Potential Demand of the Carsharing: An Approach for the Determination of the Optimal Fare

A grid of material and immaterial laboratories for supporting the sustainability of transportation: the RESET project in Sicily

Transportation is a crucial sector, to be suitably approached in order of getting human activities in more environmentally sustainable paths. In fact, in developing, as well in less developing, countries people and freights mobility are responsible of important amount of pollutant emissions and are cause of significant levels of energy consumptions. In this paper, a Sicilian regional project is presented, aiming at establishing an interconnected grid of material and immaterial laboratories. These laboratories, that are devoted at inducing more virtuous behaviors in the transportation policies, are constituted by equipment and software tools, mainly located in the region’s universities, acti…

Embedding “roadside equipment” into environmental assessment of transportation system: the case of safety barriers

The work arises from the consideration that the environmental impact of a road cannot be limited to the analysis of its constituent materials, even if correctly analyzed in their life cycle. In fact, a given road not only consists of the pavement and subgrade, but also includes several different components and accessories (e.g. road marking, drainages, safety barriers, etc.) that contribute to set a road infrastructure in operative conditions. As a matter of fact, only limited attention has been paid in the scientific literature to roadside components, unlike pavement and traffic flow. In the present work, the environmental burden of one of these components, i.e. the safety barrier, has bee…

Mobility, Data, and Behavior: The TrafficO2 Case Study

This chapter presents the social innovation project “TrafficO2”, a support system for decision-making in the field of transportation that tries to push commuters towards more sustainable mobility by providing concrete incentives for each responsible choice. After focusing on Palermo, Italy, the context of this case study, this chapter provides a detailed description of the TrafficO2 model. Specifically, the chapter deals with the analysis of a selected sample of users among Palermo University students who commute daily to their respective University departments on campus. Starting from the modal split of the actual situation (Status Quo scenario), another behavior scenario (Do your right mi…

Environmental sustainability and alternative energy: biofuels and public transport

The energy saving and the use of renewable sources want to give a response to the increasing of energy demand and the rising of prices of traditional fuels. The use of renewable sources and efficient use of energy impose a strategic and irreversible choice. The possibility of replacing traditional fossil fuels with those of biological origin has been strongly emphasized. The European Union aim is that by 2010 the biofuels must account 5.75% of total fuel used (the Italian government has recently approved the Directive). In 2020 this rate will climb to 18%. The policies have played a key role in the development of the biofuel industry, and particularly in the energy, environmental, fiscal,tr…

Enhancing values of roofs albedo for lowering cities’ air temperature and electric demand of buildings: a simple economic evaluation

Abstract In cities vegetated roofs are becoming more popular because they can mitigate Urban Heat Island phenomena by decreasing the outdoor air temperature in summer. This decrease reduces the electric energy demand for climatization of buildings, which, in front of a milder climate, will recur less to mechanical tools for guaranteeing thermal comfort conditions to occupants. Cities can registered another indirect positive effect: the reduced cooling energy demand, limits the heat released by the climatization systems’ external unities toward the urban open spaces, thus lowering the outdoor air temperature. Therefore, the outdoor surface temperature of green, as well as cool roofs, can be …

Un WEB-GIS per la scelta del percorso nelle greenways regionali: Una sperimentazione nel territorio regionale siciliano

An integrated environmental indicator for urban transportation systems: description and application

A simplified version of the ecological footprint method is proposed for assessing the environmental performances of urban transportation systems. The method, starting from the knowledge of the composition of the running vehicular fleet, is here applied to a southern Italian province. It represents a synthetic indicator of the environmental pressure exerted by the system also matching the pollutant emissions with the carrying capacity of the site. Particularly, the forested area needed to absorb the CO2 emissions of the system is compared with the total forested area of the province. The results of the case-study indicates the yearly maximum distance that each vehicle of the fleet can cover …

Fostering the energy efficiency through the energy savings: The case of the University of Palermo

This paper reports the strategy implemented by the Palermo University (Italy) aimed at fostering the energy performance of its campus, particularly towards financing energy saving measures. The basic idea is that the money saved through the energy efficiency actions, constitute the main flywheel to fund further savings and energy efficiency interventions. Results of this paper might bring a useful contribution to the energy planning of cities, since campuses may be regarded as emblematic case study of what can be done in cities because they reproduce, at a little scale, the functioning of wider urban contexts.

Un'analisi empirica sul possibile sviluppo del trasporto combinato "strada - mare"

Il Parco della favorita: riqualificazione e fruibilità per la mobilità lenta

Criteri di sicurezza nell'accessibilità di infrastrutture sportive

Un web-gis per la scelta del percorso nelle greenways regionali

Integrazione fra pianificazione di spazi per giovani e trasporti: un'esemplificazione nell'area urbana di Palermo

FACILITIES FOR YOUNGER PEOPLE AND TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURES IN THE URBAN PLANNING PROCESS Public spaces planning for younger people and for "not young" is a main territorial asset and a major structural and strategic task in the whole planning process, both at regional and local level. To understand the relations that may exist between the "social" or "human" assets and the "economic" and "environmental" assets, a new methodology to define strategies and regional issues, is proposed in order to implement services for large areas with mobility in general and public transport and intermodality in particular. Spatial accessibility in " interchange modal nodes " designed as "places to use integ…

Il mercato degli UAS: campi di applicazione

L'utilizzo di Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) ha avuto un incremento significativo negli ultimi anni. Il loro impiego, prima riservato ai soli fini militari, si è sempre più rivolto a campi prettamente civili quali, per esempio la sorveglianza, il controllo ambientale ed il rilievo aereo. Nel presente lavoro verrà esaminata dapprima l'evoluzione del campo degli UAS nel mondo, verranno esaminati e descritti i primi sviluppi ed utilizzi fino ai più recenti in modo da dare un panorama completo delle tecnologie in essere, focalizzando, in una seconda parte, l'attenzione su costruttori e sviluppatori sia europei che extraeuropei. Saranno inoltre approfonditi gli usi civili degli UAS che, negli ult…

An approach for the determination of the optimal fare for the car sharing service

THE DEMAND OF TOURISTS FOR HELICOPTER TRANSPORT IN AREAS WITH POOR ACCESSIBILITY

Environmental analysis of different construction techniques and maintenance activities for a typical local road

Abstract In this paper, considering the sever impact of road infrastructures on both the surrounding environment as well as on the consumption of locally available natural resources, different road construction techniques have been studied and compared, in order to be able to rank the best solution in terms of environmental sustainability. For the aims of this study, a Life Cycle Analysis has been carried out on a road infrastructure with the most representative geometrical characteristics among those widely used in Italy, in suburban areas, with the help of an appropriate software, the PaLATE. The environmental effects due to both the use of recycled materials, such as the Reclaimed Asphal…

Assessing the environmental impact exerted by roads in “operative” conditions - a Highway case-study

A model for evaluating the environmental and functional benefits of “innovative” roundabouts

This study looks at the singling out of a multi-parameter criterion for choosing conventional or innovative roundabout layouts, by taking functional, environmental and economic aspects into consideration. The performances of three conventional roundabouts (with different lane number at entries and through the ring), turbo-roundabouts and roundabouts with right-turn bypass lane on all the arms (flower roundabouts) have been compared in terms of vehicle delays and pollutant (carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, particle pollution (PM10 and PM2.5)) emissions. By means of closed-form capacity models and with the help of COPERT IV© software, several traffic simulations have been carried out, referre…

A WEB-GIS for the choice of the path in the regional greenways

Tourists seem less interested in the traditional sites of mass tourism, which has damaged local identities. The tourist reclaims the old function of journey, intent on widening his knowledge of the surrounding territory, while respecting the social and cultural equality of other population. This study outlines a methodology to identify the generalized cost for a system of no-motorized transport in order to determine the modal choice of users and the route of minimum cost to reach the desired destination. Within the information users, a key role is played by telematics now widely accessible through web interfaces. With the word greenways we mean the network for the no-motorized constituted b…

Improving the sustainability of transportation: environmental and functional benefits of right-turn by pass lanes at roundabouts

The functional performances of conventional roundabouts (single-lane and multi-lane) and innovative roundabouts (spiral, flower, C and turbo) can be improved through right-turn bypass lanes controlled by stop, yield or free-flow signs. The article presents evaluations of the emissions of air pollutants (carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, particle pollution (PM10 and PM2.5)), fuel consumption and construction, management, energetic and environmental costs in roundabouts without or with bypass lanes (controlled by stop, yield or free-flow). The suggested methodology has a general character and can be applied as a multi-parametric criterion for choosing road intersections, although, in the prese…

The urban transport demand modelling using the stated preference technique for estimating the economic feasibility of the car sharing service

A hierarchical logit model to evaluate the potential demand for short sea shipping involving sicily

Interazioni tra sviluppo urbanistico e sviluppo del sistema trasporti nelle aree metropolitane lineari: Il caso della città di Palermo

The theoretical concept of "linear city" (ciudad lineal), introduced by Arturo Soria y Mata in 1882, was a revolutionary idea contrasting with the traditional concentric city, dense and congested. In several international and national cities, after a historical radial development, began a linear expansion driven by different factors, i.e. insufficient land availability or absence of an organic city planning and development. In this paper, after a brief introduction and the description of the Palermo case study as a linear city, a focus on the implication of this linear structure on the urban and public transport development is presented. Finally, suggestion of innovative solutions to accomm…

Car sharing demand estimation and urban transport demand modelling using stated preference techniques

The research deals with the use of the stated preference technique (SP) and transport demand modelling to analyse travel mode choice behaviour for commuting urban trips in Palermo, Italy. The principal aim of the study was the calibration of a demand model to forecast the modal split of the urban transport demand, allowing for the possibility of using innovative transport systems like car sharing and car pooling. In order to estimate the demand model parameters, a specific survey was carried out inside the urban area of Palermo. The survey focused on the morning rush hour and involved mainly employees, self-employed workers and students (about 500 respondents) whose final destination was lo…

LINEE GUIDA PER LA PROGETTAZIONE E LA LOCALIZZAZIONE DI FERMATE DI BUS URBANI PER IL RECUPERO E LA RIQUALIFICAZIONE DELLE AREE PERIFERICHE. IL CASO DI PALERMO

Organizzazione di un evento: trasporti e sicurezza

LA SOSTENIBILITÀ DELL’USO DEL SUOLO, LA VAS E LA GESTIONE DEL TERRITORIO, CON ALCUNI RIFERIMENTI ALLA REGIONE VENETO ED ALLA SICILIA

Sommario Il problema nazionale, ma soprattutto meridionale ed in particolare della Regione Sicilia, della necessità di un approccio olistico, etico, civico ed interdisciplinare alla formazione di piani e programmi d’interesse pubblico, porta alla necessità di una formazione complessa scientifica ed umanistica. In particolare è strategico intersecare l’atteggiamento formativo ed applicativo delle progettualità ingegneristico-architettoniche con quello dei sistemi di conoscenza, valutazione sociale, economica ed ambientale, delle strutture organizzative e della programmazione economica. Occorrono competenze interdisciplinari con riferimento alle problematiche degli indicatori territoriali, am…

Criteri di modellizzazione di reti stradali: il caso mondello

Environmentally appraising different pavement and construction scenarios: A comparative analysis for a typical local road

Abstract The aim of this work is to carry out a comparative analysis of environmental impacts for different scenarios of a typical local road. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is the modeling tool used to quantify and characterize comparative environmental impacts. In carrying out this specific application of the LCA, different road construction techniques were considered with regards to the whole structure and compared in order to identify the best alternative in terms of environmental sustainability. So far, in fact, typical LCA frameworks of roads have focused on recycled materials for pavement layers only, thus neglecting study of the materials used in the embankment or in the subgrade. In t…

The greenways : a new opportunity to develop the ecotourism in Sicily

The change in the orientation of tourism demand shows the new preferences and needs of tourist. Tourism today is changing. Today tourists prefer to become part of the daily life of the places they visit, and want their journey to be a source of knowledge and leisure. This study aims to improve the territorial availability and to promote the use of non motorized means of transport by design of greenways and slow ways. Greenways make possible to be in contact with nature, following paths through historical and archaeological sites, without any type of pollution. Particularly the case studied is the “Valley of the Temples” allocated in Sicily, in Agrigento site. This is an Archaeological Park,…

A freight transport demand model to evaluate policy actions for short sea shipping in Sicily

This research aims at developing a modelling tool to predict the impact of different policies on the modal split of the freight transport demand in Sicily (in particular, road versus short sea shipping). To gain this objective, a random utility model, precisely a nested logit one, has been formulated and estimated trough a stated preference (SP) survey which has involved about 40 road-based freight transport Sicilian firms. The resulting demand model has been applied to forecast the modal split scenarios deriving from several projects regarding the Sicilian freight mobility system (some projects are public plans and other ones are proposed by the authors).

Embedding “roadside equipment” in the environmental assessment of transportation system: the case of safety barriers

The work arises from the consideration that the environmental impact of a road cannot be limited to the analysis of its constituent materials, even if correctly analyzed in their life cycle. In fact, a given road not only consists of the pavement and subgrade, but also includes several different components and accessories (e.g., road marking, drainages, safety barriers, etc.) that contribute to set a road infrastructure in operative condition. As a matter of fact, only limited attention has been paid in the scientific literature to roadside components, unlike pavement and traffic flow. In the present work, the environmental burden of one of these components, i.e., the safety barrier has bee…

The bike and the urban railway to develop a sustainable transport network