Mobility Solutions

From biogas-fueled buses to electric bikes – the range of mobility actions in SmartEnCity is far and wide. Offering sustainable and environmentally conscious mobility options is key to building clean and healthy cities.

Vitoria-Gasteiz:

  • Electrification of public transport – the city transformed its busiest bus line into a modern and clean electric bus rapid transit line with 48 bus stops, 4 ultra-fast inverted pantographs, 7 articulated e-buses and 6 conventional-size e-buses. The new facilities that host the smart electric buses mark the dawn of a new era of green electric public transport in Vitoria. Replacing conventional diesel buses means an annual CO2 savings of more than 1,300 tons! In addition to this, the Vitoria-Gasteiz City Council deployed an e-bike sharing station to foster sustainable mobility among its employees – in just ca. 10 months, 8,150 kilometers were covered using electric bicycles, equivalent to saving about 1 ton of CO2 emissions!

Tartu:

  • Public bike sharing system – Estonia’s first public bike sharing system was launched in Tartu in 2019. Originally consisting of 750 bikes (about 2/3 of which are e-bikes) and 69 bike share stations (the locations chosen together with the citizens), the system has expanded yearly (also to other nearby municipalities) and proven to be an overwhelming success. What is more, if you have a valid bus period ticket, the first hour of bike sharing is free of charge!
  • Biogas buses in public transport – the city of Tartu replaced its entire old bus fleet with 64 brand new biogas buses to serve the public transportation network. The old route map was reworked together with the citizens and the newly launched bike sharing system connected to the public transport system – the bus card can be used both for buses and renting bikes, making it a convenient single system for the user. Since 2020, Tartu is proud to say that its public transport system is 100% carbon neutral!
  • Public EV rapid chargers – five electric car rapid chargers were installed in the city center of Tartu to ensure the charging infrastructure of the city is diverse and accommodates all EVs.
  • Reusing old EV batteries for solar energy storage – EV batteries that currently have limited lifespans are a drain on resources and the environment. To test if the batteries could be repurposed as storage units, a 300 m2 solar panel park with a recharging point using old EV batteries was constructed. The first results are promising!

Sonderborg:

  • New biogas buses and a biogas filling station – the city constructed a new biogas filling station (the biogas used is produced in the municipality itself!) and replaced its old diesel-fueled buses with 44 brand new biogas buses. Not only can you bring your bike with you on the buses now but improved digital services will always notify you of departures and arrivals, any delays, etc. 
  • Public EV chargers – 31 EV charging points were installed in the Sonderborg area – and not only near car parks, but as a test, also at company car parking lots in the industrial area, and tourism and sport centers. As of 2022, Sonderborg is now in top 5 Danish municipalities by charging capacity per citizen with its more than 200 public charging points!

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Don'ts

Read our Travel Guide for Cities to see what worked and what did not with these solutions, or go directly to our worst practices to see our most important learning points.

Links to more information

Find the city solutions here - City Solutions / SmartEnCity.eu 
Read the Vitoria-Gasteiz reports here – Vitoria-Gasteiz Demo Intervention Summary Report, Electric vehicle fleet and charging infrastructure  and Last mile logistic electric infrastructure deployed and in operation
Read the Tartu reports here – Bike sharing and electric bike rental system purchased and in operation , Mobility infrastructure set up and in operation  and Gas buses purchased and in operationRead the Sonderborg reports here – Sonderborg demo intervention summary report, 38 biogas buses in operation  and Report on electric vehicle chargers in operation