Research

Citizens and local authorities play a crucial role in the transition to sustainable mobility. Despite successful strategies, there are still challenges such as protests against approaches that question the prevailing car regime. The 15-minute city challenges the existing car-dominated system and the UNLOCK15 project aims to empower citizens to overcome behavioral, technological and institutional barriers that hinder the transition to this concept. The project addresses barriers related to citizen and stakeholder participation, institutional learning and the development of locally rooted narratives for people-centered planning. It comprises eight work packages that form the basis for the transition to the 15-minute city. The first methodological pillar includes a literature review and historical analysis to understand barriers, examine past transitions and identify pathways to sustainable mobility. Learning Living Labs across five mid-size cities in Europe facilitate theoretical and practical approaches. The second pillar focuses on applying knowledge to each Learning Living Lab, understanding blockages and developing tools to raise awareness, persuade and engage. Empowerment tools are used to overcome blockages and are analyzed with regard to infrastructural, behavioral and institutional aspects. Stakeholder perspectives on the 15-minute city, both for and against, will be assessed to guide the transition. The final outcome of the project will include a summary of the findings from the Living Labs, their translation into plans and policy recommendations, complemented by webinars and courses.

Healthy travelling means being actively mobile. The health benefits of active mobility are primarily generated through exercise, whether walking, cycling or scootering. At the same time, pedestrians and cyclists are particularly sensitive to their (traffic) environment, the desirable characteristics of which are reflected in the indicators of the Healthy Streets approach. These include street safety, green space, quality of life through seating and play areas, shade, good air quality, low noise levels and optimally designed infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists. In its 2024 - 2028 framework work programme, the „Fonds Gesundes Österreich“ has defined the funding priority ‘Healthy Travelling - Active Mobility & Healthy Streets’ in the living environment ‘Municipalities, Cities and Regions’. On the one hand, this is about promoting active mobility in the municipal setting, and on the other hand, the ©Healthy Streets concept is to be pursued or established in the applicant municipalities for the first time in Austria. With quality-assured processes and suitable measures, both approaches can make an essential contribution not only to health promotion, but also to climate protection. The AMOHS project aims to support the funding call, supervise the funded projects and evaluate the processes and measures implemented in the projects. The scientific focus is on evaluation. The question concentrates on the effectiveness of measures to promote active mobility and health promotion with regard to a sustainable change in health and mobility behaviour, as well as on the feasibility and impact of the Healthy Streets approach. In the sense of Third Mission, the project results and lessons learnt will be disseminated not only in the scientific community but also in the municipalities themselves.

In Austria, 2/3 of the population live in rural areas. In these regions in particular, young people experience mobility as "car-orientated", and many young people associate private cars with freedom and independence. Offers for active mobility, sharing or demand-responsive transport are little known, unpopular or simply do not exist. The EMOJI project focuses on solutions for a regional mobility supply guarantee that are co-designed and supported by young people. In pilot regions (Upper Austria, Styria), we will evaluate existing ideas for sustainable, regional mobility provision for young people and prepare them for sustainable implementation. Information on the willingness of municipalities to ensure mobility supply suitable for young people and on perceived barriers to the implementation of good mobility solutions will be collected. Existing offers, examples of good practice and measures that have been "put on hold" will be examined for their suitability and their feasibility. The resulting framework concept should contain easily transferable, necessary principles and recommendations that enable municipalities to define and implement needs-based, attractive mobility offers with and for young people. The concept is developed in a participatory process together with young people, representatives of municipalities and relevant stakeholders in municipalities. The development of the regional solution approach is evidence-based and orientated towards the mobility needs of young people and their perceived hurdles as well as the needs and scope for action of the municipalities. The final output of the project is a framework concept for the development of a mobility offer tailored to young people in the model regions and support for decision-makers during implementation.