any further reports or other sources of information that might be relevant to City-Hub and will let TRL know. CLOSER Final Conference, November 2012, Prague, Czech Republic The project CLOSER (Connecting LOng and Short distance networks for Efficient transpor), co-funded by the European Commission and having reached its third and final year organized its Final Conference in Prague on the 12th and 13th of November The conference covered important topics that were addressed throughout the duration of the project, such as co-modality, current trends in transport and their effects on interfaces, core indicators, emerging mobility schemes for passenger and freight transport, decision-making, etc. During the conference, the City-HUB project was introduced to participants through a presentation given by the City-HUB dissemination managers, Mr Giannis Adamos and Prof. Eftihia Nathanail. The presentation is available through the CLOSER s website: Photo 17: Mr Giannis Adamos, CERTH 10

11 News: City-HUB presence at conferences and other events Technical seminar about innovation on procedures of building of transport interchanges, November 2012, Madrid, Spain UPM - TRANSyT colleagues participated in a technical seminar about innovation on procedures of building of transport interchanges and made diffusion of City-HUB project through a presentation. This technical seminar was carried out in the E.T.S de Ingenieros de Caminos, Canales y Puertos, UPM. 1 st Hellenic Conference on Sustainable Urban Mobility, December 2012, Volos, Greece Mr Giannis Adamos and Ms Maria Tsami of CERTH, gave a presentation entitled Urban transportation hubs: The City-HUB project, introducing City-HUB to national, regional and local authorities, as well as to the wider scientific Greek community (transportation engineers, universities, organizations, etc.). More than 35 presentations were given during the conference and more than 100 people participated. Photo 18: Prof. Eftihia Nathanail, CERTH Photo 20: Mr Giannis Adamos & Ms Maria Tsami, CERTH Photo 19: Conference audience 11

12 Future events and activities JUNE 2013 SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT International Conference on Changing Cities : Spatial, morphological, formal and socioeconomic dimensions, Skiathos Island, Greece Presentation of the paper Designing urban transport interchanges: The case of Thessaloniki railway station by CERTH partners. 4 th International Conference on Environmental Management, Engineering, Planning and Economics (CEMEPE 2013) & SECOTOX Conference, Mykonos Island, Greece Presentation of the paper Moving towards the development of sustainable transportation hubs in Europe: Investigating the role of soft modes in Thessaloniki railway station reformation by CERTH partners. 1 OCTOBER 2013 SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT th European Transport Conference (ETC), Frankfurt, Germany Presentation of the paper Sustainable development design for the transformation of the Thessaloniki Railway Station into a city hub by CERTH partners. Presentation of the paper Key factors for successful interchange operation and design: validated results from the City-HUB project by TRL and Panteia/NEA partners. Technical visit to the Finnish case study: Kamppi terminal, Helsinki, Finland JULY 2013 SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT FEBRUARY 2014 SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT th Annual Transport Practitioners Meeting, Birmingham, UK 2 nd Stakeholder Workshop, London, UK Exact date to be announced. Presentation of the paper The European Commission City-HUB Project by TRL partners. 12

13 Interviews with Mr. Javier Aldecoa Martínez-Conde Subdirector de Intermodalidad y Concesiones de Obras Públicas Consorcio Regional de Transportes de Madrid In your opinion, which are the most important subjects regarding transport interchanges that should be addressed by the City-HUB project? The most important subjects that the City-HUB project should address is to promote and improve those indicators that may serve to attract non-public transport users to the system. As a professional in the operation decision making, in which way do you believe or expect that the City-HUB business model could contribute to the improvement of urban interchanges? Given the complex mobility that we have in nowadays cities, the transport interchanges are a fundamental part of the public transport system. We have to be able to locate them at sites where the users really want to go, not where operators or planners decide. If we achieve this goal, we will have achieved the natural regeneration of the city. with Dr. Eleni Zacharaki Special Advisor, Greek Ministry of Development, Competiveness, Infrastructure, Transport & Networks In your opinion, which are the most important subjects regarding transport interchanges that should be addressed by the City-HUB project? City-HUB project promotes efficient transport interchanges, which is a twofold concept, i.e. efficient transport operations and efficient urban space allocation/relocation. Regarding the first, City-HUB should conclude to a set of policy measures and infrastructures, able to facilitate the shift from private vehicles to public transport and other sustainable means (walking, cycling). Concerning the second, as transport systems and urban activities are interconnected and interrelated, the appropriate mix and diversification of land uses within and around the interchange area will serve as an attractor for the public transport system. Thus, matching different types of interchanges with land use schemes would be another important task for the project. As a professional in the policy decision making, in which way do you believe or expect that the City- HUB business model could contribute to the improvement of urban interchanges? In a fast moving urban environment, citizens are trying to accommodate mobility needs under certain social and economic pressures they understand that it is time to change their travel behaviour patterns. The City-HUB business model should be built on this assumption, contributing to the improvement of urban interchanges through the proposal of: Appropriate operational structures Innovative financing mechanisms / exploitation of PPP s schemes, envisaging a unified approach for the transport system and the surrounding area Integrated pricing / ticketing schemes 13

14 Newsletter N o 1 June 2013 Consortium UNIVERSIDAD POLITECNICA DE MADRID (UPM-TRANSyT) KTI KOZLEKEDESTUDOMANYI INTEZET NONPROFIT KFT (KTI) TRANSPORTOKONOMISK INSTITUTT (TOI) CENTER FOR RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY HELLAS / HELLENIC INSTITUTE OF TRANSPORT (CERTH/HIT) PANTEIA BV (NEA) TRL LIMITED (TRL) TEKNOLOGIAN TUTKIMUSKESKUS VTT (VTT) INSTITUT FRANCAIS DES SCIENCES ET TECHNOLOGIES DES TRANSPORTS, DE L'AMENAGEMENT ET DES RESEAUX (IFSTTAR) CENTRUM DOPRAVNIHO VYZKUMU v.v.i. (CDV) Spain Hungary Norway Greece The Netherlands United Kingdom Finland France Czech Republic For more information Project coordinator Prof. Andrés Monzón TRANSyT UPM Madrid, Spain T.: andres.monzon@upm.es Project secretary Sara Hernández TRANSyT UPM Madrid, Spain T.: sara.hernandez@upm.es Dissemination managers Prof. Eftihia Nathanail CERTH - HIT Thessaloniki, Greece T.: enath@uth.gr Giannis Adamos CERTH - HIT Thessaloniki, Greece T.: giadamos@civ.uth.gr Project supported by ectri.org