Rotterdam & Torino Present Smart Mobility Solutions at IURC Webinar

On 17 March, the IURC programme’s Mobility & Transportation Cluster convened a joint webinar session on Smart Mobility & Advanced Technology, during which cities from the Community of Practice on Densification of the City Through Innovation in Mobility (CoP1) and Future Modalities (CoP2) gathered to gain insights from award-winning cases. The webinar began with presentations from Rotterdam (Netherlands) and Torino (Italy), and concluded with a discussion session that opened the floor to all participants. 

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Rotterdam’s ShareDiMobiHub – Improving Multimodal Accessibility 

Rotterdam presented the ShareDiMobiHub project, which aims to increase shared mobility usage in underserved neighbourhoods by improving availability, lowering costs, and implementing targeted communication strategies. 

The presentation emphasised the importance of the project in terms of enhancing residents’ quality of life through improvements in air quality, noise reduction, and the promotion of active mobility. 

This European Commission-funded pilot project installed mobility hubs (e.g., park-and-ride stations) across the region, featuring a standardised design that allows for flexible implementation at a national scale. Following this pilot, the majority of users reported satisfaction with these hubs. Rotterdam also shared a notable achievement that 70% of users were first-time users. 

Rotterdam’s presentation concluded with key takeaways from the pilot project. One of the key lessons was that pilot initiatives must be aligned with realistic conditions – including pricing, supply, and communication strategies – to ensure successful implementation. Government communication was also found to play a crucial role in raising awareness of such initiatives. 

Torino’s Mobility as a Service (MaaS) – Enhancing Integrated Mobility Services

Torino’s presentation on the MaaS for Italy project demonstrated how cities can leverage technology and governance models to improve the overall efficiency of urban mobility for all citizens through a single smartphone application. 

During the pilot implementation, Torino tested MaaS for four targeted sectors: city residents (Consumer MaaS), private companies (Corporate MaaS), event participants (Leisure MaaS), and travellers (Tourist MaaS). These models attracted over 22,000 registered users. 

Torino highlighted that providing financial incentives for users is an important success factor. For example, their pilot provided a welcome bonus for newly registered users and other incentives based on their mobility habits, such as travelling at night. 

This award-winning mobility project led by Torino also demonstrated the importance of cooperation between different stakeholders. The public sector must orchestrate governance frameworks and ensure a fair approach, while private actors can participate in this open market in compliance with established regulations. 

Challenges Around Sustainability 

After the presentations, participants leveraged the opportunity to deepen their understanding of mobility project implementation through a Q&A session. Further discussion through this session highlighted challenges related to pricing sustainability for long-term implementation, as costs remain a significant concern. Beyond these concerns, the discussion underscored the positive outcomes of the projects in diversifying the user base and expanding mobility options. 

This thematic webinar marked an important step in facilitating knowledge exchange between cities, providing a valuable opportunity to explore ways to achieve greener, more accessible, and inclusive mobility, and to learn from one another. 

Written by Yejin Lee, Project Associate in CityNet, IURC Korean Helpdesk

(korea.helpdesk@iurc.eu)