60

Lead Partner contact details List of project partners Financial facts

61

HiTrans

Development of Principles and Strategies for Introducing High Quality Public Transport in Medium Size Cities and Urban Regions 23

BackgroundCities across Europe are busy regenerating run-down areas, cur-

tailing urban sprawl, and making neighbourhoods more attractive.

As part of this process, city authorities must improve urban design

and develop attractive places in which to invest and live. In practi-

cal terms this means tackling traffic-choked streets and improving

transport services for communities.

Larger cities can generally afford to invest in expensive and effec-

tive modes of public transport as for example metro systems. In

many of the North Sea Region’s small and medium-sized cities of

100,000–500,000 inhabitants, however, car use continues to in-

crease, and low quality, infrequent bus services struggle to compete.

In cities with smaller populations there is often lower passenger

demand and smaller public budgets. The North Sea Region is

characterised by urban networks with low-density land use. They

face the challenge of how to provide effective public transport with

limited public budgets.

AimWorking to develop principles and strategies for high quality public

transport in medium-sized cities and urban regions, HiTrans is

a cooperative research effort focusing its investigations on the

comparative advantages of new technologies. An example of such

a technology is the tram-train concept, which allows trams to use

both the regional rail-networks as well as local city streets. This is

an affordable solution, as it allows cities to establish a light rail

system without having to develop completely new tracks for the

entire system. The goal of HiTrans is to identify suitable and cost

effective transport solutions and give guidance on how these solu-

tions may be introduced in medium-sized cities. This will improve

the liveability of medium sized cities and improve accessibility

for those who live there. To refine national and regional policies

in transport planning, the transnational partnership will develop

common guidelines and methodologies.

Activities and OutcomesHiTrans focuses on five main themes: the inter-relationship

between land use and successful public transport; practical

planning of transport networks; urban design issues at stake for

the introduction of new infrastructure; innovative and emerging

transport technologies; and what the transport user wants.

Actions will address crucial design factors in transport plan-

ning: overhead wiring, rail track, signing, power stations, stops,

platforms, safety barriers, vehicle design and access. Partners will

look for the best ways to tackle congestion and air pollution, and

examine practical aspects such as network routing, timetabling,

fare structures and safety.

Promoting alternatives to the car will bring reductions in CO2

emissions, while encouraging urban development along transport

axes will help contain urban sprawl. The project will also contri-

bute to social and economic cohesion by offering new solutions

to low-income groups often dependent on public transport. High

quality transport will make cities more attractive for business and

tourism, and, if properly managed, can save costs for governments

and citizens.

Based on case studies from a range of cities across Europe and

North America, the project will produce a series of best practice

guides and guidelines targeted at transport planners. This will be

disseminated to national transport administrations, bus and rail

operating companies, as well as the public, and specialist press and

media.

The FutureAll the HiTrans partners are looking into the possiblilty of investing

in new transport technologies. However, they will wait for the re-

sults of this transnational cooperation before proceeding. A number

of other Interreg IIIB projects dealing with urban transport issues

– LIRA-2, Town-Net, Urbal and SustAccess – will be invited to the

HiTrans International Conference in Aarhus, Denmark, on 22-23

September 2005.

Tramway interchange.

Did you know... Public transport is not only a means of transporting people from A to B, but it is also an opportunity to redevelop and reshape a city! More and more cities are becoming aware of this opportunity, and beautifully designed public transport systems are being used as catalysts for investments. In Strasbourg property prices along new railway banks have increased and in Nottingham the new tramlines have seen a significant increase in the numbers of public transport travellers. These and other good examples the project learns from and are to be found in the HiTrans Best Practice Guide on “Public Transport & Urban Design”, which after September 2005 will be also available at www.HiTrans.org.

Attractive design of high quality bus stop way outside Amsterdam.

Rogaland County CouncilProject manager: Per Frøyland PallesenE-mail: pfp@rfk.rogaland-f.kommune.noTel. +47 5151 6681Website: www.hitrans.org

City of Edinburgh CouncilCity of HelsingborgJernbaneverketNBSOslo SporveierNEXUS

City of SunderlandÅrhus County CouncilStatens Vegvesen, RogalandStavanger and Sandnes City Councils

Start date: 1 March 2002End date: 30 September 2005ERDF: € 500,250Total eligible sum: € 1,000,500

N

N

N

DK

UK

UK

N

N

N

S

UK