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Green Urban Transport Systems
(GUTS)
Green Urban Transport Systems
(GUTS)
Start date: Feb 28, 2010,
End date: Feb 27, 2013
PROJECT
FINISHED
The main environmental problems in cities are linked to the increasing air pollution (currently 31% of all emissions) coming from transport (of which up to 7 % coming from public transport). The challenge GUTS partners are facing is how to reconcile economic development and accessibility of their cities by improving at the same time the quality of life and environmental protection while fighting Climate Change.GUTS will contribute to sustainable urban mobility in Central Europe, helping cities and urban agglomerations (public authorities, transport operators) to meet requirements for a greener environment. The project will work together on creating a strong institutional, financial & technological basis for the development of sustainable and clean public transport (PT) systems. An environmentally sustainable rolling stock, just like user-friendliness or improved accessibility, is crucial to create higher quality Public transport services. GUTS promotes and enhances the quality and sustainability of public transport by preparing the ground for the necessary innovative investments to answer the qualitative and quantitative mobility requirements of urban citizens. Achievements: GUTS - Green Urban Transport Systems project was launched in March 2010 under the coordination of Municipality of Sopron as Lead Partner with the cooperation of 7 partners. The overall objective of GUTS is to contribute to sustainable urban mobility in Central Europe. More specifically, the project aims at creating a strong institutional, financial and technological guidance for the development of sustainable public transport systems for small and medium-sized cities. The focus is laid on finding innovative solutions for converting urban public transport (PT) into clean and sustainable systems by increasing the share of renewable energies. In order to reach this objective, project partners started to contribute through joint efforts to find the best methods, approaches and models to mitigate negative environmental impacts arising from increased traffic. After holding major start- up events, regional and overall assessment was carried out via the development of a Baseline Study and the drafting of local/regional analyses by partners with the assistance of 2 knowledge partners, CERE (Center of Excellence for Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency and Environment) and IBDiM (Road and Bridge Research Institute). The analysis phase was supported by a benchmark visit to the “model city” of Burgos (ES) where partners learned about best practices regarding green PT solutions. As a next step, partners elaborated 6 feasibility studies on local possibilities of greening urban PT by investigating the use of alternative fuels, such as hydrogen, biofuel, CNG and HCNG as well as the use of solar energy for human mobility. The results of the pilot studies were then analysed and compiled by CERE and the Province of Ferrara. In the last phase, activities will be focused on the one hand on creating technical support tools regarding governance, finance and technology in the form of Master studies, helping the implementation of clean PT systems by public authorities and operators in the partner cities and beyond. On the other hand, a Transnational Strategy on Clean PT Systems will be developed serving as a decision supporting tool for policy-makers to define local strategies for clean PT. Partners will also develop local action plans devoted to strategic future local measures for clean urban public transport. The GUTS partnership has continuously involved local/regional stakeholders via Regional Stakeholder Platform meetings and set up a Public Transport Resource Centre, which is a virtual platform where numerous professional documents and relevant information has been gathered in a database to be shared among partners and beyond. The platform is accessible publicly through the project website (www.gutscentral.eu). Besides regular newsletters, PR materials and website updates, major campaign actions were organized in all partner cities to further raise awareness on the issues tackled by GUTS project.