Simply put, Smart mobility is what we call the use of alternative modes of transport vs. the individual use of  private vehicles.

With the population increase in cities, and the added increase of delivery of services, road traffic has become a serious problem for mobility. The original solution to this problem was to build more roads and expand the capacity of cities, but this only led to a massive increase in traffic, not solving the actual problem.

Smart Mobility has been established to respond to the need to create urban mobility that is more sustainable for the environment.

Smart mobility can take place in many different ways in practice. Carpooling, using public transport, walking, cycling or driving an electric scooter are some examples.

It is also based on the use of new technologies that allow us to manage resources more efficiently and sustainably.

If you want to know what Smart Mobility consists of and how it can help us improve the planet… keep reading!

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The arrival of Smart Cities

You cannot talk about Smart Mobility without mentioning Smart Cities. They are concepts that go together because they respond to the changing the paradigm of mobility in cities.

Today cities are overcrowded, there are too many people living in them and resources are limited. This complicates its operation and an efficient system is needed to be able to manage the resources. Smart Cities emerge to reinvent the way we live in cities.

Smart cities use information and communication technology (ICT) to create better infrastructure for their citizens.

A Smart City, by definition, is an interconnected system that applies new technologies to manage its resources. In Smart Cities, ICTs are used to try to make efficient use of their energy resources, the commercial fabric, communication with their inhabitants, civil protection, as well as the transport systems of the city where the Smart Mobility.

The arrival of Smart Cities has been made possible thanks to technological advances, which allow the different projects of the cities to be aligned under a single management model.

Objectives of Smart Mobility

As we have said, within Smart Cities, Smart Mobility is in charge of managing everything related to traffic and mobility of people in the city.

It consists of promoting sustainable mobility that offers accessibility guarantees, manages parking in cities, promotes the proper functioning of transport systems and in turn solves environmental problems.

The three basic objectives of Smart Mobility should be:

• Reduce environmental impact
• Guarantee maximum productivity for the user
• Offer a better quality of life to citizens

To achieve these objectives, the action plan will carry out measures such as helping people with new forms of mobility, creating new more accessible mobility platforms, limiting parking spaces, or even making modifications to the urban areas to improve mobility in the streets.

Path to sustainable mobility

The reality we are facing is that, according to the European Environment Agency, transport in the EU generates a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions. The level of atmospheric pollution that this emits is very harmful to the environment and, therefore, to our life on the planet.

In the last year the climate crisis has worsened, carbon dioxide emissions have increased and with it climate change has accelerated.

Finding solutions to this situation must be our priority if we want to ensure habitable conditions on earth.

Smart Mobility is committed to renewable energy resources to reduce energy consumption and thereby minimize CO2 emissions.

Fortunately, today, we already have cities in which smart mobility measures have been successfully implemented that serve as an example to build, together, a better future for life in cities and mobility in them.

Actual examples of Smart Cities:

• London: the most sustainable on the planet

The best positioned city in terms of human capital, technology, urban management, international projection, mobility and transport. In addition, it is a city with a lot of business projection, since it is the one that houses the most startups in the world.

• New York: Leader in Economics

The 80 × 50 Project is underway with which it intends to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050. It also wants to reach zero waste by 2030, for which very significant efforts have been made to reform waste management and companies are encouraged to recycle.

• Paris: against climate change

The city has the main objective of stopping climate change, betting on the construction of buildings that use renewable energy so that they generate more energy than they consume. The city is successfully optimized, thanks to the fact that its inhabitants have access to the city's networks and data flows.

• Barcelona: modern infrastructure

In the last decade, the city has been immersed in a process of comprehensive renovation of its services and infrastructures. The city has been modernized from a holistic approach based on a digital transformation.

In Barcelona, the use of the smartphone is especially widespread among its inhabitants, which is why the city has opted for digital applications that keep its citizens connected. This is the case with Meep, which offers multiple mobility solutions. Through this platform, the user can plan all their routes, combining different city transports.

• Malta: full connectivity

It stands out especially for its bus network, which is fully connected and reaches every corner. In Malta, Meep offers the ExplorePlus Meep card with which you can travel without problems and has more than 2000 stops to get you everywhere.

These examples show us that sustainable mobility is possible and that it is the task of everyone, governments and citizens. Working to achieve Smart Mobility is what will lead us to have more livable cities where we can enjoy a better quality of life.

If you want to know more about smart mobility remember that at Meep we are at your disposal to help you change the way you move around your city.

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*Main image: Photograph by Ernest Ojeh | Unsplash