“MOBILITY AS A RIGHT” CONCEPT FOR RUSE CITY

Prof. Lucia Ilieva, CSDCS-Bulgaria

CIVITAS FORUM 2017, Torres Vedras, Portugal

2017 September 29th

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Brief description of the city

• Largest Bulgarian city on the Danube River and the fifth

largest city in the country

• Located in the northeastern part of Bulgaria, approx. 75 km

south of the capital of Romania - Bucharest

• Population of the whole city (2015): 145 765 inhabitants

• Surface (km2): 127.12 sq. km

• Density: 1 147 inhabitants per sq. km

• Population living in the city centre: approx. 35 000

inhabitants

Modal split of Ruse (2013)

• Walking: 44%

• Cycling: 2%

• Public transport: 21%

• Cars: 33%

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View of the city

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CIVITAS ECCENTRIC Laboratory area

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CIVITAS ECCENTRIC Laboratory area

Peripheral district “Druzhba”

• Population living in area: approx. 26 000 (18% of the Ruse population)

• Surface: 2.12 sq. km

• Density: 12 264 inhabitants per sq. Km (10 times more than in city centre)

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CHALLENGES in the Laboratory area (expert

evaluation)

• PT in the neighbourhood is slow and unreliable;

• Citizens don’t have any information and are not able to plan well their time and

schedule when using public transport

• A large share of citizens living in Druzhba use personal cars and taxi services to

travel to the city centre or go to work in the industrial zones;

• There is no opportunity to use PT after 9 p.m. and citizens prefer to use personal

cars and taxi services instead of PT in the late hours of the day;

• Lack of pedestrian areas, pavements, crosswalks and high level of accidents. All

pedestrian crosswalks in the district are not secure enough and present high risk for

accidents leading to injuries and fatalities;

• Unattractive appearance of the peripheral district because of streets and public

spaces packed with cars;

• Insufficient parking spaces in the residential area of the peripheral district;

• Most people with disabilities don't go on the streets or travel around the city due to

the lack of convenient infrastructure, specialized public transport vehicles and

services; High risk of road accidents involving people with disabilities.

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DEFINING THE STATE-OF-ART BY COLLECTING

BASELINE DATA

During the research and planning phase, we first established the target group of local citizens for questioning.

The methodology for the selection of respondents was quota-based, with a sample size of 215 people

randomly selected and evenly distributed in the above-mentioned three neighbourhoods of Druzhba district,

which guarantees its representativeness. The subject of the survey were individuals from all age groups of 15

and over, i.e. people who actually use public transport services and could give an objective assessment of

both the advantages and disadvantages they face in their daily lives. For this purpose the following methods

of registration of the information were used:

• direct group poll - 65 people;

• a standardized face-to-face interview - 150 people.

• a supplementary group of 10 local leaders were interviewed orally by extended questionnaires (audio-

registered conversations).

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Modal split Druzhba (2017)

Cars&Taxis (26,5%)

PT (49%)

Walking (19%)

Cycling (5,5%)

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PT use in Druzhba

Every day (37%)

2-4 days a week(27%)

Once a week(9%)

Ocasionally (27%)

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0 20 40 60 80 100 120

Lack of PT-lines

PT not reliable

PT is crowded

Low safety for pedestrians

No facilities for disabled

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THE MAAR CONCEPT WAS INTRODUCED AFTER

PROCESSING THE RESULTS OF THE STUDY

MaaR is a strategic vision aiming at defining an inclusive mobility where all

citizens are taken into consideration, regardless of their capacities or their status

in society.

This vision in ECCENTRIC proposes a set of mobility measures in Druzhba district

on the one hand, and a set of information, training and awareness raising

activities on the other hand:

• A special training for PT professionals

• Six workshops for citizens and NGOs in Druzhba, targeting different groups:

elderly people, disabled people, school children and youth, low income families,

private companies, and environmentalists

• Large media campaign for stakeholders and the school community.

• Three mobility Conferences for promoting the new MaaR solutions in Druzhba

among all citizens, transport experts and decision-makers. They will assure that

MaaR and its key results are properly communicated to the public and the various

stakeholders in the inclusive mobility area

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Expectations for MaaR as impact of ECCENTRIC

• 20% decreased use of private

cars

• 15% growth of active mobility

modes in Ruse, enhancing the

walking and cycling facilities in

the demonstration district

• 20% increase in PT usage

and 15% increased reliability

of PT services

• Increased safety and mobility

for pedestrians and disabled

people in Druzhba.

Thank you!

Prof. Lucia Ilieva

Contact Details:

CSDCS-Bulgaria

mail@csdcs.org

www.csdcs.org