GTI Awards 2019 – Mobility

Caprera island as the “urban park” of la maddalena archipelago

General information:

Island (Region, Province, Country):
Caprera, Sardegna (Sassari, Italia)

Population:
11.192

Budget / cost of the project:
€ 2.910.987

Project objectives:

The project aims to make Caprera the “urban park” of La Maddalena, making the island fully enjoyable through light mobility means, regulating the use of private vehicles and providing electric vehicles. This will lower the CO2 levels and regulate the anthropic pressure through the redistribution of tourists, which also determines coastal erosion and negative impact on Posidonia Oceanica meadows ecosystem. It encourages contact with nature, promoting active tourism and encouraging local economic activities in an area where the economic conversion towards a sustainable tourism industry cannot be further delayed. The project is in collaboration with Parco Nazionale Arcipelago della Maddalena.

Project description of activities and specific interventions:

The project is based on the following actions:
– Polluting vehicles access regulation to Caprera, depending on the season: total traffic closure for 1 and ½ month a year and partial closure for four months, implementing a “slow” mobility program (pedestrian, bicycle, horse, skate or any other light means) integrated with an efficient sustainable public transport (two sizes electric buses). In addition, the project will introduce rental of electric cars and special scooters for disabled managed by local entrepreneurs.
– Implementation of two hubs / parkings, one in La Maddalena (Moneta neighborhood) and one in Caprera (Stagnali marina) where to leave private cars and rent electric vehicles and proceed with sustainable public transports; or enjoy the island renting bikes, or proceed on foot. Each hub will be provided with info point, ticket office, toilets and waiting area
– Construction of a bicycle lane; making safe of the existing road system. The newly built bicycle lane will connect La Maddalena’s parking lot with Caprera, providing a safe access.
– Implementation of a sustainable “sea route” through the purchase of a 50-seat hybrid propulsion boat (Palau – La Maddalena – Caprera)
– Provision of 2 sizes electric buses, to reach beaches and sites of historical interest.
– Rental of pedal assisted bicycles, scooters for the disabled, electric cars.
– To allow disabled people to reach autonomously some beaches, accessible wooden decks will be built; this will also protect the dunes from coastal erosion.

Public outreach, education and awareness efforts and results:

The sustainable mobility project involves changes introduced at various levels; holistic approach, we think, is the power of this project. We aim to change the way people live / perceive Caprera, introducing the concept of “Caprera as an urban park”. We aim people to experiment new, ecofriendly means of transport. We strongly believe in the power of best practices, which educate people through experience and inspire them to go the extra mile in their ecofriendly Caprera journey.
In both hubs and at Stagnali marina educational panels will be installed, to show the purposes of the project and how / how much people contributed to these by not using carbon based vehicles; the environmental guides, which will be necessarily hired to reach some of the most sensitive beaches, will explain the principles of carbon emission reduction. If travelling with the electric boat or shared electric means of transport, information material about how to reduce further CO2 emission will be provided.
We strongly believe that this complex of actions will be the first important step toward a Carbon – free Caprera Island.

Economic value added and how calculated:

The main goal we aim to achieve, beside reduction of CO2 emission, is job creation. La Maddalena Archipelago still struggles to find its own economical vocation; the economic opportunities linked to the environment have not properly developed yet. This project gives the chances to create jobs in the following (to mention some): bike rentals, parking / hubs management, electric cars rental, personnel for the hybrid boat (a new route will be introduced), environmental guides. All these jobs will be prerogatives of cooperatives or small local businesses and will be closely linked to CO2 reduction strategies. We estimate that tourists will spend on these facilities about 7.5 euros each, as an average; we consider 100,000 tourists during the high season (year touristic presence reaches 180,000 and it is constantly increasing). This leads to an added economic value of 750,000 euros / year, only referred to high season; the value increases considering that these facilities will be available throughout the year. On the other hand, the value of CO2 emission will be cut more than in a half.

Ecological and social project outcomes:

Ecological:
– Immediate decrease in CO2 emissions and concentrations, due to traffic closure to non-electric vehicles
– Reduction of anthropic pressure on the beaches and high sensitive areas, due to the redistribution of tourist presences, and consequent reduction of coastal erosion.
– Reduction of anthropic impact on the dune ecosystem
– Enhance of Posidonia meadows state of health

– Reduction of the impact that motor vehicles have on the ecosystem, in terms of noise pollution and vibrations

Social:
– Caprera will be fully accessible to people on wheelchairs, who can rent electric 4-wheeled scooters; access to some beaches through walkways.
– Improvement of the experience of the island, once the vehicular non-electric traffic will be closed.
– Slow mobility brings people together, merges their paths, leads to sharing.
– Direct contact with nature through “active” tourism: mountain biking, walking, horse riding.
– A natural space will be given back to residents and tourists; this will encourage connection to the environment, social interaction, passive recreation and physical activities.
– Direct involvement of the local community in the whole process.

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