The background of SIMS is the wide range of local, regional and global challenges related to increasing levels of individual, car-based transport in larger cities in Denmark and worldwide (environment/climate, health risks, economic loss due to congestion, decreased urban liveability, etc.).
The overall aim of SIMS is to contribute to a sustainable mobility transition leading to reduced climate change impact, less congestion, improved environment and liveability in cities. SIMS provides detailed knowledge on sustainable mobility solutions that are tailored to the everyday life of citizens and thus become attractive alternatives to existing resource-intensive mobility patterns. This is done by creating new knowledge and combining new and existing transport solutions.
The specific objectives of SIMS are:
- Develop theoretically informed and empirical-based knowledge of sustainable mobility solutions that are integrated with users’ everyday mobility needs and practices in a Danish urban context.
- Explore user experiences with existing Danish digital journey planner in order to provide basis for possible design improvements that better integrate multi-modal mobility with users’ specific mobility needs, and which can be upscaled to national level if successful.
- Develop comprehensive and sustainable mobility solutions that combine the emerging trends of sharing (car and bike), electric vehicles and, ideally, autonomous driving with existing resource-efficient transport modes (walking, biking and public transport).
- Document the effectiveness of these solutions via validation trials at three sites situated in Greater Copenhagen (Nordhavn, Folehaven & Nærheden) that also provide empirical knowledge for further development of solutions.
- Support the user adoption of the developed mobility solutions through designing and testing complementary social and physical site interventions and – on basis of the results from this – develop guidelines for social-physical measures to inform future sustainable mobility transition at municipality and policy-making levels.
- Support collaboration between actors (authorities, mobility operators, journey planner, research institutions and citizens) that are key to the future sustainable transition of (sub)urban transport.
In short, the vision of SIMS is to develop sustainable mobility solutions that are workable (adapted to citizens’ every practices), comprehensive (incorporating future and existing resource-efficient transport modes), robust (apply to a variety of user needs) and co-developed with wider urban physical development and social relations.
Work plan
The project is divided into the following work packages (WPs)
WP1: Analytical framework and guidelines
Based on existing knowledge within mobility and social practice theory studies, an analytical framework on the dynamics within everyday mobility practices and guidelines on how to design mobility interventions are developed. The outcome of WP1 informs the following WPs.
WP leader: Aalborg University
WP2: Pre-intervention site studies
This WP qualifies the user profiles of the new mobility trends (sharing, electrifying and automation) in focus in SIMS on basis of GIS analysis of user data supplied by mobility partners and relevant qualitative methods such as individual interviews, walking interview, participant observation or visual ethnography. The research design will be based on practice theories and mobility studies and seek to uncover how these new mobility trends link to existing mobility practices. In addition, existing mobility patterns and local key actors are mapped through field studies at the intervention sites (Nordhavn, Nærheden and Folehaven). WP2 provides the empirical foundation for the design of the mobility interventions (WP3).
WP leader: Roskilde University
WP3: Design of mobility intervention
On basis of empirical findings of WP2 and through dialogue between the partners, this WP designs the SIMS mobility solutions for trial at the intervention sites. Focus is on trialling how to integrate new transport modes (in particular car/bike sharing) into existing mobility patterns and how these interact with other transport modes. A particular aim is to trial inter-modal solutions as this can inform future development of integrated Mobility-as-a-System (MaaS) solutions. In addition to designing multi-modal solutions, complementary site-specific physical and social initiatives to support the uptake of these mobility solutions at the intervention sites are designed through dialogue with local actors and citizens. Finally, on a practical level, the site interventions are prepared and households are recruited for the interventions.
WP leader: Aalborg University
WP4: Smart mobility intervention and evaluation
For one year, households are testing the offered mobility solution and site interventions at the three sites. Qualitative empirical studies are carried out throughout the year to document the participants’ experiences with the interventions, their mobility practices, possible implications on other everyday practices and mobility habits, etc. In addition to the qualitative part, the implications of the site intervention for mobility habits and positive/negative implications for sustainability are studied through quantitative data on participants’ mobility behaviours before and during the intervention provided by the mobility operators.
WP leader: Aalborg University
WP5: Visions on integrated, sustainable and smart mobility
This WP develops a broader exploration of changes needed at the conceptual, systemic and policy levels to provide an integrated sustainable transition of present mobility systems. To support the integration between the specific SIMS solutions and the broader visions, there will be continued exchanges between WP2-WP4 and WP5. Main activities of WP5 are two “Vision workshops” involving key mobility actors from Denmark and leading international experts (including the SIMS Advisory Board).
WP leader: Roskilde University
WP6: Final conclusions and policy recommendations
This WP concludes the research and design activities of the project, including a synthesis of the results and the development of specific recommendations for the design of future sustainable and smart mobility solutions as well as policy recommendations. Part of this WP is also a final analysis of possible further improvements of the trialled mobility solutions and interventions.
WP leader: Roskilde University
WP7: Dissemination
This WP disseminates results and recommendations to a broad audience, partly through this project website. Target groups are: Other researchers, business actors within the (smart) mobility area and mobility designers, policy-makers, NGOs and mobility planners. Also, the project concludes with an open seminar targeted all relevant stakeholders and with presentation of the project results.
WP leader: Roskilde University
WP8: Project management
Facilitates communication and coordination across WPs and between all partners and monitor the overall progress of the project.
WP leader: Aalborg University
Project manager and contact
SIMS is managed by Aalborg University and the project manager is Senior Researcher Toke Haunstrup Christensen from the Danish Building Research Institute (phone 0045 9940 2256; email: thc@sbi.aau.dk).
Financial support
SIMS is supported by the Grand Solutions programme of Innovation Fund Denmark.
