How to manage the changed mobility landscape
The changing mobility landscape has required the urban landscape to change as well, with decent kerbside management as the key to unlock the ful potential of urban streets.
It should be no surprise that the fast-changing mobility market will eventually affect the streets as well. In order to bring all new mobility modes together in a safe, efficient and convenient way that tackles traffic congestion and air pollution at the same time, optimising the public space is crucial. Kerbside management is the answer.
Shared mobility
First of all, shared mobility modes such as carsharing, and ridehailing require a different set-up of the public space. These shared vehicles spend more time on the road than parked and require flexible drop-off and pick-up zones, where loading and unloading passengers does not block the traffic flow. Implementing flexible drop-off-pick-up zones in the kerbside rather than parking spaces facilitates this crucial precondition of fluent ridehailing and carsharing services.
Micromobility
In addition, the increasing number of shared scooters and bikes demand their space on the kerbside as well. In order not to block pedestrian and bike lanes, they need (virtual) stations or docked stations where they can be left behind and wait for the next user to take them again. Nowadays many cities are struggling to integrate these vehicles safely and conveniently in the public space. Providing dedicated zones on the kerbside for them, would solve a big part of the puzzle. Good to know, some startups are developing flexible stations or virtual stations for these mobility modes.
Delivery
Besides personal transport, there is cargo transportation as well. Especially with growing e-commerce and because of ever more diesel bans, small LCVs have to try to find their way in the centre to quickly load and unload their deliveries. For them as well, a flexible zone on the kerbside, rather than fixed parking spots is more efficient, convenient and in most cases more economical as well.
Washington DC’s District Department of Transportation (DDOT) recently released details about the next phase of its kerbside pick-up-drop-off programme which is designed to better manage the kerbside and improve safety. This last phase will especially focus on commercial deliveries. Research showed that commercial delivery activities often resulted in double parking, blocking the traffic flow and causing unsafe situations. The new phase will create commercial loading zones where study participants will use a free app to coordinate their time on the kerbside. The study will help the DDOT to understand the changing delivery landscape and hence help them to make informed decisions about kerbside policies.
