SIEMM

Advocated by the European Commission’s Green Paper Towards a new culture for urban mobility, the “city of short distances” is a sustainable development pattern, which should be extended to the metropolitan scale (CEC, 2007). Based on this pattern, the main objectives of the SIEMM project are: (1) to scale-up the impact of innovative urban mobility models (e.g. our French Ministries projects NEST-TERR/ADEME-MODEVALURB 2015-2 and Tram-train/IMR-MCC 2013-2015) and to support modal shift towards more efficient modes (e.g. high-speed, tram-train, tram, cycling and walking networks) for the development of metropolitan areas such “short distances and easy access cities”; and (2) to work closely together and share latest research results with local authorities in order to strengthen their knowledge and to support governmental decision making. The framework for the cooperation between the universities and local stakeholders will be the concept of European Metropolitan Mobility Modeling Centers. Moreover, the project will create a network of Metropolitan Mobility Modeling Centers to share knowledge and experiences across European cities. This synergy-rich framework, based on the Urban Modeling and Visualization technology (sort of BIM at the territorial scale), allows universities and local authorities to draw full benefit from the existing mobility projects in each city (e.g. NEST-TERR, IMR, CATS, CIVITAS) to optimize their expertise, and to apply new socio-economical and financing models related to the future of their metropolitan territories. The project will analyze differences, scale-up typologies and identify best mobility solutions that provide a potential added value in terms of efficiency, sustainability, livability and integration (e.g. morphological, social, economic) for a certain type of metropolitan area. The results will be brought together in Interactive Cartography, Maps and Tools on Innovative Urban and Metropolitan Mobility, and published at a major International Symposium in Strasbourg. The project will be contributing to enhancing stakeholder knowledge and capacities in this field, and to redirecting local policy in relation to the challenges of energy transition and sustainable metropolitan development. It will reinforce light-rail solutions and modal shift approaches (e.g. CATS-electric cars, tramway and tram-train projects) from a small number of locations in Europe to new locations in Europe and in China.