White Paper on mobility and transport in Italy

White Paper on mobility and transport in Italy
This first report on mobility and transport aims to provide a snapshot of the phenomenon of urban sprawl in Italy, comparing it with the same phenomenon that is expanding and spreading globally and that in the next twenty years will affect 70% of the world’s population. On the basis of the data collected and processed by Eurispes researchers, the economic, it was analysed the social and environmental impact that this phenomenon is generating in populations and urban areas around the world. The results of the analysis carried out show that the phenomenon of urban sprawl, synonymous with the rapid and disorderly growth of cities, is the cause and not the effect of complex and serious problems that have been described and analysed and whose most obvious effect is urban transport congestion. This congestion is essentially due to the increase in private transport generated by the lack of collective political solutions to deal with the increased demand for mobility.
The use of private transport requires parking areas that reduce the available space for traffic and significantly contributes to the chaotic congestion of urban areas with the consequent loss of control over traffic flows.
The three most visited western cities in the world – London, New York and Paris – provide an emblematic example of good practice. These administrations, in applying this theory, have pursued the policy of eliminating parking from critical public areas with determination, in fact starting a virtuous cycle that has made the public transport service more efficient and usable, generating enormous economic savings and making the city more liveable. The case of London is particularly interesting for the results achieved, since, have acted appropriately in the city’s areas of greatest commercial interest, it has achieved a high degree of urban attractiveness in terms of both commercial and tourist/well-being aspects, placing it first among the most attractive and visited western cities in the world.
In order to cope with the negative effects of Urban Sprawl, the large metropolitan areas must ask for a contribution from what is defined as the two milestones of this first report: a new model of governance of urban development with the regulation of land use and a new cultural model of coexistence and integration, placing people at the centre of a process of redefining the principles of a healthier citizenship pact. Finally, the need to provide a “modus operandi” focused on critical issues and development paths have been identified. This method should, find solutions and be undertaken with priorities, system dynamics, technological developments, commercial needs and quality, in the short to medium term.